Monday 23 August 2010

Online Book Clubs

I like the occasional dabble with online book clubs, mostly because my local library's bookclub meetings are held mid afternoon on weekdays - immediately ruling out membership to anyone with a full time job.

One site I've stuck with is Readit Swapit. My boyfriend read about it in the Daily Mail back in April and I've been an active member ever since!

It's basically one huge swap shop for books. You create an account and list all the books you've got which you no longer want. You browse other members' lists (or search the site for particular book titles) and when you've found something that takes your fancy, you initiate a swap. The other member chooses one of your books and hey-presto, you both pop your goodies in the post and await the fun!

There are loads of other features to the site which extend its value to the avid reader, and I really do recommend it. The site is free to use and the whole precedure is hassle free. I've just completed my 14th swap and have absolutely no complaints. Look it up, folks!

Thursday 12 August 2010

Library day in the Life (R5)

I've mentioned in earlier posts, I've been looking out to take part in the next round of 'A Day in the Life' wiki. If you haven't come across this yet, it's a fab wiki where library folk blog about their day at work on a given date. It's a great way of sharing good practice and having a nosey into the working lives of others.

The date of round 5 was set for 26th July 2010 but this was after the end of the term so we'd already broken up for the Summer holiday. I don't think it'd be of much value if I blogged about going in to work for 3 hours to put new stickers in books and then pottering about at home (which is what I did on that day). So... I'm going to have to wait for the next round again!

Sunday 8 August 2010

Summer Holiday 2010

It's been a few months since my last post. Things at work have been very chaotic and I just haven't had the time (or inclination, I'm afraid)...

The school in which I work is currently merging with another, meaning workloads have gone through the roof. We are both under-performing schools and the government deems this is the best solution. Anyway - Manor Foundation and Menzies High School are officially no more, and September sees the birth of the dual site Phoenix Collegiate.

It's a worrying time for all staff. Teachers from both schools have had to been interviewed for their own jobs and have been in competition with each other. The same is due to happen with support staff this forthcoming academic year. Everything will be different - procedures, schemes of work, examination boards, KS2/3 changeover, line management responsibilities etc. There's a fair bit of negativity flying around, especially from the other school. Menzies is slightly above Manor in the leage table and therefore feels it will be dragged down; the other school has made it clear from the start it would rather not have anything to do with Manor. Tough luck I say. It isn't the other school's decision to make and in a perfect world we'd rather not have to merge either, but change can be good so I'm focussing on the positives. It's going to be an extrememyl challenging year for everyone involved, but you just gotta roll with the punches!

The new headteacher has specified he doesn't want any references to the old school names anywhere, so over the summer hols I'm having to go to work (unpaid, I might add!) almost every day to catch up with the extra workload this has generated. There are approximately 10,500 books in the library, all of which carry a Manor sticker. This has to be covered with a new Phoenix sticker. Very tedious but it has to be done before September. Joy. At least I can listen to my iPod and keep an eye on the aquairum while I'm there.