Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Signs and Displays





I have signs and displays all over my library. Everything I read, blogs, books, professional magazines and every professional development I go say librarians should have lots of signage. So I do.                                                                                                                                                     I have signs everywhere.  I started with the areas I get asked about the most then branched out from there.  Some of my signs I like more than others but on a whole I really like what I've done. I still want to add more.




Here's problem though. Students ask me all the time where books are located. Like graphic novels. I have a huge sign for them. It takes up the whole window. It's brightly colored and has "graphic novels" written on it. But they don't see it. The big tree that says "Poet-tree," yeah, no one ever notices it until I point it out. It's frustrating. So unbelievably frustrating to work on these displays to help students and they don't notice them.  Or maybe a better way to say that is that they don't use them.  Maybe they see them but don't realize their meaning?





They are helpful when I can't walk over and show students exactly where books are found. It helps to say "Do you see the globe that says 'Read Around The World'? The book you want is over there." That IS helpful.                                                                                                                   So what does that mean? Have I not taught my students about sections of my library well enough? Have I not taught them to look at the signs? Am I expecting to much from elementary students? I don't know. I just don't know. 

I do a lesson at the beginning of the year about where to find books in the library. I point out the signs and displays. I read a book about different "addresses" of books. Maybe I need to do a refresher lesson mid year or maybe quarterly.

I really want my students to be aware.  Looking at signs and displays goes beyond a school library or a public library.  Or even a book store for that matter.  There are signs and displays all around our world.  At ball parks, on the streets, in office buildings, etc.  I'd like the lesson of noticing the signs and displays in our library to carry over to the real world.

Until my students get there, I'll do my job and teach.


6 comments:

  1. signage is a struggle. Yours are darling--but I find that even the darling ones melt into the woodwork after just a bit. I wonder is it the fast-paced blinkie world we live in? is it just that our eyes only see novelty? just not sure. You are not struggling alone!

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  2. I think that we as a society are so use to asking and not looking that we sometimes forget that what we want is right before our eyes if we just open them and look.

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  3. I think that we as a society are so use to asking and not looking that we sometimes forget that what we want is right before our eyes if we just open them and look.

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  4. I found that I often had to do multiple refreshers -- on basic things -- at different points in the year when I had my own classroom. I think it's human nature to "forget."

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  5. After reviewing your signs, maybe have the students point to the sign that would help them find a particular type of book. Eventually they might get the hang of using the graphics around the library to help themselves.

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  6. My high schoolers are the same way in my classroom! I've found that I have to be very intentional in the fall about teaching them where things are and how to use them, and then to continually reinforce that all year!

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