Our School Library

History of Our School Library

When we moved to our new school building in 1998, all the books in the school were collected together and placed at the heart of the new building - a very significant site: where the Infant corridor and the Junior corridor meet, and straight ahead of you as you enter the school. At this time, the books were sorted, mended, bar-coded and re-arranged on new shelving, and our school library became one main collection for children and staff to use and enjoy.

In 2005, we began the redevelopment of our school library with the purchase of new child-friendly and easy-to-use shelving, and display boards - which are always imaginatively decorated with stimulating displays, book-related collages and children's work. We also invested in new comfortable furniture, rugs and colourful picture book boxes.

Purpose of Our School Library

The school library is designed to be a place for enjoyment where both children and staff can benefit from a wide selection of books, both fiction and non-fiction, games and multi-media resources.

Through the use of our school library, we aim to:

- Improve reading skills
- promote independence
- promote the enjoyment and use of books and other reading sources


Books in Our School Library

The books in our school library are kept up-to-date and relevant, relate to the topics studied in class, and provide for the pleasure of the children. Amongst the new books purchased for the library are those recommended by children and staff. The school replaces a percentage of its stock of books yearly, and keeps a book collection of ten quality books for every child in the school.

The Schools Library Service provides very useful support in maintaining the quality of the books in our library. Each year, Mrs Troise and Mrs Price have visited the Schools Library Service exhibition in Winchester, where they have purchased books to add to our collection.

In addition, in recent years we have received commission in books from our Scholastic Book Fairs held during Parents' Evenings.

Computers in Our School Library

Our school library computer is used by everyone to scan books. Each child and teacher has his or her own bar-coded tickets for this purpose. The programme we use on this computer is called Junior Librarian, which is used by most of the primary schools in Hampshire. It is both accessible and fun to use; when a bar code is scanned or the mouse is used a voice is activated and communicates with you!

We have plans, in the next phase of the redevelopment of our school library, to introduce a bank of computers which will form an integral part of the children's library experience.

Use of Our School Library

Borrowing from Our School Library

Our school library is open for the whole school day, and, currently, after school on Thursdays. Children from the Junior classes can visit our school library to change their books once they have finished reading them, except during those times when Library Skills activities are scheduled for other classes. To ensure that this system works well, only four children from any Junior class are allowed in the library at a time. Each child will take one of the class's allocation of library 'paddles' to the library and return it to his or her class again when finished in the library. This stops long queues forming and the teachers in the classroom can see how many children are in the library by the number of paddles missing.

Children in the Reception and Infant classes are entitled to take two items, which can include books and/or maths games, from our school library. They change these weekly during their class sessions. This is in addition to their reading scheme book, the choice of which is directed by their teacher. Children in the Junior classes are entitled to take two items from our school library, including maths games.

Learning and Practising Library Skills

With the aid of the Schools Library Service, we have a programme of Library Skills sessions which the children first experience in the Reception Year continuing throughout their Infant and Junior years. Each session is planned by the teacher in conjunction with the Mrs Troise to be imaginative and creative, whilst linked to the National Curriculum, and, where possible, to the children's experience in the classroom.

All Year Groups have timetabled use of the library, and class teachers do arrange with Mrs Troise to have additional library sessions when our school library is not scheduled to be used by another class.

Library and Classroom Links

The influence of the library extends very much into the classroom. In each Reception and Infant classes there is a 'Kinderbox' (a wooden, often colourful, partitioned box on legs) containing three books per child. In the Junior classes there are Browser Boxes/Shelves, one for fiction books and one for non-fiction books, containing containing one book per child. These books are changed each term, to ensure a variety of books is available for the children to read - or when a new topic begins.

The use of 'Kinderboxes' and Browser Boxes/Shelves provide the children with daily access to a library environment. Also, children will have access to books when they are unable to change their books in our school library.

Events in Our School Library

During each academic year, we arrange special events in our school library for the children to experience. We believe that the children's education can be enriched by inviting guests into the school. We have therefore, over the years, invited a number of writers, poets and illustrators to the school to share their inspiration for writing and their enthusiasm for books, whilst entertain the children at the same time!

In the 2005/2006 academic year, we also held 'Library Events' for the children in Year 3 and Year 6, to which their parents were invited to join us and play an integral part. The Year 3 'Library Event' linked to our school 'Maths Book Week', whilst the Year 6 'Library Event' - which extended to working with a local author and to a visit to the Gosport Discovery Centre - linked to their study of Victorian Britain.