Finally, many new books have arrived to the school library in Smithycroft! The most recent order was aimed at fleshing out our 🤣 Comedy 😂 and 🐴 Animals=Pals 🐶 sections, however there were also a few new releases and pupils’ requests which are mostly pictured in the selection below.
Happy reading!!
We start the new year waiting for many new exciting book releases and books that have created a buzz, among which: “Impossible Creatures” by Katherine Rundell, winner of Waterstones Book of the Year 2023; the long-awaited 5th volume of “Heartstopper” by Alice Oseman, sure to be constantly on loan; and “Treacle Town” by Brian Conaghan. We will be honoured to host Brian Conaghan for a session here at Bannerman soon as part of ‘The Library Young Team,’ a SLIF-funded project by Glasgow School Libraries & Renfrewshire School Libraries. This project focuses on the theme of gang culture and will also see Alan Bissett and Graeme Armstrong visiting Bannerman High for a session with our pupils.
As for the non-fiction focus of the month for the school library newsletter, Ms Bortolato has been thinking about travelling away from the darkness of January (and yes it’s only the 4th of January now, what about it?) and planning a new adventures as an antidote to the winter blues. Eager to share adventure ideas, she quickly realised that there is already too much planning to do in a school, so let it suffice that we might just enjoy a bit of bookish wanderlust within the pages of these suggested readings…
See, the school library provides you with extremely cheap travel opportunities so make sure you go to the libraryscanner(.com*) for the best bargains.
* Website doesn’t actually exist
At Bannerman, we have a new welcoming display outside the library – a book recommendations wall! Pupils can pick up a recommendation slip from the library during their reading period, and when they have finished their book they can write a short review of it. This gives us a chance to showcase the range of books our young readers choose, as well as inspire other pupils take up their peers’ suggestion, and elaborate their thoughts on what they read thus becoming a bit more critical readers.
Ms Bortolato has also started a staff newsletter which will be monthly, with the aim of making school staff aware of what’s new in the wonderful world of children’s literature – plus a different curricular focus each month. This month, we shone a light on the library’s extensive music collection! What will be the next one…?
It’s December at Smithycroft Secondary. It began with a lovely gifted donation by author Nadine Aisha Jassat who was the school’s Writer in Residency for 2023, working with pupils and the English Department on creative writing. Her book, “The Stories Grandma Forgot” is a beautiful story in verse about identity and memory and how family ties it all together.
As the festive season is undeniably upon us, I made a display widening the scope of Christmastime to focus on how many religions have Festivals of Lights coming up in these cold dark months: Hinduism’s Diwali diyas, Judaism’s Chanukkah candelabras, Christianity’s Christmas Trees and St Lucia’s candles all show that, no matter what background we come from, what we all have in common unifies us. So may we all share more light and kindness to reduce the darkness and loneliness during this festive season.
On November 20th, a group of S1 pupils from Smithycroft Secondary School had the fantastic opportunity to stroll over to Riddrie Public Library to engage in a session with author Ross Mackenzie.
Ross is a captivating storyteller and kept the pupils group enthralled for the whole session by sharing the memories of how he became a reader and by transporting us into the magical worlds he created. When he unveiled the storyline of his book “The Colour of Hope”, and proceeded to read a chapter of this book out loud to us, we were on the edge of our seats, curious to hear what was coming next!
The element that made Ross Mackenzie into a reader was the excitement he felt when his P5 teacher would read “The Witches”, out loud to his classroom – a great testimony to the impact expressive storytelling can have on a young mind, flicking a switch that turns a child into an enthusiastic, curious reader.
The session continued with some creative writing inspired by “The Colour of Hope”, with Smithycroft pupils having a go at finding a story as to why a villain would steal colours from the world. Here are some of the explanations the participants came up with (click on image to open a large version in a new tab)!
