Thank you to the International Association of School Librarianship for ways to celebrate International School Library Day.
Suggested Activities for InternationalSchool Library DayFor School Libraries and Other Organisations |
| I | If your school library has a Web site, create a special page to publicise International School Library Day. Include the work of students. Tell the IASL Webmaster so we can link to your page. |
| N | News… Send a press release to your local newspaper with information about International School Library Day activities. A sample press release is available on this Web site. |
| T | Tell people in your school community about International School Library Day and the importance of school libraries in teaching and learning. |
| E | Encourage reading. Have your students compile a list of five books from your country (no more than five — this will force them to discuss their choices) that they think school students in other countries should read. Send the list to IASL-LINK, with information about the age level of the students who compiled the list. |
| R | Recognise excellence. Use International School Library Day as an opportunity to recognise the contribution of other people to the school library programme — student monitors/aides, support staff, teachers, parents, staff of the local education/library authority, volunteers, donors. |
| N | Notify the IASL Newsletter Editor and/or the IASL Webmaster about your activities and share your ideas with others. Send a message about what you are doing to IASL-LINK… |
| A | Arrange a book fair with an international theme. This might include highlighting books about other countries, books by authors from other countries, books in other languages… |
| T | Take part in one of the special activities organised by IASL to celebrate International School Library Day this year. There is information on this Web site to help you. |
| I | IASL-LINK… Use the IASL listserv, IASL-LINK, to tell other members of the Association what you are doing for International School Library Day. Share ideas for activities… |
| O | Organise a visiting speaker from an international organisation, or a speaker who has worked in another country, or someone who has been involved in an international project. |
| N | Newsletter. If your school (or your school library) has a newsletter, write a short article about International School Library Day and the importance of the school library in education. Ask students to write about their school library and publish the best articles. |
| A | Americans call them mousepads; Australians and Europeans call them mousemats. Ask your students to design one that will remind the user of school libraries every time she/he uses a mouse! A Christmas present for the school principal, perhaps? |
| L | Link up with the local public library for a cooperative activity. Ask the local public library to host a display about the school library; support the local public library by hosting a display for them in Library Week or at another time. |
| S | SLAV (the School Library Association of Victoria) is producing some promotional materials for International School Library Day. Check out their Web site and consider placing an order. |
| C | Contact a school library in another country to exchange messages or undertake a co-operative activity, perhaps using email or the Web. If you are an IASL member, use IASL-LINK to make contact… |
| H | Help a school library in a developing country by raising money to enable them to buy books and other materials that they need. Contact IASL to contribute to the IASL Books for Children Project. |
| O | Organise an Open Day in your school library and invite parents and other members of the local community. Have students demonstrate the online catalogue, computer-based services… or show new books or other resources. |
| O | Organise (or attend) a function through your local school library association or library association to celebrate International School Library Day — a seminar, a party… |
| L | Logo. Ask your students to design a logo for International School Library Day, such as might be used on a Web page. Send the best to the IASL Webmaster (electronically if possible) for mounting on the IASL Web site, with the name of the student and the school. |
| L | Library monitors/aides. Organise a visit to another school library (or another library) for your student library monitors, so that they can meet other people who are interested in libraries, and see how another library functions. Make them feel important, show them that the school values their contribution. |
| I | Interview (with your students) parents and others in the school community to find out what school libraries were like when they were at school. Share stories about the changes in school libraries over the years. Display the interview transcripts and any photos that are available. |
| B | Bookmarks (the paper or cardboard ones!). Ask students to design bookmarks promoting their school library and/or International School Library Day, for the principal, teachers, their parents. |
| R | Reach out. Invite a local politician, or journalist, to spend half a day in the school library. Talk to them about school libraries; let them see a school library “at work”; have your students show them what they have achieved through the school library; show them the resources; talk about needs. Be positive — emphasise the importance of school libraries for learning. |
| A | An activity organised in conjunction with the library staff of a local university or college, for senior secondary school students who will be going on to higher education. |
| R | Run a School Library Trivia Afternoon (or evening, depending on the audience), with questions being related to the school library or capable of being answered through its resources. One group might compile the Trivia Quiz questions in advance for another group to answer. You could share your questions (and answers!) with others through IASL-LINK or the IASL Web site. |
| Y | Yahoo! With your students, search the Internet for information about school libraries in other countries. Use the results as the basis for a discussion of the ways in which school libraries differ around the world. |
| D | Displays with an International School Library Day theme, not just in the school library but in the school entrance area, or at an outside location. Involve the students… |
| A | Associations and organisations of school librarians and school library media people. Support your local association; take part in its activities; contribute to its newsletter or magazine; attend conferences and seminars. Ask the association to support International School Library Day. |
| Y | Yay! Let’s party! Join together with other local school librarians, librarians, and people who support school libraries, to celebrate International School Library Day! Invite your school principal. Invite school district or library authority personnel. Present them with reminders of school libraries (mousemats/mousepads, bookmarks, balloons, badges). See above for ideas. |