Library classes

[Shayne Russell <srussell@OMNI.VOICENET.COM>]

I guess this is either a scheduling or a time management question from a new
librarian to those of you with experience.  My school, which is brand new,
has a fixed schedule for the media center.  We are a 5th and 6th grade
school, with the 6th grade teachers all coming from the old middle school
where there were no regularly scheduled library classes, and the 5th grade
teachers coming from 4 or 5 elementary schools where there were.  A 6th
grade teacher asked me today if the kids were going to have time to browse
for books when they come to the library (an odd question I thought...).
Apparently her experience had been that one week the librarian would teach,
and the next the kids would just look for books.  She feels kids will be
turned off if there is a lesson EVERY week (I told her that depends on what
we do!).  I certainly don't think kids need 40 minutes to browse for books,
but on the other hand, in the school I was in last year, I felt frustrated
because I usually had only about 20 minutes of a 40 minute period to
"teach", and then I wouldn't see the kids again for a week.  There was no
continuity and it was hard to accomplish anything meaningful.  Is there some
other way to handle this?  The media center is not scheduled first period,
ninth period, or during my lunch.  We have nine 40 minute periods a day and
about 850 kids in the school in 35 classes.  I do have an aide 5 hours a
day.  Any thoughts?

Shayne Russell
Mt. Laurel Hartford School
Mt. Laurel, NJ
srussell@omni.voicenet.com