Our school library is a fantastic resource for students. It supports and encourages teaching and learning within the school, and actively promotes reading for pleasure. It also provides a facility for research and private study, with both fiction and non-fiction books and computer facilities.
Every student in Year 7 and 8 has a regular reading lesson in the library as part of their English curriculum, during which they spend thirty to forty minutes private reading and the remaining time learning English skills, such as skimming, scanning, summarising and inference. Other subject classes are booked into the library for project and research purposes, along with arrangements for Sixth Form study groups.
In addition to timetabled lessons, students are welcome to use the library facilities during Base Time, at breaktime and also at lunchtime. During social times the pupils may use the Library to retrieve information, to do homework, use computers, to read, to colour or just browse the shelves. Our Library is also recognised school-wide as a safe space. Many students benefit from the quiet, relaxed nature of the library.
The Library is open every day from 8:45am – 3:15pm and is run by Mrs Costello.
We offer a number of lunchtime clubs in the Library, including a Mindfulness Colouring Club, ‘The Lollies Book Award’ Reading Group, and ‘The Carnegie Medal’ Reading Group.
All Year 7 students follow a library induction programme during the beginning of the Autumn term which include information skills, library terminology and reading promotion.
We follow the Accelerated Reader programme here at Sir William Robertson Academy. At the beginning of every half term, each student takes a Star Reader Test. This reading comprehension test is taken on the computer and is unique to each student. The test results advise a score for each individual student, and they can then access books that are set to their reading ability. This system looks to stretch the student by giving them access to books that they will understand, but will also aim to push their reading skills and increase their comprehension, a skill that is vital to each student to enable them to access their GCSEs.
We have author visits and an annual Storytelling Workshop for Year 7. In September 2022, we are beginning to run ‘Bookbuzz’ with Year 7. ‘Bookbuzz’ is an exciting opportunity for students to review a series of titles by reading blurbs, reviews, synopsis’, judging books by their cover and watching videos. The students then get to choose one of these titles each, and the books arrive in the winter term ready to be distributed before Christmas. Other events held in the Library include Harry Potter Day, Black History Month, National Poetry Day, and of course the annual World Book Day is one of our highlights.