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!
Monday, 23 August 2010
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!
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.
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.
Tuesday, 11 May 2010
Editorial Panel Meeting
Last week I attended my first meeting Editorial Panel meeting for Cilip’s Update and Gazette magazines. I must confess I didn’t really know what to expect and I was a tad nervous.
It was attended by 5 people from Cilip and 6 people from the panel. I thought there would have been more people there but a lot of people couldn’t make it as the meeting fell the day after the General Election. The majority of the panel’s duties are carried out online via forums, so it was nice to finally meet in person and put faces to names.
We were emailed an agenda and several documents beforehand, and the primary focus of the meeting was the recent digital launch of the two publications and the readership statistics / feedback this has generated. There was also a call for more contributions / articles from readers.
With all this to discuss it is a very exciting time to be on the panel! Remember the blog post I wrote back in December 2009, about whether I should apply for the panel and how naff I felt my application was? I’m soooo glad I did it! I’d recommend it to anybody wishing to become an active member of Cilip.
I should also say that Cilip put on a marvellous spread for the buffet!
It was attended by 5 people from Cilip and 6 people from the panel. I thought there would have been more people there but a lot of people couldn’t make it as the meeting fell the day after the General Election. The majority of the panel’s duties are carried out online via forums, so it was nice to finally meet in person and put faces to names.
We were emailed an agenda and several documents beforehand, and the primary focus of the meeting was the recent digital launch of the two publications and the readership statistics / feedback this has generated. There was also a call for more contributions / articles from readers.
With all this to discuss it is a very exciting time to be on the panel! Remember the blog post I wrote back in December 2009, about whether I should apply for the panel and how naff I felt my application was? I’m soooo glad I did it! I’d recommend it to anybody wishing to become an active member of Cilip.
I should also say that Cilip put on a marvellous spread for the buffet!
Monday, 10 May 2010
Cilip's Gazette needs YOU!
Hi Folks,
As some of you may already know, I'm on the Editorial Panel for Cilip's Update / Gazette magazines. I started a three year term in January and so far I'm really enjoying it.
Whilst Update has writers on staff to produce articles, Gazette consists mostly of voluntary contributions from readers. We're now looking for people to contribute to Gazette's 'Library Heroes' column. That's right - Gazette needs YOU!
You can choose to write about anybody from the information / library world, who you admire / think has made a valuable difference. It's a flexible column so the person you write about can be either famous or non-famous. The article should have a word limit of between 400-600. It's an informal column so it doesn't have to be written in a particularly formal / academic style.
Previous Gazette issues can be viewed online at Cilip's website if you want to browse past examples - such as my attempt to write about my own Library Hero (Issue date: 8 April 2010, p15)!
Should anybody be interested, please message me.
As some of you may already know, I'm on the Editorial Panel for Cilip's Update / Gazette magazines. I started a three year term in January and so far I'm really enjoying it.
Whilst Update has writers on staff to produce articles, Gazette consists mostly of voluntary contributions from readers. We're now looking for people to contribute to Gazette's 'Library Heroes' column. That's right - Gazette needs YOU!
You can choose to write about anybody from the information / library world, who you admire / think has made a valuable difference. It's a flexible column so the person you write about can be either famous or non-famous. The article should have a word limit of between 400-600. It's an informal column so it doesn't have to be written in a particularly formal / academic style.
Previous Gazette issues can be viewed online at Cilip's website if you want to browse past examples - such as my attempt to write about my own Library Hero (Issue date: 8 April 2010, p15)!
Should anybody be interested, please message me.
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