Cassidy Vance

SMP4

Spring 2014

Part 4: Services Menu of LMC Attractions Services: The PES library media center (LMC) provides services for all patrons. The Peachtree Elementary School Media Center exists to serve our students, parents, and faculty. It is an open media center operated through a flexible scheduling plan. This is designed to make media center resources, services and facilities accessible to all students and teachers any time a need for information or recreational browsing arises. Among the specific advantages of flexible scheduling in an open media center are the following: Students are encouraged to come frequently to use and/or check out materials. Students may come to consult reference materials or to get reference assistance whenever questions arise in the classroom. Library skills instruction and curriculum related activities can be correlated with the curriculum to make the utilization of these skills meaningful. The media center is available for use by several small groups and/or independent students during the same time it has been scheduled for a specific media center activity. The computers are split up into two sections between the fiction and nonfiction areas. This computer placement and the space between the shelves, make the media center very handicap accessible. Teachers may correlate media center activities with specific units instead of waiting for their weekly "scheduled" time. The same class may use the media center several times in the same week if needed. Through the new Gwinnett County online portal, My eClass, teachers, students, and parents are provided access to a plethora of online resources at home. For instance these interactive resources: ClassWorks, LearnZillion, leveled eBooks, and most textbooks are available.

Areas of the media center: The Circulation Desk is where ALL media materials are checked in and out.

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The Reference Area contains encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases, almanacs and other reference books. The Everybody Section is the area, which contains our picture books and can be used for stories, primary class checkouts, leisure reading, closed circuit viewing and other activities with a class or small group of students. The Everybody Section can be reserved in advance. The Instructional Area contains nonfiction books and can be reserved in advance. It seats an entire class. A mounted LCD projector and SMART Board are available, as well as a DVD/VCR combination. If tables and chairs are moved, several classes can enjoy a guest speaker in this area. The media center has student computer workstations that can be reserved in advance. The on-line catalog, Destiny, is available for teacher and student use and offers information on all materials available from the media center. Also available at these stations are a variety of programs for student use including word processing and research databases. There are magazine areas for teachers and students. The Bookroom contains multiple copies of books for instruction and pleasure reading. One section in the bookroom is arranged by subjects (determined by IB units and stand alone units). The other section contains multiple copies of titles arranged by Guided Reading Level. Most Booksets have Guided Reading Levels and/or Accelerated Reader Levels. Teachers may check out as many as needed. Our instructional video collection is in a workroom that houses our book binding machine, paper cutter, Ellison die cuts, button maker, electric stapler, and electric three-hole punch. The Professional collection of books magazines is also housed in this room. Only teachers, faculty members, and adult volunteers are allowed access to this workroom. Our television broadcast studio is where our daily live morning news show originates. 5th graders produce the show. Our principal shares important daily news with the school. Each day, birthday students report to the studio by 8:05 so they can appear on the show.

Filtering Policy: As far as filtering is concerned, Gwinnett County has YouTube blocked for all students, and in addition there is a Website Block Communication policy that further filters student access.

Cassidy Vance

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Teachers, however, have the ability to utilize appropriate YouTube instructional clips to enrich their lessons. Teachers are also given the opportunity to request certain websites to be unblocked. Most social media sites are denied, but teachers can get approval for classroom blogs through kid friendly sites.

Circulation Policy: Students After attending an orientation class, each student will be given a checkout card or folder to use for book check out. The folders should be kept in the classroom in a safe place. When a child comes to the media center to check out a book her or she should: Be sure they bring their card or folder. Take their chosen item to the circulation desk for check out. Leave smiling and wanting to come back! All students may check out two books at a time. Books are checked out for two weeks but may be returned early or renewed. No fines are charged for overdue materials. However, children will not be allowed to check out additional books if they have any overdue items. Replacement price for lost books is $15 for a hardback and $5 for a paperback. Money will be refunded if the book is returned during the current school year.

Teachers Books and AV Staff members use their Employee ID number for check out. ALL media center materials will be checked at the circulation desk or in the Bookroom. The computer system allows a teacher to check-out up to 90 items for six weeks at a time. Of course, materials can be returned early or renewed. All materials are returned to the Circulation desk book drop or to the book drop in the Bookroom.

