Sorry for the delay in posting a hit!
My original question was:
Which is better: being an Elementary, Middle, or High School librarian?
Why?
Renee Thompson
Browne Academy
--------------------->
Renee, why ask? What is better for one personality and situation is different for
each. ???
Pat Bartoshesky, Librarian
Highlands School (k-5)
Wilmington, Delaware , USA
bartoapple@comcast.net
I have worked all three and by far secondary is best. The elementary librarians to
often are used as release time (planning time) and must teach no matter what
incuding the first and last day of school. This leaves little time for anything
else. In the secondary if you can handle the adolescent 'tudes Then your time is a
little more flexible. But I do love the little ones, all that wiggling and
enthusiasm...but I am grateful for summer.
Rebecca Vasilakis
District Library Media Specialist
Amanda Clearcreek LSD
Amanda, OH
becky_vasilakis@amanda.k12.oh.us
Hi!
This really depends on your personality.
I have done all three (sometimes at the same time) and have to say that
personally, I love the elementary best simply because it is SO exciting to be with
little ones who really want to read and are excited about the concept of learning
this new thing. Since I do not think of myself as a "child" person (single--never
been married--like kids but don't dote on them like others) nor am I overly
creative so this always surprises me, but I am very happy to be back in the
elementary enviornment this year after 2 years of being with older kids.
Middle School--you really have to be the patient type who just can put up
with the teenage hormones and keep them under control without restricting their
creative minds. I have seen really wonderful middle school librarians who always
have great ideas on how to keep kids motivated, but to me that is the toughest age
group for me to deal with.
High School--good for those who enjoy teaching research and computer skills.
I have seen many high school librarians who can "hide" in an office and just
occasionally come out and patrol the stacks to make sure the students are working
and get away with it.
I have also seen those who really make an effort to interact with the students and
teach them great things to do with computer databases and such--but you really have
to have the mentality to WANT to connect with the students.
My 2 cents--take it for what it's worth.
Carol Van Brocklin
Librarian
Faith Academy-DAvao
Davao City, Philippines
Renee,
In my opinion, the best level is elementary or high school. I have a theory
about Middle School age adolescents that's not flattering: 1) They're undergoing
significant physiological changes many don't understand and have difficulty coping;
2) they're rebeling against all authority: parental, educational, legal; 3) many
are trying to personify a character similar to BMOC [Big Man/Woman on Campus];
4) some of them aren't all that smart to begin with.
When you put all that together it's almost a sure recipe for disaster. Teaching
middle school chorus was one of the things that helped me decide to retire.
Since then I've had so many bizarre experiences subbing in middle schools that I'm
writing a book about it. Tentative title: Educational
Circuit-Riding: Getting Over on the Sub.
On the other hand, I was a K-5 school librarian near Tokyo for 18 years and loved
it. During that time I wired 7 new campus bldgs for CCTV; recorded/dubbed Japanese
TV shorts on animals/transportation that I translated/narrated for class use. I
telecast the Geography Bee annually. The only drawback I encountered in elementary
school was the fact that I after 6 hours a day, 5 days a week with little kids, I
found myself frequently communicating in single syllables.
I wanted adult interaction, so I wound up working as a broadcast journalist in
Tokyo which was great. Very lucrative & it provided the best writing job I've ever
had. Working for Newsweeker--theJapanese/Eng. ed. of Newsweek. My job was to
write/narrate a 3-minute commentary on the publication's cartoon/quotation p.
each week for about a month while the guy I was subbing for had a hip replacement.
It was about the time Kitty Kelly's unauthorized bio of Nancy Reagen was published.
I'm not a fan of either so I skewered them both & made about $200 an hour.
I was a high school librarian in Okinawa for a couple years & liked that. Now
I'm a Librarian-Media Teacher here in California @ Colton High and really like it.
The LMC has just been modernized. My boss, who began about the same time I did, is
a seminary grad who is a seasoned ed vet and great to work for.
Colleagues are good and students are too. Perhaps the saddest part is the fact
that as a para @ a terrific ele. school told me, high school kids don't read. She
was offered a job @ a new high school & turned it down because of that. But now
she's @ a middle school which is what she wanted.
Our high school students are generally good kids but don't want to read. I won
an ALA/Nat. Endowment for the Humanities grant last year that got our LMC 18 new
bks in Eng./Span. Because of that I was committed to establish a Book Club @ our
school. I collaborated with Eng. teachers, book talked everything from the Mad
magazine issue with Alfred E. Newman on the cover with his face pock marked with
buckshot standing next to VP Cheney with a shotgun. I emoted about the incredible
personality debacle committed by a Harvard psychology grad in As Nature Made Him:
the Boy Who was Raised as a Girl.
