Thanks again to all who responded to my question about primary students
checking out books geared for middle schoolers! I received 18 responses
from people with a variety of policies and procedues. WeI have been
using the "veto at the desk" method, and we have blue dots on the books
that are especially good for primary students. I am now planning to add
YA stickers to the books that are especially for the oldest students.
Now all I need is a fool-proof way of determining which books get that
YA designation - and which students get to check them out - and how
strictly to enforce that - but that's another post for another day, I
suppose. :o)
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We put red stickers on Jr Hi only titles and allow the Jr Hi to check
them
out with no restrictions, and 5th-6th graders as long as they have
signed
permission slips from their parents on file with me. Lower grades are
told
they have to wait to read them (although I don't police them looking at
them
in the library), and they only grumble a little bit. And those books fly
off
the shelves each new year when a new crop of 5th graders arrives
<grin>!!
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You're in an awkward spot. When I opened up my previous site (a K - 8)
we were fortunate to have a large enough area for primary picture books
AND nonfiction. Beginning in 3rd grade they were permitted (upon teacher
permission) to browse in the upper grade areas. For the middle school
level texts that weren't appropriate for 5th and under, we put a neon
orange 3/4" dot on the back of the book right next to the checkout
barcode (on some dots we penned in a 7 or an 8 if that was the
appropriate grade level). This way, the attendant at the circ desk could
be sure it was going out to the appropriate age child. However, I never
totally refused to check any book out because I didn't want to have
negative feelings about the library. If I felt it was inappropriate, I
simply told the student to bring a signed note from home giving him
permission. That ended the situation - no one ever turned up with a
note.
If it's the cover that's causing initial attraction, perhaps you could
make a colored copy of the cover without the offending pictures, then
place that in a cellophane jacket and recover the book.
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Dear Sara - We are K - 5 and I still have to steer the K / 1 away from
the books they like because of the cover. Sometimes I say they have to
stay in the Easy area but that is hard because they love non-fiction! I
have bought some stand up shelves to display eye-catching non-fiction
that is appropriate and I keep them in their area. I also do say at the
desk - you know this looks like a book you'll want to read when you are
older but it is too hard right now ...
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I add YA stickers, and only allow grades 6-8 to check out. However, I
have
some very advanced readers in 4th and 5th grades (like a 12th grade
reading
level!) who, with parent permission, are allowed to read them, too. I
always talk to the parents and explain the reasoning behind the YA
stickers.
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I am also in a K-8 library and have found that putting YA stickers on
the books has helped a great deal. Grades 6-8 are allowed to check out
the books with YA on them, but K-5 are not. I just tell the younger
students that this is a middle school book and that when they get to
middle school they will be free to read it. They usually seem to like
the idea that there are books for older kids in the library and don't
complain.
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I use a small yellow dot at the top of the spine to indicate the Young
Adult
books (only because such dots are much cheaper than standard YA
stickers).
These books can only be checked out by grades 5-8. It is easy to
configure
your circulation system (I use Follett Circulation Plus) to accommodate
this. My K-4 graders are in the patron system as "students"; my 5-8
graders
are in the system as "middle schoolers". The regular books may be
checked
out by both types of patrons, while the YA books may only be checked
out by
"middle schoolers".
This system works well for me and the students. You are quite correct
that
what is appropriate for an 8th grader is often not appropriate for a 1st
grader. Everyone understands this and accepts the circulation system.
In
fact, it is a big deal to the new fifth graders each year when their
status
is changed in the computer and they get to check out the "yellow dot
books"!!
Also, I have a system in place whereby a 3rd or 4th grader can bring a
written note from their parent, and be eligible to check out the YA
books; I
simply change the student's status in the computer to a middle schooler
upon
receipt of the note, which I file.
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Sara, I'm in a 1-5 school and still have the same issue. I go with "veto
at
the desk" because it allows more flexibility and discretion.
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I like to tell my students that I have two libraries (three, if you
count my
newish YA section). Conveniently, I was able to fit all of my picture
book
and easy non-fiction and juvenile fiction (grades 3-5) on low shelves
which sit
in the middle of the library. I tell them if the bookcase is taller
than
they are, it contains books for the older students.
I use YA stickers and have a YA section which I used to keep on a cart
which
would be put away when grades 7 and 8 were not in the library. Well, I
outgrew the cart last year and the students wrote that they wanted the
books on
the shelves marked just for them in my end of year survey. So I have a
section
marked YA.
