By Jill Fuller
Backpacks are full of markers, notebooks, and calculators. Yellow buses are winding their way through town. Homeschool groups are starting to meet up again. School is now well underway for students across Jefferson County, from those learning their ABCs to those planning their next steps after they get their diplomas.
As the school year kicks off, library staff are partnering with schools to share resources and help develop a love of reading in students. Librarian Julia Birch, from the Jefferson Public Library, recently went to an elementary school open house to meet families and help them get library cards.
“Just this week we had a mom and her son from the open house night come in to turn in their application and receive their card,” Birch said.
Beneficial school-library partnerships are made possible because of great working relationships between public library staff, teachers, administrators, parents, and school/district librarians.
“It’s so important to connect the public library with the schools in our community,” said Birch, “because it allows families and teachers to recognize the resources that are available to them all year round through the public library.” These resources include books, audiobooks, computer access, portable WiFi, printers, science kits, social events, and more to help students succeed and grow.
The public libraries in Jefferson County also work to support teachers. According to Birch, the library makes sure to supplement the teachers’ curriculum in any way needed.
“We have one teacher who will check out 50-plus books for her classroom each time they start a new unit,” she said.
The Watertown Public Library has a book bag program for educators, childcare providers, and homeschool families who live in or teach in the Watertown area. Library staff select books for them based on theme, age range and type of materials needed.
“It’s a wonderful service and a great way to connect with local educators,” Watertown Public Library Children’s Librarian Tina Peerenboom said.
A library card is an essential school supply, so in Fort Atkinson, the Dwight Foster Public Library spearheaded a new collaboration with the Fort Atkinson School District to get library cards for kids who didn’t have any. During the online school registration process, parents could opt in for a library card; 733 new library cards are going out to students in the Fort Atkinson community due to this initiative.
Dwight Foster Public Library Director Eric Robinson said: “We cannot wait to see more smiling faces in the library reading, studying, and enjoying time with friends and family. We are grateful to the Fort Atkinson School District, particularly Director of Technology DJ Scullin, for partnering with us to make the library and its collections more accessible for everyone in our community.”
Like peanut butter and jelly, schools and libraries just go together. With books, library cards, and positive partnerships, we strive to create communities of confident learners and strong readers.
Jill Fuller is a marketing and communications librarian within the Bridges Library System, of which public libraries in Jefferson and Waukesha counties are members. The Irvin L. Young Library in Whitewater also is a member.
Jill Fuller
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