I've scheduled 2 Bk Club meetings & so far only one student has come and our
student body is about 3,100.
I'm making 1 more stab at it May 29th & if I can't get at least 6 kids for the
officers required to be a campus organization, I'm going to give up & offer to
return the books to ALA/NEH. The only bad thing about my current job is the
commute through a 6-mile construction corridor which is a hotbed of road rage
peopled by some drivers packing heat. A year ago last spring a driver was shot &
killed there.
I don't know why but there's an arrogant impatience abroad on America's roads
that is just not healthy. I always engage my Cruise Control @ the speed limit and
then get out of the way but the speeders are angry at anyone who obeys the legal
limits. Having said all that, as much as I enjoyed retirement after 31 years in
Canada & Japan, they're gonna have to carry me out of my current job with my feet
up because I really
like Colton High.
Larry "Library" Retzack,
BA, MM, MA, Ph.D. candidate,
Librarian-Media Teacher,
Colton (CA) High School,
777 W Valley BLVD,
Colton CA 92324-2251.
Hi Renee,
Interesting question. I get the best of two of three of those worlds because I am
in a K - 8 school. I see all 530 students once a week because I am prep for most
teachers. While it can be a challenge, especially this year when I go from having
kindergarten one period to grade 8 the next and grade 7 followed by grade 1
followed by grade 6 on another day with an 8th/3rd one-two punch on Friday!
I have been school librarian for six years, but I was the aide for three years
prior to that. Last year's eighth grade was the first class I knew as
kindergartners from when I was an aide. I had the present fifth grade as
kindergartners the first year that I was librarian. I enjoy seeing the changes in
the kids and watching them grow.
I still read to my middle school students quite regularly and have read the same
picture book K - 8 if it is outstanding. I use picture books when I hear that
students are learning something curriculum related in the middle school as well. I
like discussing current events, books and issues with the older students and I just
get a kick out of the joy that younger students have when I pick a book for them
that they end up loving.
i did my internship at out high school during summer school. I did not think that I
would enjoy high school students. But I found that I liked it very much. Different
challenges, increased focus on research, difficulty learning names of students. I
wouldn't mind working at a high school at all although I would miss the stories. I
did manage to insert a booktalk on historical fiction with Shakespeare as a
character when I had to lecture on Shakespeare resources though and I think I would
try and have book discussion clubs and graphic novel clubs if I were at a high
school. I did receive the ultimate compliment from a senior, she told me that I
should be a high school librarian.
Brenda Kahn
Librarian/ Webmaster
Haworth Public School
i did my internship at out high school during summer school. I did not think that I
would enjoy high school students. But I found that I liked it very much. Different
challenges, increased focus on research, difficulty learning names of students. I
wouldn't mind working at a high school at all although I would miss the stories. I
did manage to insert a booktalk on historical fiction with Shakespeare as a
character when I had to lecture on Shakespeare resources though and I think I would
try and have book discussion clubs and graphic novel clubs if I were at a high
school. I did receive the ultimate compliment from a senior, she told me that I
should be a high school librarian.
Brenda Kahn
Librarian/ Webmaster
Haworth Public School
will step up and next on this challenge.
There is no difference between any of them. It is up to your personality and your
likes and dislikes.
I have been a school librarian for every level except 4 5.
Did I like middle school? NO - but that is because I prefer high school students
who love to argue, investigate, and ponder.
Did I like elementary? YES. I got to use all my theatre training - told stories-
use puppets, etc. Loved it but I prefer high school.
Did I enjoy my years as a public librarian? Yes. But I prefer high school - that is
why I am still a high school library in my 42nd year of library service.
One can not compare them - or state that one is better than the other.
Allan
Dr. Allan O'Grady Cuseo, MGC
Director of Library Services
Bishop Kearney High School | A Golisano Education Partner
125 Kings Highway South
Rochester, New York 14617
585.342.4000 x231
585.342.4694 (fax)
I have been an elementary, middle and a high school librarian. In college I worked
in the college library and in high school I worked in the public library. I can
honestly say that I loved all of them. Presently, I split my time between our high
school and our middle school. They are very different but I enjoy both. In fact,
I really like sharing my time between the two.
