A Single Shard -- of stained glass and flying fish!

"When do you shelve the books, Ms. McIntyre?" Bushra looked up at me with her twinkling brown eyes through that open and joyful smile! I picked up one shard of glass --- ah yes --- "Bushra, when you come in at the beginning of the day-- when we are getting ready for our WMES Broadcast. (WMES is a morning news broadcast -- another of my responsibilities.) I always have a 4th grader at the circulation desk. That is one of the times I try to shelve books. While you are looking for a book, I am trying to put books away. I also shelve during my lunch break, and after school."

"Oh" she said. I continued, providing her with more information than she wanted,"You remember Ms. Margaret who is my friend who comes once a week? Well she helps me shelve books on the day she is here and that really helps. And you know how I put all the Dr. Seuss, Curious George, and Henry and Mudge books in piles on the table? Well, most of the 4th grade news reporters know where those books go and they put them away sometimes before they have to get back to class.

And you remember Nora? She was in 4th grade when you were in Kindergarten? Well she sometimes comes back to visit after she gets home from Middle School and helps put books away....and I've been thinking about training an army of roaches that live in the school....maybe they could learn the basics and I could leave books out for them to put away....(no actdually I didn't say that last part --- but I have always thought that it would be fair -- since we provide them with paper and book binders paste to keep them going....surely they could return the favor).

So what is hopeful about this shard of broken glass? It is simply that somehow despite the fact that I don't have an aide --- the books get shelved. Not to quibble about how well they get shelved. I simply hope that the picture books and non fiction books find their way to the general vacinity of where they belong.

When I came to this library the former librarian didn't actually put them on the shelf in Dewey order --- they were filed according to their AR color. For those of you who don't know what that means -- it is simply that books are marked with a colored sticker to indicate reading level. So in the last 8 years I have succeeded in placing call numbers on all the books as well as marking all the books that have AR tests available with colored stickers! See there is more positive stuff...I just have to pick up each shard and find out where it fits in the overall picture!

How did that happen? Back when I first came to this school -- we still had parent volunteers (there were still many stay-at-home moms) I had a core group that came once a week and affixed the call numbers. There it is! It got done!! That is the first shard of a stained glass masterpiece.