I don't have an aide and most of my mom volunteers are from grades four
and
down. So I can really monitor what grades 5 and up are taking. It's
harder
when there's a volunteer because they might not pick up inappropriate
books.
While I would love to be laissez-faire about it, the teachers have a
point
when they say that choosing library books should be about practicing
reading
skills. If I am continually letting them choose these huge books for the
pictures or in hopes that an interested parent can read to them, when
will they
practice their own reading? We have compromised somewhat with a one book
to
read, one chapter book policy that seems to be working.
I have a problem with grades 1 and 2 boys wanting war and weapon books.
They
sniff them out. I just tell them that they are not for first grade and
that
usually ends it. They have also sniffed out our human body books and any
books
that have naked people in them, i.e. David, Goblins in Green, etc. I
tell
the boys that if they are truly interesting in learning how the body
works,
they are free to take the book, but if I see them being silly and
teasing the
girls, I will take the book away.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
If I "catch" the student (they scan their barcodes & books
themselves...) I
usually ask them to take another look at the book & decide if it is a
"good" book to take home. Naturally we don't always catch them...have
had
parents return books as "not appropriate." My part-time aide or I
explain
how the sign-out procedure works & recommend (gently) that the parent
discuss "appropriate books" with his/her child.
When students are grabbing 'any' book - I announce that they will have
to
do the five-finger-test for me before they can sign out.
A grade one teacher just started reading the Magic Tree House series to
her
class. When the students arrived for their library period, most of them
wanted to sign out MTH. Soooo - we had a lesson on the five-finger test.
Then I had the students practice using the MTH books (already in their
hands). They all ended up with '5 fingers up' (too difficult for now). I
suggested that they practice "really hard" & maybe by spring break (6
weeks) they would be able to read the books. A couple that still
persisted...told them that Mom or Dad was welcome to come in and sign
the
books out to read to them. [It would have been nice to have had some
advance notice from the teacher, but...]
I am happy to add parents as 'patrons' & figure if they are signing out,
they're reading to their child(ren).
--------------------------------------------------------------------
At the private K-8 school, students wore uniforms. The 6-8 grade
students wore green shirts. I put green dots on the spine of the fiction
books I felt were more appropriate for middle school but not anyone
else. I would take the book from a younger student at the circulation
desk and just say - "oh this is for green shirts. You'll be a green
shirt soon." I did have some parents come in and say their child could
read anything- I explained some green shirt books had (take your pick-
profanity, sex, etc) but would put a note on the child's circ record
that they had parental permission to check anything out.
It worked. The books were on the shelf with everything else. I don't
think I had kids reading the "good" parts secretly- but who knows.
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I am in a conservative school district in a building that serves grades
6-12. I have continued the previous practice of placing dots on books
that would not be considered by some to be appropriate for middle school
students. Rather than making them forbidden, the phrase used is
"recommended for high school students and/or adults." Middle school
students can check out the dotted books with a signed permission form on
file.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't separate out non-fiction but I do separate out books that I
consider mature themes or more appropriate for 10 and up. These are in a
separate section on the otherside of our collection after non-fiction
and biographies so that younger children aren't browsing them. We also
sticker them YA more for ease of shelving than anything else.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I am in a 5-8 building, and 5th graders are so different from 8th. I use
YA stickers for books that only the 7th and 8th graders can check out.
It's not a hard and fast rule. If the teacher vouches for the student,
and we know why it's marked YA, then I let the younger student check it
out.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I actually have my PK-8th library divided into three areas. E, J and YA.
PK-1 check out from the E area only, 2 can check out from E or J, 3-4
check out from J only, 5 use J or YA and 6-8 use YA or J if necessary.
If
a younger student has a higher reading ability (i.e. 1st grade reading
on
a 3rd grade level, then the classroom teacher notifies me and the
student
chooses additional higher level books when they can visit the library
without the rest of the class - they still choose from the assigned area
when they come with their class. Yes, I have turned some students down
at
the circulation desk for choosing inappropriate reading for their level.
I
ask if they can read the book in one or two weeks, have them read a
random
few lines and check for comprehension as well.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please post a hit. We have that ongoing problem although we are K-5. We
had a book about World War II which had a couple photos of dead soldiers
and other graphic things like that. Somehow it went home with a first
grader and his mother had a fit because she felt he should not be
exposed to that. . Next thing, one of his classmates wanted it, and we
told him it was a 5th grade book. Then that kid's mother got mad and
sent in a note that she wanted him to have it. Then that kid was showing
it all around in class and gloating that he had it and the other kid
couldn't. Well, WW II is actually no longer in our curriculum and the
book was rather shabby and worn so I deleted it.