Beth Takacs
Media Specialist
Pittsgrove Township Middle School
Arthur P. Schalick High School
Pittsgrove, NJ
takacse@pittsgrove.k12.nj.us
After having spent 12 years as a K-12 LMS and now a 9-12 LMS, I can truly say HIGH
SCHOOL!
Why? I enjoy the age group..I enjoy research...teenagers..everything. I don't miss
story time, runny noses, "tattle tails", etc..I'm much more suited to the older
ones.
Charlotte Nance
Library Media Specialist
Edmond Memorial High School
1000 E. 15th St.
Edmond, OK 73013
(405) 715-6524
Go Bulldogs!
Yes. It's the "being a librarian" part!
--
Susan Grigsby, Teacher-Librarian
Tate Elementary School
Tate, Georgia
susan.grigsby@gmail.com
YES!
It depends on your desire. Do you love the research, the digging for information?
Joking with your students and asking them about their lives as you help them be
successful. Then secondary is for you. If you love talking books, and inspiring
students to read, teaching information skills and being hugged all the time then
elementary level is for you.
Jean
R. Jean Gustafson
Selah Jr. High
Selah, WA 98942
jeangustafson@selah.k12.wa.us
http://www.selah.k12.wa.us/JHS/Gustafson/Library.cfm
I have worked in both elementary and middle school as a teacher and librarian.
Overall, I prefer to teach library in the elementary level. I thoroughly enjoy the
interaction with the younger kids and feel like I have more of a connection with
many more students. At the middle school, it was harder to get to know the kids
when they are only in the library for short visits or research classes. My favorite
part of my job is reading stories to classes and I didn't have many opportunities
to do that on the middle school level. In addition, the middle school library was
also a holding ground for disruptive students, or places that kids were sent when
there was no where else for them to go. Babysitting became a chore. Since I had a
full-time assistant, I was also asked to cover classes when substitutes were not
available. At times I felt like I needed to justify my job more at the upper level.
Even though I was working VERY hard, often other teachers would only see me at the
computer or reading materials to share for collaborations and curriculum ties.
Hope this helps!
Alexis Cuff
It depends on the individual. To me they are all good, you just have to find the
right fit.
Kay
I have been a middle school librarian for 12 years. At first I had a hard time
adjusting to this age group after having taught high school English for five years.
I now love my job. I would not, however, be opposed to moving to a high school
library. I loved teaching young adults versus newly emerging teens.
Becky Mosbacher
Having been all those, plus an academic library circulation manager at a college, I
would say - it depends. Do you enjoy working with youngsters, can you keep your
cool when challenged by 13 yr olds, can you handle the mood swings of teenage girls
and boys? Are you good at discipline - older ones need this, but you have to be
consistent and able to handle challenges.
Do you work better with adults.
How assertive can you be? Are you the type who is quiet and calming - or
can you laugh at outrageous jokes and still keep order? All these
personality things will affect your ability to do your job.
Then you can decide what job challenges you are comfortable with: Do you like to
read aloud and can you be creative; do you like more structure to your day or can
you go with the flow; are you willing to put in extra time or do you prefer set
hours to your day?
Personally, I loved ( and now miss) being with the young ones- reading story
getting all worked up over the story and illustrations, being creative in getting
them started with reading and libraries. I also enjoyed the middle:
watching them get the hang of doing research, and enjoying their enthusiasms.
Teenagers are another story and I am glad I have settled here at an all-boys school
as mood swings in boys isn't as "dramatic" as in girls. But I still have the
challenge of extremely bright students who love to see if they can get the upper
hand or will try to circumvent rules and procedures if they can. They also can be
a discipline challenge so I am
glad the Administration here is extremely supportive. In the college, I
had set hours, set duties and it was completely different. There, it was more
keeping everything in order and directing. These student knew what they wanted,
they just needed to be told where in the building it was - or some suggestions on
where to start.
I am glad I was able to be at all these levels, and now as I am getting near
retirement, glad I am where I am. I don't think I have the energy for a full-time
job with the youngest groups, but I hope to do some volunteering with them when I
do retire.
Hope this answers your question...Thank goodness we are not all alike and that
there is room for so many different personalities and abilities in our profession.
Toni Koontz
Librarian
St.Charles Preparatory School
Columbus,Ohio
akoontz@cdeducation.org
Carpe Diem
I prefer middle because I love this age group. Middle also seems to have an equal
mix of the focus on books and technology. In our area, the elementary has more of
a focus on books and high has more of a focus on technology.
