#arclib

My L.O.s for ARC were:

learn circulation software (Sierra), through training with staff & using it

learn about collection development through the teen graphic novel/manga section & through shelf reading

learn basic shelving duties through staff training & experience

(bonus: gain customer service experience)

So obviously, tasks I did like learning delivery procedures & how to check-in items related to my l.o. of learning how to use SPL’s circulation software, Sierra. I didn’t get quite as much experience with Sierra as I would’ve liked, but I definitely was able to get a feel for it. It wasn’t too hard to get the hang of after awhile, but there are certainly small details that, if I’m not working with it often, I’ll probably forget.

As for all the shelf reading I did, that relates to my 2nd l.o., which has to do with collection development. The point of me doing all the shelf reading was to sort of go through and assess parts of the library’s collection, based upon certain criteria. (As M put it, not verbatim, the library’s goal is not to just provide windows for people to see how others may live, but for people to be able to look into mirrors & see themselves reflected.) & based upon the assessments, the library could see where they would need to improve or change things, & various other tidbits that are probably important but my brain is too fried to try to parse right now.

This is being posted on 5/8, so currently I’ve only worked 2 days, but I should be working another 2, & while I’ll be at CAR on 5/11, it’s mostly unrelated!

Tasks worked on on 5/05 (CAR):

write-up/summary of programs I’ve helped with

finished the annotated book list

made a list of possible (teen) book club activities

started writing a reflection of my years in TAB and researching what goes into a TAB

made brief edits to some previous projects

Tasks worked on on 5/06 (ARC):

M wasn’t here today, and as far as I could tell, she didn’t leave me any new tasks to work on, so I mainly assisted other librarians/staff members on Monday! (”I have free hands if anybody needs an extra pair”)

did my daily straightening up/cleaning of the teen area

alphabetized the holds shelf

organized the carts of things to be reshelved

helped D check in returned items/sort them

helped D with delivery

pulled items from the children’s area on a grubby list for T

Days worked: 3

Tasks worked on: 

shelf reading

children’s picture books (started and finished the last of the sections that needed to be shelf read, yee(haw)t !)

organized M’s outreach suitcase (lol)

& supposedly I’m going to get told the reason I’ve been doing all this shelf reading next week―though honestly, I had just figured it was because 1. it needed to be done, & 2. it related to one of my learning objectives about learning shelving practices & stuff. but who knows? maybe there’s more to it―we’ll just have to wait and see 

Days worked: 3

Tasks worked on:

shelf reading of

children’s nonfiction (0-600)

children’s nonfiction (601-999)

children’s board books

various tasks L or anybody needed me to do, like locating dead or missing/claimed books

Okay SO. Story time―buckle up folks, it’s a lil wild and definitely a bit bumpy.

Days worked: 3

Tasks worked on:

got trained by D on Sierra how to do check-ins, deal with holds, etc., and how/where to put the books to be shelved

Surprisingly easy once you get the hang of it; I liked learning how to do this, but I probably shouldn’t have stood the whole time haha.... my legs Hurt afterwards.

shelf reading:

children’s fiction

children’s foreign languages (Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Persian, +more)

children’s moving up

children’s easy readers

children’s nonfiction (0-600)

Total days worked: 3

Tasks worked on:

find and pull items on the pick-list

get trained on delivery of books (Sierra/ILS)

shelf reading of:

teen fiction A-L

teen fiction M-Z

helped M with outreach:

setting up of tables & displays

handing out tickets

tracking number of people

Total days worked: 3

Tasks worked on:

missing/claimed list

shelf reading of:

teen manga section

teen nonfiction section

teen read & return section

Shelf reading task includes:

counting number of materials in that section

assessing how many are grubby (stained, dirty, torn pages or covers)

going through the books and seeing which, if any, feature main characters that represent a marginalized group (& marking which group it is)