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The Lower School Library is used by boys in Years 7 and 8, and since its opening in 2000 it has established itself very much at the heart of Lower School life. It is open every day from 8.15 to 12.30 and from 1.25 to 4.00. During lesson times it is heavily used both by small groups carrying out research and by whole classes on a timetabled basis. At break and lunchtimes the library is one of the busiest places in the College.
Located in bright, modern premises near the Junior IT Centre, the library has built up an excellent collection of fiction and non-fiction and a growing selection of other media - spoken word cassettes, videos and music CDs. Issues continue to increase steadily, with fiction accounting for roughly two-thirds.
All Year 7 and 8 English classes visit the library for an initial induction session, and most return at weekly or fortnightly intervals for book exchange or reading periods. This provides an opportunity for boys to be introduced to new authors and to share their reading experiences. Boys regularly write book reviews, and these are published in the online catalogue.
Information skills are taught by the librarians through timetabled lessons as part of the PSHE programme. These concentrate on providing a thorough grounding in use of the library catalogue to exploit the library's reference and non-fiction collections for information. This is reinforced through library-based project work in history, classics, English, religious studies, maths and geography, planned in consultation with the Librarian.
The
library has 6 networked computers as well as 6 laptops which may be used
anywhere in the library. All have access to the online
library catalogue and to the internet, and are much used for research as
well as word processing and publishing project work. An interactive whiteboard is used by both teachers and librarians.
Displays and special events are run throughout the year. National Poetry Day, World Book Day and Black History Month are celebrated annually. Several author visits are planned every year: in the past year (2007-8) the College has been privileged to welcome Alan Gibbons whilst this year we are eagerly anticipating Carnegie Medal winning author Philip Reeve . [FULL REPORTS OF ALL AUTHOR VISITS].
The library hosts an enthusiastic reading group which meets weekly as the 'Book and Brunch Club' (formerly the 'Book and Breakfast Club' but now catering for later risers!). Each year it shadows a major children's book award by reading, reviewing and voting on a selection of recently-published books. In 2007 boys' reviews were published on the Carnegie Medal website. Throughout the year special activities and competitions are run in conjunction with wider literary events such as Children's Reading Week and Readathon.
Boys in both Years 7 and 8 meet in the library on a weekly basis to put together ideas for the Lower School Newsletter, the Dulwich Despatch. An issue is produced once a term by the boys with the guidance of the Lower School librarians; all sale proceeds are donated to charity.
The Librarians are assisted by a team of Year 7 and 8 pupil librarians, as well as by senior pupil librarians from the Wodehouse Library. The library prefects are on hand to help manage behaviour during the busy lunch period.
Librarians: Mrs Gail Bottomley
BSc Email, Mrs Liz Rowing BA MA MCLIP Email
Senior Library Prefect: Joe Kavanagh
Lower School Library Annual Report
VIRTUAL TOUR OF THE LOWER SCHOOL LIBRARY
Last updated: 03/10/2008. PJF