Week 4: Welcome to the J.T. Alton LMC!

This week, I realized, that in all of my haste to get going in terms of reporting my experiences and work on my Portfolio Planning Document, I never fully introduced my library. These pictures are some that I took last school year. 

Front Doors-Notice sitting area

Circulation Desk

Typically holds the picture book collection

Fiction Section...and random podium

Main seating area

Another view of circulation desk. Reference section is in that back corner.

Side room: More computers and further back is the news room. Ms. Allen's office is located right next to this room.

Since last year, Ms. Allen has made many changes to the library media space. Spurred by an analysis I wrote for a LME class and the urge to update it, Ms. Allen has slowly begun to transform the library. 

Ms. Allen's idea and my work combined to create this.

All the reasons we read. "We read to..."

These dots filled with reasons to read now go all around the library. 

Improved entrance thanks to my art students: paintings and drawings on old dictionary pages

Since our discussion on library environment, Ms. Allen and I have worked together to bring more student art to the library. The book page art is just one small project displayed to brighten up the library in hopes of luring in more patrons! 

"Bringing Words to Life"

I will not spend a lot of time discussing the LMC because I feel the pictures show it better than I can explain. I just felt that if I’m going to be talking about this place for 15 weeks, then my readers should know what it looks like. Or maybe that’s just my visual/art side coming out. As I continue to go through the Practicum experience, I will be sure to add new pictures of how our space evolves. I’m already anticipating several changes to happen throughout the next couple of months!

For the second part of this post, I want to review over some of the CEBS Dispositions and connect some thoughts I’ve had thus far regarding each one. 

        Values diversity:

Willingly works with others from different ability, race, gender, or ethnic groups. Welcomes feedback and interaction with others. Listens carefully to others and respects the views of those perceived as different from self.

Although I believe the amount of diversity that can be found in any given school body is great, I do believe that working at JTA has certainly prepared me better for working with others that are different from me- possibly more than the average Kentucky school. JTA pulls kids from the small, rural towns of Vine Grove and Rineyville, but also from Radcliff. Located just down the road from Fort Knox, a large part of our population comes from military families. The kids I work with on a daily basis are often more traveled by age thirteen than myself today. With extended family located all over the world, our students are incredibly diverse in their religion, race, ethnicity, ability, and home life. Working with them has truly been a welcomed learning experience that continues to teach me new lessons each day. Instead of being intimidated by their differences as I was when first hired, I now view them with enthusiasm, as they always bring so much to the classroom and learning experience. 

Values Professionalism:

Respect for school rules, policies, and norms. Knows school rules and policies. Follows them consistently. Understands the purpose of regulations and respects their intent. Accepts responsibility for personally following them in patterns of dress, behavior, etc. EPSB Code of Ethics

This disposition almost seems silly to me to include. Perhaps my thoroughness keeps me more in check than I realize, but not respecting school rules and policies has never been an option for me. I would not even think twice about being a rule-breaker because it simply is not my tendency. Others may have had issues in the past, but I cannot even think of an example where I have had an issue with this. As an educator, we are professionals- it is that simple. Our dress, behavior, and actions should always reflect this truth. 

Values Professionalism:

Professional responsibility. Accepts responsibility for own actions and for helping all students learning and actively seeks self-improvement. Consistently holds high expectations for the success of all students. Consistently looks to explain and remedy student lack of success by factors within the control of self.

Reviewing over this disposition immediately makes me think of my work on the Portfolio Planning Document that I have immersed myself in recently. Student learning, self-improvement, high expectations... all these terms and phrases are repeatedly addressed and supporting in the PPD through various artifacts. As I continue to engage in activities in the library, I find myself asking the same questions that I ask when writing an art lesson for my class: What do I want them to be able to do? How are they going to do it? Why is this important? What should they learn? Post lesson, I ask more questions: What did I do well? What could I improve on? What did they do well? How could I better teach ____? When teaching and guiding students in the library, I go through the same process.