LIBRARY

We have thoroughly enjoyed seeing students in our library once again, and we are pleased with their fast uptake of our new procedures.   We thank students for observing physical distancing while visiting and hope that we will be offering normal services in the very near future.  At present we are only open during class time, to allow for extra cleaning, and during breaks only for those students with returns or who wish to borrow. Our digital collection is available as always, 24/7.

There are still 12 weeks left for the Premier’s Reading Challenge, so we encourage students to keep reading and entering book titles to earn House points as well as qualify for the PRC.  About 40 students completed the PRC last year, i.e. read 20 books in 20 weeks, and we would love to beat that number this year. Lots of students, though, read 10 or more books in that time which is a great achievement and benefits them is so many ways not just academically.

All libraries are very conscious of the stress some senior students are feeling completing tasks and preparing for exams at this time.  Many are producing tutorials for remote learning which further reduce the disadvantages sometimes inflicted on country students because of the tyranny of distance. The State Library of NSW runs regular HSC workshops for those students who can attend the library in person, but have never provided online tutorials for remote students….until now.  Each Thursday for the next 3 weeks the SLNSW is running online tutorials to help with research tasks. They are short and sharp, 30 minutes long, and will be showing students how to improve their research skills while searching the digital resources of the SLNSW in Sydney. If your child is interested but unable to join in, I can provide a link to a summary of the tips, tricks and shortcuts or they can make an appointment for a short demonstration during a study period by emailing library@trac.nsw.edu.au 

For the junior students, and any parents who may be helping with assignments, I have produced some ‘How to’ videos to show you how to find information through our website, and collect bibliographic information at the same time, so that you can acknowledge sources to avoid plagiarising. 

Digital Homework help is available by emailing the library for assistance.  We will reply as soon as we can.

Sue Graffen | Teacher Librarian