Yearly Library Retreat: Purpose and Value

This past Friday members of the Library Department gathered together in the Upper School Library for our annual retreat. We challenged ourselves to think  about our yearly goals, evaluate our roles as school librarians and highlight the contributions we make to the Wheeler Community. We also spent time reflecting on our work as Recipients of the Miller Fellowship. 

We were lead by Christine Smith, the head of the Library Department who gave us this encompassing objective; To come away from the retreat with a plan that supports the unique ways librarians add value to the school’s educational goals, and affect teaching and learning through collaboration and inquiry.

We spent time thinking about the ways we support teachers, students and other constituents of the Wheeler Community. We used the Question Formulation Technique (a tool Christine Smith and myself are currently taking an online Harvard Graduate course in) to think about how our department goals align with the school's strategic plan. We created a list of tasks we each needed to accomplish in efforts to align with the school's strategic plan.

During our retreat last year we took a critical look at the American Association of School Librarians Standards and framework. We brainstormed ways our curriculum meets each standard and we highlighted places in the framework where we were not addressing certain standards. This year we discussed our current curriculum and worked collectively to fill in the gaps we had from last year's work. We still have some gaps and we are committed to continue to find ways to align meet the AASL Standards.

I think it would be fair to say we all left the retreat feeling valued and endowed with a purpose. We also know that this work is ongoing. We know as librarians we will constantly reflect, adjust, make mistakes and try again. We are up for the challenge!