In the digital age, the old-fashioned library in many schools has been re-dubbed as a media center. This renaming is intended to reflect the facility's inclusion of audio and video resources as well as the traditional print media. Even with the addition of these interactive media options, the crux of a media center still continues to be the vast wealth of books available. With all of the available resources, the media center is the perfect place to encourage student literacy. Media centers can effectively promote literacy within a school and encourage students to read both for enlightenment and enjoyment.
Instructions
1. Allow students ready access. Limiting student availability to the media center discourages the effective use of the facility. Keep the media center open to all students as much as possible during the school day. Particularly be sure to allow students access to the center during their lunch and study hall times as these are the times during which most students will try to access the center. If possible, keep the library open during select holiday and summer hours. This practice, which is recommended by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Academic Achievement, ensures that students have ready access to reading material, even during non-school hours.
2. Encourage cooperative work among media specialists, teachers and administrators. All members of the school community need to play an active role in promoting use of the media center. Ensure that all members of the school community use the media center regularly and remain committed to ensuring student access to the media center resources.
3. Maintain up-to-date material. Buy as many new resources each year as you possibly can. When engaging in literacy activities, students desire access to up-to-date, modern resources. When resources become outdated, replace them. If students continually find that the media center only offers antiquated information, they will discontinue their use of the center.
4. Create thematic displays. Be attentive to the literature trends of the time and create displays to highlight literature that fits into those trends. These attention-getting displays encourage students to pick up books and engage in reading.
5. Decorate with attention-getting posters and provide comfortable seating areas. Make the media center a place that students want to visit by filling the area with comfortable sofas and plush chairs. Stick pops of color around the room by placing literacy encouraging posters throughout the area. The American Library Association offers a host of posters specifically created for use in libraries.
6. Hold contests. Give students extra motivation to engage in reading by enticing them with a contest. These contests can require that participants read a certain book, or instead be based on the quantity of books that individuals read. Hold contests as often as possible to keep readers coming to the media center and encourage visitors to pick up a good book.
7. Host a book club. Turn the solitary act of reading into a social practice by holding a weekly book club. Allow a dedicated media center visitor or a member of the media center staff to host the club. Offer refreshments weekly. This practice gives students even more motivation to engage in the literacy-building activity of reading and allows them to share their excitement with other dedicated readers.