At the end of the session, a Q&A allowed kids to ask Ross some questions – here are some of his answers to inspire everyone! When asked how to find what story to write next and how to find a story to write, Ross’ advice was to ask questions about the world, because questions help dig out stories; a beautiful metaphor likened this to “panning for gold”, a worthy nugget of gold might appear when sifting through all the questions and ideas travelling around the imaginative mind, so just give it a try!
We have some new library helpers among the S1 pupils! This group of kids walked up to the librarian asking if they could help with anything, because they were bored… well surely there is a lot to help with, as the junior fiction has been recently divided by genres! So, pens at hand, they helped the librarian write the genre of books in the first page. Hopefully they’ll keep being this keen to help, because with about 1,815 books in junior fiction alone, the librarian cannot do this all by herself! #teamworkdreamwork
October marks Black History Month in the UK, which gives us many opportunities to celebrate the rich contributions and achievements of Black individuals throughout history.
The roots of Black History Month can be traced back to the USA in 1915, when historian Dr. Carter G. Woodson set up a Society to study the achievements of American Black people . Such achievements had been, until then, undocumented: therefore, this groundbreaking Society earned Dr Woodson the title of “Father of Black History.”
Black History Month wasn’t adopted in the UK until 1987, coinciding with the 150th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in the Caribbean. It was launched in London by Akyaaba Addai-Sebo, a refugee from Ghana.
This year, the theme for Black History Month is “Celebrating Our Sisters“. The school library is excited to participate by showcasing a collection of books which also highlight the impact that women of African and Caribbean heritage have had on society, culture, sports and science. Black women’s’ accomplishments were overlooked for far too long, so I encourage everyone to explore these books and be inspired by their lives.
Within Smithycroft’s school community, we take pride in fostering inclusivity and promoting anti-racism. One notable example is the Anti-Racist Club, co-led by principal teachers Gemma Walters and Rebeca Long, which provides a safe space for students to engage in important discussions surrounding racial equality. This club is also an important source of education for school staff on how to decolonize the school curriculum. Recently, students from the Anti-Racist Club were present at the launch of Glasgow City Council’s Anti-Racism Charter at the City Chambers, so the library is proud to promote anti-racism and a more inclusive history while surrounded by such smart young people.
At Bannerman High, the fiction section has been divided by genre rather than alphabetical order. This was done in hopes of supporting our readers in finding a book they might enjoy by following the kind of plot they prefer the most, as well as to invite them to read across different genres. The genres are: history in stories; animals are pals; action; fantasy and magical stories; comedy; slice of life; crime-horror-mystery.
There will also be a monthly “theme” display where the pupils will have the opportunity to highlight a specific collection in the library.
It’s been a pretty arty few months in Bannerman High School. We started a weekly Manga Club where pupils can make new friends through their love of anime and manga – we draw, have colouring sheets, and play “Guess Who?” with manga characters. Manga gets children passionate about reading because the series-format keeps them eager to see what happens next in a story arc; the plot is usually quite complex and intricate which requires a level of attention and memory; the characters are qualitatively rich and the character development is noticeable through the various volumes. This provides young readers with an awareness of literary processes. And, of course, they also start to write their own stories and learn to draw beautifully – which is where our visit from fab illustrator Neil Slorance came in really handy. Neil held a workshop on comics-style drawing that the pupils loved and engaged with even after it was over, coming back at lunch to continue their works and asking for more visits such as this one. Thank you Neil!
Holocaust Memorial Day is on January 27th. This date marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp, in 1945.
To mark Holocaust Memorial Day 2023, a display has been made in both schools with plenty of factual information, as well as stories, in order to remember the 6 million innocent Jewish people who were murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators during World War II. We also remember those who survived to live with these horrible memories – and bravely share them.
Some pupils in Bannerman were keen to keep working on Holocaust Education.
Please read real-life testimony from the people who lived those times. Here are some recommendations:
On the Libby app you can find reading lists of eBooks and audiobooks you can borrow for free with your Glasgow Libraries membership. Here they are:
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