Welcome to Library Lions Roar! We celebrate libraries and the outstanding librarians serving youth in schools and public libraries across the U.S. Please Roar today’s guest Librarian, Kathleen Dunbar
Pictured here with Janet

I am Kathleen Dunbar, the librarian at Eastlake High School in Sammamish, Washington.

Our library is a link between school and home for students. We have an active Book Club and PTSA that supports reading advocacy and improving our library space to change with the times. One goal I have yet to do is host a flash mob in the library. I think that would be so cool!

The Skinny
I love recommending books when students ask for something to read, especially if it challenges me to think outside my reading comfort zone. Next to that my second favorite thing is doing book trailer projects with classes. I love seeing how students interpret books with video, images, and music. I always get inspired to read something new.

A Mighty Roar!
The EHS PTSA has funded many needs for the Library, and we love them for doing that! They provided two grants that allowed us to get new furniture for more student seating, multimedia headsets for student projects, graphing calculators, and STEM books to update our non-fiction titles. This, in turn, allowed our Library to pursue more expansion with technology such as our new digital display which will be installed by February 1, 2017. It will be so amazing when students come in the library for them to be able to see important school announcements, student work from the video production class, and featured book trailers and/or author events and video book reviews. Julie Caper and Julie Olson are to thank for coordinating all this amazing support!

Library Laughs
In the EHS Library, our favorite holidays are Halloween and April Fools. Last year for Halloween I dressed up as Flo the Progressive Insurance Lady and everyone loved it, and I won best costume!
Also for a staff spirit week, we wore our “Straight Outta the Library” sweatshirts which the students thought was hilarious.

For April Fools last year there were a group of students lounging in the comfortable chairs, and we pretended we got a call from the main office and hung up and said, “We just got word that those chairs need to get treated for bug infestation.” I have never seen students move so fast out of those chairs! Then one of my staff took a picture of the library catalog and put it as the desktop background, so when another staff -member tried to use it, she called the tech help desk while the rest of us cracked up.

A Lion’s Pride of Programs
The EHS Book Club is something I wish more people knew about. Our main activity is choosing a book to read together and then discuss it, and our second thing we love to do is meet local authors. Last year we had a local author visit, Jared Files, who graduated from our school, so that was a treat!

Readers Roar: Let’s hear from the kids!
From 10th Grader Matilda Mikulec
” But really, really… It was your storytelling. That is the true flower of free will, at least as you’ve mastered it so far. When you create stories, you become Gods of tiny, intricate dimensions unto themselves. ” Metaton supernatural

From 11th Grader Katie Pryal
“I love reading. When you dive into a book, it opens up new ideas and opinions that you can relate to your everyday life. With each book I read, I feel like I am learning something new and growing as a person. I love going to my school library to be surrounded by the books that I love and learn of new ones that I will read in the future.”

Author! Author!
Janet Lee Carey came to our book club meeting at the EHS Library, and my only wish was that the visit could have been longer.

She shared with students how she was inspired to publish her writing since she was a child, wanting to create a world for others to escape to, just like she did while reading books when she was young.

Students asked about what it is like to be published, how she flushes out story ideas, and more. She answered with insightful and interesting comments.

My favorite story was about how getting rejected is a part of getting published. I find that so ironic but also inspiring.

Janet shared how the detailed work that goes into creating characters pays off with the finished product, and I have to agree. When I read, Dragon’s Keep, I kept wanting to re-visit the world and be immersed in it and felt the characters were so accessible and real.

Thanks, Kathleen. I loved visiting the EHS book club and talking with your inquisitive and well-read students! And thank you for taking the time to tell us about the EHS library. The library was buzzing with activity when I arrived. My hat is off to you and to all the school librarians I’ve met. You’re amazing!

Let’s Link
Library Website
EHS Library Facebook
Twitter: EHS@WSPSLibrary
video

Note to Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian working in a school or public library, we’d love to hear about you and your library. Email Janet via the Contact page on this website to set up an interview.
Note to Authors: If you’re interested in Roaring for Libraries on this blog, contact Janet.