HIT: Kindergarten Circ. Policies, part 5

[Dunrobins@AOL.COM]

    Hi!  I let my K's take home books from day one.  The teachers send home a
letter to parents explaining our circulation policy with the first book.
 Throughout the year K's are limited to one book at a time.  First graders
may have 2 books; second 2 books; third 3 books; fourth 4 books; fifth 5
books.  In the case where a child needs additional books for research
projects, exceptions are made.  All student books circulate for 2 weeks and
may be renewed up to 3 times.  Hope this helps!
     Toni (ToniBuzzeo@aol.com)
     Longfellow School
     432 Stevens Ave.
     Portland, ME 04103
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X-From:lucicc@umd5.umd.edu (Cheatwood - Luci C.)

My kinders check out books and have a great return rate.  I have them
take a pledge and require that parents sign a permission slip.  I tell
parents what day students come to library etc.

It's worked so far for me.
Good luck!
Luci Cheatwood
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I let kindergarten students begin borrowing one book about the second or
third week of school.  Beforehand I send a letter home to parents based on
one from the old (I Think) Davidson library skills series.  It gives some
tips on book care and the rules for borrowing.
The first few weeks I try to keep children in the picture book section but as
the requests for dinosaurs, snakes, etc start they move into the non-fiction.
Borrowing is for one week since they have a weekly scheduled class.  If they
wish to return it earlier and take another that is fine.  I keep track of
who doesn't return their book so that no one accumulates their own
collection!
After selecting a book, children come up to the circulation desk and tell the
parent volunteer their name.  She signs the book card and signs the book out
for the child.

We don't have overdue fines.

Hope this helps.

Kathy Helmrich
Melissa Jones School
Guilford, CT  06437
jonest@biomed.med.yale.edu
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I allow kindergarten students to check out books by October.  To prepare
them, I hold a series of lessons to introduce care of books, locating
books on the shelf, and the check out process itself (We are NOT
automated yet, so the students must still learn to write their names on
cards.)

Each day of the series of lessons the students practice what they have
learned.  One of the lessons involves checking books out to the classroom
and practicing how to return them.

There is a LOT of excitement building about the first day the students
can take their library books home.  When that day comes, I enclose a note
to the parents with the LMC policies for book check-out and when the
books are due each week.

I allow the kindergarten students to only check out 1 book at a time, BUT
they are allowed to come in every day to exchange books.  This has been
a very popular policy at my school with the teachers and parents.  I also
encourage parents to check out books for their families, since the public
library is not very convenient for our community.  Parents are allowed to
check out three books at a time.

I would encourage you to err on the side of access.  We want the youngest
students to get in the habit of using the LMC for reading, so we need to
make it convenient and accessible from the start   I don't find that a
"liberal" check out policy for kinder students causes a big problem with
lost or damaged books, although that certainly happens.  I see it as part
of the educational process: teaching students responsibility for their
materials.

Good luck!
Jeanne Clark
Library Media Specialist
Mission West Elementary School
Fort Bend ISD
7325 Clodine Reddick Rd.
Houston. TX  77083
jeannel@tenet.edu
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