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It is absolutely essential that materials be checked out properly so they can be easily located. This is for the convenience of all! Equipment Check-out Most equipment remains in each room (boom boxes, student computers, overhead projectors, DVD/VCR players). LCD projectors on carts, portable SMART Boards, Airliners, Digital Cameras, Flip Video Cameras and other Video Cameras must be checked out from and returned to the media center. When you have equipment which needs repair, please return the broken equipment to the media center with a note attached telling us your name and the problem. The media clerk will send a work order to the county for repair. Replacement bulbs for your overhead projector are available from the media center. ALL EQUIPMENT ON ROLLING CARTS MUST BE TRANSPORTED BY AN ADULT.

Professional Learning Center Professional books, magazines and Instructional Videos may be borrowed from the GCPS Professional Learning Center. Teachers may search for these types of materials through our media catalog. They are checked out through the Destiny check out system just like all other library materials. Check with a member of the media team if they need help.

Scheduling Policy: The media specialist demonstrates the role of the program administrator by scheduling blocks of time for open available use in the media center, and is not assigned on a regular basis. Instead, three schedules dividing the days into forty-five minute time periods are kept in the media center for teachers to reserve specific sections of the media center and/or assistance from the media/technology staff. There is one schedule for activities, which will involve the media specialist: planning with an individual teacher, as the role of an instructional partner, or working with one student, a small group, or an entire class. Such activities might include group book selection, media skills lessons, a small or whole group research project, a media production activity or a story correlated with a subject being studied in your classroom.

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A second schedule is for activities that will involve the LSTC. Such activities might include working with software applications, a small group or whole class research project, a media production activity or assistance with technology. The media specialist uses the roles as a teacher and information specialist to assist in instruction to help support student access to information.

The third part of the media schedule is used to reserve the various areas of the media center: Everybody, Instructional, Computers. If the activity signed up with a specialist will take place in one of these areas, please reserve the area as well as the specialist's time. If teachers do not need a media specialist or LSTC to help with their activity, simply sign up for the area. Sign here if they are bringing their entire class to check out books. The media center can accommodate 2-3 classes at a time. Current schedules are kept in a notebook in the media center. The media staff is available to plan with teachers from 7:30 - 3:30 each school day. Each classroom teacher is asked to schedule a planning session with a media specialist or LSTC at least once (or more) each 9 weeks. When teachers sign up for the media specialist's or LSTCs time, it is important that they have planned with the appropriate person, and what will happen in the lesson. The media specialist uses the leadership role to assist the teacher in making lesson decisions. This may be done during a preplanned conference, a brief conversation or in a written message. Please sign up in advance for activities to be directed by the specialist to allow for adequate preparation. Classes can be taught in small or large groups depending on the nature of the lesson. Passes: Small groups of students (1-4) who will work independently need not be scheduled. These students may come to the media center with passes issued to each class. Students have several options of activities when they visit the media center. They may browse, check out books and magazines, use the computers or attend to classroom projects. Each student should have a purpose in coming to the media center. We would like to see each child at least once a week (but not more than once a day) either individually or in class visits.

Assessment of LMC Services:

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The PES media center is small, but space is utilized very efficiently. As you enter the doors, the fiction and everyone sections are located on the right side. The non-fiction and reference materials are on the left labeled by the Dewey Decimal System. Picture fiction books are placed on lower shelves, and along with other fiction books, are categorized in alphabetical order by the authors last name. There are enough tables and chairs for an entire class to sit down to study. Also, students can relax on rugs and more comfortable chairs for independent reading. The biographies and autobiographies are clearly labeled and located near the 900s section. Students and teachers can find materials using DESTINY/DESTINY QUEST (The Media Center online catalog). Teachers have unlimited check out privileges. Parents also can check out materials on a limited basis and the Parent Center also provides book/material checkout to support families. To highlight Caldecott and Newberry award winning books, the media specialist sets rotating examples aside on certain tables and on top of shelves. Every book in the media center is leveled and labeled with appropriate colored dots in the Accelerated Reader program. All classrooms, as well as the Media Center, have a poster to reference the dots to their levels. The size and colorful signs make maneuvering in our Media Center very flexible. PES is also applying to be a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) school next year, and with that approval, the media center will receive e-books, e-readers, and more integration of web 2.0 tools. In addition, the school has hired a technology coach next year, who will collaborate with the media center staff constantly in order to support and facilitate the needs of the 21st century learner, especially to incorporate ever-changing technology advancements and device utilization.

References: Mission and Purpose. Retrieved February 21, 2014, from http://www.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/mediasvcs.nsf/pages/MissionandPurpose~MediaH ome Peachtree Elementary School - IB World School. Retrieved February 21, 2014, from http://www.teacherweb.com/GA/PeachtreeElementarySchool/Homepage/apt22.as px