Denise Borck
Media Specialist
William James Middle School
18809 Highway 80 West
Statesboro, GA 30458
912-764-2752
Elementary is usually a fixed schedule, but they soak up everything and fewest
discipline problems.
Shirley Patrick, Librarian
Canton Junior High School
1115 South Buffalo St.
Canton, TX 75103
903-567-4329 x 3118
Fax903-567-1298
slpatric@ednet10.net
I LOVE the high school level. I like being able to go to graduation and see the
culmination of all of our hard work. And personally, I just relate better to high
school kids. I form relationships with them and really enjoy them. I also get
involved with a lot of hs activities: I am a class advisor and I love to
participate in pep assemblies and things like that.
Marsha Redd
Librarian, Kelloggsville High School
Grand Rapids, MI
marsharedd@hotmail.com
Education is not a goal; it is a life-long process. Everyone is a student.
Everyone is a teacher.
Renee,
At one time or another, I have been a librarian at every grade level. I was
nervous about each move, wondering if I would like teaching that age. I have found
that every level has it's advantages and disadvantages, and that I enjoyed every
level I have taught. Older students are able to be more independent, cover more
challenging materials, and challenge me more as a librarian. Younger students
approach library with more "joi de vivre", and you can do so many fun things with
them while you introduce them to the world of books and stories. And middle school
students can be very intriguing characters, with a mix of abilities and interests.
You can do well with them, once you figure out who they are on any given day! The
bottom line for me is, I love the job with any age patron.
Linda L.
Linda Lucke
Learning Center Director
Butterfield School
1441 W. Lake Street
Libertyville, IL 60048
Libertyville, IL
LLucke@d70.k12.il.us
J. Renee,
I think that it all depends on where your interests and focus lie. I
definitely like the challenge of high school regarding research and academics. I
would have enjoyed myself at any level, but certainly feel more fulfilled at the
one I've been at since 1985.
Ed Nizalowski, SMS
Newark Valley High School
Newark Valley, NY
enizalowski@nvcs.stier.org
Renee -
There is no "one size fits all" here. You could also throw school v. public into
the mix. There are pluses and minuses, and personal preferences in each. You need
to look at your own situation, and evaluate individual positions.
Jill Brown, LMS
Nardin Academy
Buffalo, NY
buflib@yahoo.com
Renee,
I worked in the junior high (middle school now) from 1972 to 1979 and loved it. I
found that one day a student would be a child and the next day an adult. They are
still excited about life and learning. If I could have found a job at the middle
school level 20 years ago when I took this job I would have taken it instead.
Emily Jean Honaker, Library/Media Specialist Delaware Area Career Center 1610 St.
Rt. 521 Delaware, Ohio 43015
740-363-1993 ext. 2231
honakere@delawareareacc.org
I have been both an elementary and a high school librarian and I would say that
which is better depends on what is stimulating to you as the librarian. I found
happiness at both levels for different reasons. I loved the little ones and their
excitement and joy as beginning readers and discovering new reading challenges and
stories. I also enjoyed working with the older students as they engaged in
research activities. It was also a challenge for me to find ways to motivate the
older students to do more leisure reading. I think that it all depends on the
librarian and his/her personal abilities and tastes. As far as the students, I
found that the older ones were just "little kids in big skins". I liked and
enjoyed working with them all!
Connie Montalvo
Lead Librarian/Textbook Coordinator
Harlandale ISD
San Antonio, TX 78214
210-921-4345
ES! Actually I'm pK-12 so I do all of those. There are rewards and frustrations
with all levels. Some depends upon the individual's preference.
Anne Oelke
Library Media Specialist pK-12
Cambria-Friesland School District
Cambria, WI
mailto:cflibrary@cf.k12.wi.us
I vote for middle (I admit, I have only been in middle) because you get to do
everything. The students are familiar with media centers, so they can function
independently and you can expand upon their knowledge. Middle school students love
to be read to and you can even use picture-story books. With middle school students
you can do some pretty sophisticated research and the students are interested and
eager to learn. Middle school students will read -- everything -- all levels and
interests.
As you see -- I love middle school students.
Becky Stevens
William Lenoir Middle School
Lenoir, NC 28645
bstevens@caa.k12.nc.us
ELEMENTARY!!!
Because you get to be a lot more creative as far as arty activities, kids are a lot
easier to work with, they are funnier, kinder, more thankful and respectful, open
minded, and the list goes on and on.
Are you posting a hit?
