Stromness Academy Library

Wow! On looking at the calendar, it appears were are over half way through the term.  Where have the last 4 weeks gone?

Everyone is now settled into a routine.  The library feels busier than ever with English classes coming in regularly for their library periods / library & information literacy lessons as well as S2 Geography classes who are doing their Earth Forces research project.

Lunchtimes

Lunchtimes are as busy as I can remember for a long time with up to 40 pupils visiting at any one time – although the average is between 15 and 25.  Pupils, in particular S1, are using the computers, some are joining in with the established Magic the Gathering games, some are playing chess or drafts.  Others have been using the Reading Zone for ‘relaxing’ but noise levels will need to be lowered as this section is meant to be a quiet area for folk to do personal reading, work or quietly relax.

It may be timely to once again remind library users at lunchtime of the following behaviour expectations:

• Use the library (@lunchtime) for: Homework; Study, research or revision; Reading (books or magazines); Use computers; Play board games, Magic the Gathering, or other games; Help the Librarian.
• You are expected to:
  • Be seated in chairs
  • Leave furniture where it is
  • Chat quietly
  • Respect those doing school work
  • Use the Reading Zone for personal reading
  • Keep mobile phones and personal music players switched off and out of sight

Activities

The Tuesday Dungeons & Dragons afterschool activity continues a pace with a regular group of five pupils adventuring in the Forgotten Realms and so far in the region of the town of Phandalin, whilst searching for their mentor, they have been waylaid by goblins near to Cragmaw Cave.  We have now switched over to 5th Edition D&D which is proving somewhat ‘easier’ than 4th with faster play happening.

Friday afternoon activities sees 23 pupils arriving to play Magic the Gathering or D&D. A small group of 5 play MtG, organising and running the games themselves.  There are three (yep! THREE!) groups playing Dungeons & Dragons.  This, if memory serves me correct, is the most we have ever had.  Pupils are Dungeon Mastering these games which means your erstwhile librarian actually gets a chance to play a character.  Not only do we have three groups, but three different editions of the game are being played.  The lasses (mostly) are playing 3.5 ed.  A senior group is playing 4th edition and the other group is playing a hybrid 4th / 5th edition. Good times for all!

Up coming events

• Scholastic Book Club leaflets available in library from 25th August.
  • Deadline for school orders: 3rd December 2015. Online (preferred)at http://schools.scholastic.co.uk/stromness-academy
  • OR… fill in order form on leaflet and hand to Mrs Sinclair, Librarian with correct payment. (NB. if you want delivery from to home P&P is extra.)
• National Poetry Day – Thursday 8th October
• Spooky Happenings – Hallowe’en storytelling – Friday 30th October

The end of last term saw a pop-up library established in English Room 4 whilst new windows were being put in. This ended up being three plus weeks of work instead of the one and a half to two weeks that was I was originally told. Well, I suppose four of the windows were the full height of the library and caused complications as the old ones proved very difficult to remove – they ended up breaking the glass to then buckle the old metal frames to get them out… will probably still be hovering up little teeny pieces of glass from the window area for ages.

A week away at the beginning of the school holidays meant I didn’t see the final mess that was left but I was worried about what I would see on return – it was not good, but I have to say better than I expected. Dust everywhere, and although some polythene screening was used around he windows the builders were working on, and some shelves cover, not everything was. It took a week for me to clean shelves and books, as well rebuilding those shelves that were dismantled and unboxing and reshelving books (including the three trolley loads from the pop-up library).

I can’t emphasise enough my extreme thanks to the cleaner who does this space as she has done a heck of a lot too. Carpets are now cleaned too and anything that was on floor can go back. In the meantime, though I have got distracted (writing this blog post) and stripping and tidying my peedie 2m x 2m office.

