FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Beaconsfield High School Library is the information resource centre of the school. Yes, we have 12 computers with which to access the Internet for those hard-to-find topics, but we also have a well-established and up-to-date print collection.
FAQ’s
What do we have in
print?
What do we have
online?
What do we do in the
Library?
What about other
media in the Library?
Freebies (or
almost) available in the Library…
Who can borrow
books from the Library?
How long may I
keep a book?
How many books
may I borrow?
What do Volunteers
do?
What does a School Library Technician
do?
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Topical Information Books in English and French supporting the Quebec curriculum, and classified by the Dewey Decimal Classification scheme. |
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A Reference collection of general encyclopedias, specialized sets and factual information books. |
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Fiction in English and French, featuring many Canadian publications but also representing other cultural communities. |
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Magazines in English and French on news and current events, popular men’s and women’s magazines appropriate for young people, sports magazines and Canadian and National Geographic |
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Pamphlet file is located in a series of filing cabinets and contains folders organized alphabetically by topic. It contains newspaper clippings on current issues. |
What do we have online?
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Beaconsfield High School Library Catalogue, searchable by author, title, subject or series |
What do we do in the Library?
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Teachers book the Library for class project work. Students typically begin their research during class time and finish on their own time |
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Individual students, with their teacher’s permission, come during class time to continue project work, finish homework or use the computers to type up a paper |
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Groups of students, with their teacher’s permission, come during class time to develop a team project |
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Lunch hours the Library is open for students to do work or meet their friends for some down time. |
What about other media in the Library?
The Library is also the Media Centre for the school. Audiovisual equipment is loaned from the Library to students and staff. Types of equipment available are:
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Video cameras |
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Digital still cameras |
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Overhead projectors |
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Televisions |
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VHS and DVD players |
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LCD projector with computer |
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Screens |
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Microphones and stands, speakers, mixer, and wires for the auditorium |
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Freebies (or almost) available in the Library…
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Borrowing books is free |
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Printing from computers: free, included in student fees |
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Kleenex, scotch tape, pencil crayons, glue, stapler, 3-hole punch, scrap paper - all “on the house” |
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Bristol/poster board: $.50 per sheet |
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Photocopying: $.15 per page |
Who can borrow books from the Library?
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Students |
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Teachers |
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Support staff |
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School volunteers |
How long may I keep a book?
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The normal borrowing period for books is 10 school days, not counting holidays and weekends. |
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Reference books may be borrowed on overnight loan only. Current year encyclopedias are for library use only. |
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Media equipment may be borrowed by arrangement with the Librarian. |
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Magazines are for library use only and are not taken out of the Library. |
How many books may I borrow?
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Students may borrow up to four books at a time Teachers sometimes borrow more for class use |
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What do Volunteers do? |
Parent volunteers, about 18-20, commit to 2-hour shifts throughout the week
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Circulation desk duty - checking books in and out to students and staff, selling bristol boards, and collecting fines |
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Labelling, taping, stamping and covering new books |
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Newspaper clipping and filing |
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Shelving and displaying books, general shelf tidying |
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Creating new book lists semi-annually |
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Overdues notices |
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Helping with bulletin board and book displays |
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Magazine maintenance |
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Searching and gathering books on special topics to put aside for teachers |
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Repairing tired books |
Student volunteers may do community service hours in the Library at lunch time
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Circulation desk duties |
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Shelving and displaying books, general shelf tidying |
| • | Helping with bulletin board and book displays |
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Filing newspaper clippings |
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What does a School Library Technician do? |
BHS Library has a full-time, experienced Library Technician; duties include:
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Management of the library, a staff of volunteers, and the library budget |
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Collection development; book and magazine purchasing |
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Cataloguing and classification of new books |
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Library instruction, eg. teaching students how to find and use resources, including both print and online |
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Reference services, eg. helping students find appropriate resources for projects including effective Internet searching |
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Computer instruction, eg. teaching students how to format documents, control printing, insert pictures, create power point presentations, save documents to safe storage devices, etc. |
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Creating a collaborative interaction between the Library and teachers |
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Searching and gathering books on special topics to put aside for teachers |
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Lunch hour supervision with the aid of one teacher and sometimes a volunteer |
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Developing library programmes to support the curriculum, eg. author visits |
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Overseeing the use and supply of audiovisual equipment from the media room |
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Purchasing of new audiovisual equipment annually, or as needed |
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Planning thematic bulletin board and book displays |
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Occasional library promotion contests |
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Circulation desk duties when no volunteers are present |
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Overdue book tracking and notices |
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Training volunteers in all library duties |
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Managing the updating and maintenance of the library catalogue database |
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Maintaining the regular functioning of the computer equipment and contacting computer technical staff as needed |
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Management and updating of the newspaper clipping files |
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Library webpage updating and management |
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