Media Center

The mission of the Symonds School Media Center is to provide an inviting, accessible environment which empowers all students and staff to discover a  love of reading, become effective and efficient users of a variety of information, and develop a lifelong passion for learning. Mrs. Brenda Haenchen is the certified Library Media Specialist.

Our school media center teaches students about the multitude of ways our society communicates ideas and appropriate ways to interact with all types of information sources. Students learn to locate information, evaluate it critically, use it for a variety of purposes, and enjoy it.

Symonds students have at least 45 minutes of media class each week. Media class includes instruction in library and technology skills. Many classes are planned in collaboration with classroom teachers and are developed to extend a Science or Social Studies topic being studied in the regular classroom.

We may study print media, audio media, video media, artifacts, or photographs. The students regularly work with Chromebooks and iPads. We will use the Internet for research and other educational activities and will discuss the SAU 29 Acceptable Use Policy in age-appropriate terminology.

Our Media Center contains over 17,000 items. All library materials are carefully chosen for reading level, interest, and relevance to the curriculum. As such, they are carefully judged through professional reviews before being purchased by the Library Media Specialist.

Each library class provides time for students to check out books. Books are checked out for one week and should be returned at the next media class. Students may renew books if they choose. Kindergarten students may check out one book at a time. All other students may check out three books at a time. Students and their families are responsible for replacing lost or damaged books. If this happens, details will be sent home.

In the first few weeks, students will be discussing choosing a “just right” book. Developing the ability to choose reading materials for yourself is a crucial step in becoming a successful reader.

Symonds Media Center LOVES parent volunteers. We often have 1,000 books checked out! We require about 3 hours of “shelving” each week to keep up with all the reading that happens in our school. If you have time to help, please let Mrs. Haenchen know.