Re-guiding

During this process I have also taken the opportunity to rearrange stock: weed and consolidate non-fiction (so now no NF books on very low shelves); weed and consolidate reference books to enable study support books to be moved from the project shelves; reorganise Orkney collection (so The Orcadian back copies not on floor anymore); create new library guiding and signage (still main info posters to do but need to wait for info on any general changes which might effect library opening); weed magazines; give plants tender loving care and potting some on (at home); sort the big storage boxes of display materials and Xmas decorations (including dumping old tatty decorations); lots of paperwork dumping (recycle or shredding); create a couple of new archive folders for newsletters and old school magazines (still have a box of school and library archives to go through – another year!); clear out small filing cabinet and tidy drawers (How MANY pens does a school librarian really need to have in stock?); tidy office and clear out stuff that hasn’t been looked at or use in ages; oh… and I need to do all the prep for next term.

At least I will know the library and my workspace has had a darned good clean and is neat and tidy. Hopefully that will infuse into my head to organised all the thoughts and ideas flying around. Now – where is my ideas book?

The library is closed and here I am sitting out of my comfort zone, hearing banging and concrete drilling come from my library next door. Have taken over a spare English classroom for a couple of weeks whilst new windows are being put in. Have a couple of trolleys of select fiction, non-fiction and reference, some magazines, a display of green books (and some of the library plants), and some bean bags and soft seating.

Have already done three P7 transition lessons – virtual tour of the library (via Prezi) and now have pupils in on computers, reading and watching videos on their devices (for English) or on computers. The usual lunchtime crowd came in and played Magic the Gathering, joined by a number of the visiting P7s who had asked earlier in the day if they could come at lunchtime.  Hopefully I can now get on with some of the work I haven’t been doing the last few days due to packing up various sections of the library so shelves can be shifted away from windows and moving resources and my ‘stuff’ through to the classroom. FS.

The ratings forms for this annual award have now been sent off. A small number of reward cards (read all eight books) were handed out. Two were returned and put into a prize draw. D Foran won the £10 Grooves voucher and E Casely got a pick of some MtG cards. Both prizes were donated by Mrs Sinclair, Librarian.

We hope to shadow this annual award for Graphic Novels & Manga next year.

  Between January and March a Magic the Gathering competition was run. Ten pupils entered. Not everyone played the full complement of nine games, but by the end of March it was decided to conclude the competition. In total, 44 games were played, usually at lunchtime. The results were as follows: 1st – A Leitch 24pts (8 games played; 8 wins) –£10 Grooves Voucher / 3 house points 2nd – E Casely (8 games played; 5 wins) — MtG Booster pack / 2 house points 3rd= – J Crichton; J Lewsley; P Ritch;  M Taylor –choice of cards from MtG booster packs / 1 hp ea. (Prizes were donated by Mrs Sinclair.) Pupils continue to play at lunchtimes and the Magic the Gathering activity continues on a Friday afternoon.

Well, we are now in our final term of the session. There is certainly no let up in the pace of work as the workings of the school continue onwards. In two weeks time our seniors (S4,5 &6) will be heading out on study leave as the exam diet starts. Classes continue to be booked in the library, with English library periods continuing, and Geography and History research projects either started or upcoming. S2 will be going on their outdoor education trip to Hoy at the beginning of May.

On the 11th May we will be welcoming illustrator Martin Brown to the school to speak to S1 and S2 pupils. Mr Brown illustrates the Horrible Histories Series. This visit, the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour,  is organised by the Scottish Book Trust.

The main teaching block and library are undergoing improvements as new windows, insulated cladding and new roofs are going on. This will hopefully reduce heating bills and, of course, stop those pesky winter (and summer) drafts when more than a light breeze blows.

Today, Friday 20th March, the Spring Equinox, saw pupils and staff at the school witness a near total eclipse of about 97% totality. In the English department copy paper boxes were pierced and used as pin-hole cameras as well as the rather artistic colander method and the creative ‘hand pin-hole camera’. Up in the language department, card with pin holes was used, as well as access to proper eclipse viewing glasses and several layers of film negative.  

Through several layers of film negative

Pupils and staff were excited and amazed at this rare event as the moon cast it’s shadow over the sun. The weather was fairly kind to us too allowing strategic clear patches in the cloud letting us view this event [safely]. The light faded to dusk, not darkness then despite the cloud then got brighter again fairly quickly as the moon’s shadow moved away from the sun.

Out the other side