Profiles in Collaboration: Summer Reading Program Success Stories

Repeat Success for GHS Reads!

Gloucester High School, with the help of young adult librarian Cindi Williams at the Gloucester Sawyer Free Library, completed the second year of an innovative summer reading program introduced last fall by high school librarian, Mary Saunders. Nine hundred students from the high school participated in a book discussion instead of a class on the morning of September 16. The titles discussed were those chosen by the students as summer reading from a list of 50 fiction and nonfiction titles from a wide range of genres and difficulty levels. Among the most popular were Smashed: Story of a Drunken Girlhood by Karen Zailckas, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Anne Brashares, Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions by Ben Mezrich, and, of course, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowlings. Cindi Williams and the Sawyer Free Library circulated their titles, ILL titles, and the high school copies of the books on the list. Students registered their title choices with the high school librarian by email, often from the public library after they had changed their book choice. Cindi also lead the discussion of the title she suggested for the list, Who Am I Without Him by Sharon Flake. Thirty-two teachers and administrators also led discussions and twenty-six members of the Cape Ann community were brave enough to lead a group of high school students in the discussion of their chosen book. Notable among discussion leaders were other public librarians connected to the Cape Ann community including Leane M. Ellis who is a Reference & Readers' Advisory Librarian at Lucius Beebe Memorial Library in Wakefield and Sarah Rasmussen who is a weekend librarian at the Salem Public Library as well as the technology aide in the Gloucester High School library.

A Cool Collaboration in Beverly

Nancy Bonne, Children's Librarian, described in a recent summer reading program wrap up workshop an exciting collaboration with her schools. Last spring, school representatives met with Nancy and wanted to do a summer reading program but wondered how to do it? Definitely came to the right person! With very little planning time beginning in April, a really cool collaboration with the schools was pulled off! The schools gave out a reading log to every elementary student. Public library staff went and gave book talks at school to these students, introducing and enticing them to participate in the reading program. The connection was made between public library and school! Nancy signed a certificate to be copied and given to all students who had read over the summer. Unexpectedly but gladly Nancy has been invited to attend these Certification ceremonies this fall. She has made the public library a very visible presence in the school.