We have been known at other times to take books from kids and tell them
it's a 5th grade book or whatever. Usually that flies pretty well.
I did have an interesting experience in my previous job as a middle
school librarian. My predecessor had a cart full of books marked YA and
she only brought out the cart when 8th grade came in. She left me
instructions to do the same. First I learned that none of the other
middle schools did that, they had the books on the regular shelves.
Then, a new 6th grader came in and wanted a Stephen King book which was
on that cart. He said he and his mother had read almost all of them but
didn't have that particular one. So I let him check it out. Then, I put
all the YA's out on the shelves and when I did orientation for the
classes I told them that YA meant PG-13 and that they should not check
out anything they knew their parents would not want them to read, and if
they checked out something and it was scary or upsetting to simply close
the book and return it.
Of course that was grades 6-8. If I had K-8 I might have a separate YA
area near the desk.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
When in this situation, first grade up had to have at least one book
they could read. It took longer to get books, but well worth it in the
long run. I told them it was payment to their parents who had read to
them all these years, now they needed one book they could read to them.
The other book could be whatever they chose.
The first couple of weeks of this new rule (usually started it in
January because most of them could read the simple books by then) I
would borrow students from the 4th or 5th grades to be listening ears.
Since I could not listen and do checkout for everybody. It was great
for the older kids, they could easily help with the words in these books
and really made them feel wonderful and the little guys really looked up
to them and would seek them out. 3 or 4 usually were enough.
Was standard in the other grades, they had to have one they could read
and one other. I used the how old are you rule. 6 years old, great if
you miss 6 words on a fairly full page of text it is probably too hard.
If you don't miss any, it's probably too easy. You want to miss about
half your age so you are learning. Then we'd giggle about how many
words I had to miss. The most important piece is to explain the two
kinds of missing a word. Can't sound it out is a miss and you sound it
out to be a word but now it doesn't make sense in the story. If it
doesn't make sense you aren't reading are you?
This really worked for me and the kids loved that they got to miss more
as they got older before it was too hard.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
As a JK-6th grade school librarian, here's my approach. I teach the
kids starting in first grade to look for books that they can enjoy and
finish during the week-long checkout period. That way when the second
grader wants to take Harry Potter, even if s/he is capable of reading
it, I say, can you finish that book in a reasonable period of time?
Most of them realize that they would need 3 or 4 weeks to finish a long
book and I tell them if someone is waiting for the book, I won't renew
it for them because they need to bring it back and give someone else a
chance to check it out. This way it's about length and content. They
start to understand that they can't get through these books and that's
not fun.
In this way, I'm not being bossy and giving them "forbidden fruit" but
rather I set them up so that they have something to look forward to
getting as they progress. I also try to take a bit of time with
students and I make copius notes so that if I have a child with a
particular interest and need more books to suit their taste I can look
for them and purchase some for the following school year if I don't have
them presently. I've also started giving the kids index cards at the
beginning of the year and asking them to write down a subject or two
which interests them. That way I can file the cards by last name and
pull them out and look at them when kids are stuck or I suspect that
they are in a "reading rut" and I need to suggest some new titles to
them.
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In my K-8 Catholic School, I've set up a "guideline" system. In the
backs of books I put a green, blue, or pink line. Green is for third
grade and above, blue for sixth and above, pink for seventh and eighth.
I explain the system to the students and it's up to them to check the
books. Sometimes someone will ask for an exception and based upon the
book and student I'll say "no problem." I sometimes say, "That's not
the best book for you right now." I don't check the books when they are
brought for check-out.
I also put red lables on non-fiction appropriate for primary grades.
The students like it because they know they can check out from any area
of non-fiction, but need to look for the red labels.
I had a situation where a parent was upset about the book his daughter
checked-out. I checked it and it was a "blue line" book. I explained
that she knew the guidelines, but chose not to follow them. I've also
had a parent request that her 4th grade daughter not have to follow
them. Fine, but the responsibility is hers for book selection.
I like this method because I'm not saying no, I'm giving guidance. The
lines aren't absolute and not perfect. But, with 472 students, fixed
schedule, and no aide, this system has helped. Also, after December I
tell 5th grade they can check out the blue line books. They get so
excited.
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Sara Reinders, LMS
Ada Christian School
Ada, MI
sreinders@adachristian.org
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