Carolina Cuello
Elementary School Library
Asociación Escuelas Lincoln
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tel: (54-11) 4794-9400 (ext. 144)
I have been all three, and there are compensations for all. When I left
elementary, I sure missed reading to the kindergarteners. Elementary librarians
also get trapped in the fixed schedule problem which makes it tough, particularly
without help. I sometimes think elementary librarians are the hardest working of us
all. Middle school is great because, in spint of all the raging hormones, many many
kids still read.
The problem is that so many school districts have cut the clerical help at the
middle school level, which makes it tough. High schoolers are also fun (assuming
you like kids), but they are often so overscheduled with AP and Honors and
activities, that there is not much time for pleasure reading. Also, one has more
"reference librarian" duties, which I enjoy. And, the greater maturity is nice -
no more groups of girls around someone sobbing because her boyfriend of 3 days did
not speak this morning (almost always 7th grade). I am being a bit flip, I realize,
but I have enjoyed each level. However, at this point in my life, I am in favor of
high school.
Linda S. Wilson, Library/Teacher
McKay High School
2440 Lancaster Dr. NE
Salem, Oregon 97305
wilson_linda@salkeiz.k12.or.us
That depends on you, Renee. I loved being an elementary librarian because the kids
are loving and love to read and there are few behavior problems. Middle school is
harder (I'm middle and high now)because at least the kids at my school aren't
interested in reading. I like high school because I get to read all the wonderful
books I choose, adult and young adult, and it's more challenging. I've been working
hard at getting our hs kids to read more and it's working! You'll get many opinions
about this.
Marilyn
I used to be an elementary librarian, I was a volunteer at my childrens' middle
school and I am presently at a grades 6-12 school. My answer to your question
is..... YES! Each was different and I enjoyed them all. Depends on what you like to
do - right now I love having wonderful conversations (of the thoughtfully informed,
or the ridiculous and weird type!) with older kids. I miss the hugs and story time
that went with younger kids. It's all fun!
Cathy
-----------
Cathy Rettberg, MLIS
Head Librarian, Menlo School
Atherton, CA
crettberg@menloschool.org
Of course the answer is which is better for you. I had experience in all three. I
did not like elementary because the good lord did not mean for me to work with
little ones. My calling was junior high/middle, though I liked high school very
much and also junior college. I loved middle schoolers because they were a mix of
teen and child, with imagination and enthusiasm mixed with traits of older kids.
The bottom line for me was...they are ALL KIDS, even the hulking hs seniors. Give
them love and respect and you will get it back.--mabell
Dr. Mary Ann Bell
Associate Professor, Library Science
Sam Houston State University
Huntsville, TX
drmaryannbell@gmail.com
lis_mah@shsu.edu
All are the same and yet all are different. I like working with each age group and
have done it as well as being a children's librarian in a public library. Guess
you could say that I love books, children and library work. No matter age group I
have worked with, I've always enjoyed what I did.
Barb
Barb Schmitt
Gananda Middle School Library: GAS
Gananda Central School
1500 Dayspring Ridge
Walworth NY
14568
and high school, but I will not be a middle school librarian (I'm not an in your
face kind of person, which I think you need to be in a middle school). Elementary
is fun with lots of great stories to share and you get to shape how the children
feel about reading and research. There are lots of hugs and playground duties.
Things like that.
High school - I love the questions the students and teachers need answers to. You
never know what will come through your door. The Internet has changed that though
(I was in the High School years ago!) and we most likely won't get as many
questions as in the past. It is a pleasure to work with other teachers who are so
knowledgable and build exceptional research projects together. I also enjoy the
sense of humor you see in a high school.
You need a great sense of humor at all levels. I will say I am a librarian in a
rural area and that does effect the behavior of my students. Sometime I provide the
only real access they have to information via books, magazines and the Internet.
Barb
The answer to that question is totally subjective. It all depends on the age of the
kids that you prefer and what aspect of librarianship you enjoy. I prefer middle or
high school because I don't like a fixed schedule or reading aloud and being a
teacher prep. I also like the level of research that you can do with older kids.
The answer to your question is really up to each individual person.
****************************
Juliann T. Moskowitz
Library Media Specialist
Norwalk High School
Norwalk, CT 06851
juliann14@hotmail.com
High School - more flexibility in scheduling
--
Have a great day!
Louise Brooks, LMS
Berryville High School
P.O. Box 408
Berryville, AR 72616
870-423-3312, ext. 247
lbrooks@bobcat.k12.ar.us
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