This page has our library policies and basic information for both parents and FES staff. Please feel free to contact me if you have further questions (email: lindsey.lough@vbschools.com).
Table of Contents:
Parent/Legal Guardian Prior Notification for Student Checkout of Library Materials to be Used for Instructional Purposes
When library materials are intended to be used for instructional purposes, parents/legal guardians may determine whether they are appropriate for their children. Library materials are considered instructional materials. when used (i) for completion of an assignment, or (ii) as part of an academic or extracurricular educational program.
Please complete this form in its entirety and submit it to the school's library media specialist to request that your child be restricted from checking out library material(s) for instructional purposes without prior parental/legal guardian permission. This restriction will be in effect, even if your student transfers schools, until you provide written notice to a VBCPS school library requesting the restriction be removed.
Request for Limited Access of Library Materials
(Individual Student)
Please complete this form in its entirety and submit it to the school's library media specialist to request that your child be restricted from checking out specific library material(s). Your child will be restricted from checking out the items from any VBCPS school library, even if they transfer schools, until you provide written notice to a VBCPS school library requesting that the restriction be removed.
From time to time, a parent, student, teacher, administrator, or community member questions a book’s appropriateness for our school. At FES, we believe strongly that anyone with a concern has the right to challenge library materials.
What Should I Do if Someone Challenges Me About a Library Book?
Our school, district, and state have policies, procedures, and laws to follow regarding book challenges. Do not try to resolve the situation yourself. Here are a few guidelines to follow if someone approaches you about the appropriateness of a book in the school library:
Stay neutral! Do not agree or disagree about the book’s content or appropriateness.
Do not try to resolve the situation yourself.
Refer the person to the librarian and school principal.
What is the Procedure if I Want to Challenge a Library Book?
The Fairfield Elementary School Library supports and advocates for the American Library Association’s established principles. The library media specialist will record every challenge and complaint presented and report them to the principal. If a patron wants to fill out a formal Application for Material Reconsideration Form, they may pick one up in the library media center. The form needs to be submitted fully completed to the library media specialist before the material will begin the process to be considered for removal.
Process for Reconsideration:
Return the formal Application for Material Reconsideration Form to the library media specialist.
A reconsideration committee will be created, and a date will be set to host a hearing. The patron who completed the form and the members of the committee are encouraged to read the text under consideration in its entirety.
The reconsideration committee will vote either to remove or retain the material under consideration and report the majority ruling to the principal. The principal will also report the ruling to the Virginia Beach City Public Schools Board of Education, and a copy of the ruling will be delivered to the patron who submitted the Application for Material Reconsideration Form.
The materials designated to be removed will be removed directly unless the decision is reversed by an appeal submitted to both the principal and committee.
Application for Material Reconsideration Form
Checkout Limits:
K - 1 book at a time (2 books at a time after January)
Grade 1 - 2 books at a time (3 books at a time after January)
Grade 2 - 3 books
Grade 3 - 3 books
Grade 4 - 3 books
Grade 5 - 3 books
Teachers: up to 10 books at a time (More can be checked out if preapproved by the LMS)
Renewing Materials
Students and teachers may renew their books as many times as needed as long as no one is on-hold for the book.
If a student brings in a damaged library book, please send the student and the book to me. We might be able to repair the damage. If the item cannot be repaired, the person who checked out the book is responsible to replace the book or pay for the damage.
Ms. Maleski and I May Be Able to Repair...
A small number of torn pages, provided the torn pages are not lost.
Loose spine or bindings
Torn mylar cover (the clear plastic that protects the dust jacket)
We Cannot Usually Repair...
Writing, drawing, or scribbles in or on the book
Pet damage (chewed pages, urine, fecal matter)
Food or liquid damage
Students may not eat or drink in the library at any time. Adults may have drinks in the library, but please make sure drinks have a lid or cap to prevents splashes and spills.
The Fairfield Elementary School Library will gratefully accept any monetary donations through the district or school office. The donation should be clearly marked for the Fairfield Elementary School Library along with any other specifications. Physical texts can be donated for consideration to be added to the collection. However, once donated, materials are the property of the Fairfield Elementary School Library. The library media specialist reserves the right to use materials in the way she or he sees fit. Furthermore, outdated, or unusable, materials will be recycled.
You are welcome to send students in Grades 2-5 to use laptops on their own in the library. Please note that I am unable to monitor students’ computer activity or make sure they are on-task. If you are concerned about a particular student’s ability to stay focused in the library, do not send them without an adult to supervise.
If you or a student thinks a book is lost, don’t panic! The vast majority of the time, lost materials turn up eventually. If you think you have lost a library item, please come tell me. I will double-check the shelves and if necessary, mark it lost in the catalog.
Since lost materials are frequently found, I do not require payment for a lost library book until four weeks have passed. The patron may still check out books in this four-week period, even if the books are not found right away.
Common Places Books Hide:
At home - check bookshelves, under beds, in desks, under sofa, pushed between sofa cushions, crevice between the bed and wall, inside piano bench, hamper, or toy chest
At school - check student’s locker or cubby, student’s desk, backpack, classroom library
In car - under seats, between crevices, in trunk
Someone else’s house - babysitter, relative, neighbor
Day care center
Turned in to public library or another school’s library
Books are due two weeks after the book is checked out to the patron. Materials are considered overdue the day after their due date has passed. Once a library item is overdue, the patron may check out materials. However, they may not check out the full amount of books until the overdue materials are returned, marked lost, or paid for. (For Example: If a 4th grade student has one overdue item, they may only check out two new books instead of three.) This policy does not apply to teachers.
Due Dates for Library Materials
Kindergarten: one week
Students in Grades 1-5: two weeks
Teachers: two weeks
Parents and immediate family members of FES students are allowed to visit the library during the school day and before and after school. Parents should adhere to the FES visitor policy and sign in at the office before coming to the library. All outside library visitors must wear a guest pass at all times. Parents, younger siblings, and other library guests must not cause a disruption in library activities or divide the librarian’s attention away from the students in the library.
Can Parents Use Library Technology?
Library computers are generally only available to current FES students; however, exceptions may be made for short periods of time. Parents requesting use of school computers or other technology should make prior arrangements with the school librarian.
Staff members: Please check out my google calendar and email me at lindsey.lough@vbschools.com with a date and time that is available.
Staff members in the Fairfield Elementary School Library will be aware and follow these guidelines regarding the use of social media platforms. Social media is a useful tool to promote our library, as well as activities and resources we can provide. However, we must use it with caution to preserve the professionalism of our workplace.
When using social media and/or blogs to state your opinions, use a disclaimer to state that the opinions presented are yours alone and do not reflect the opinions of your employer or our library.
Do not disclose private information about our students, staff, and patrons on any site.
If you choose to post about our library, please be honest about who you are and where you work.
Always abide by copyright and fair use guidelines, especially when posting on social media platforms.
Do not post any personal information about your coworkers. Ask for their permission before posting any videos, pictures, or conversations that include them.
Deal with differences of opinions on social media platforms in a professional manner.
Make sure that information you post is factual, and, whenever you are able, provide supporting evidence and sources.
Make sure you are following the Virginia Beach City Public Schools Technology Acceptable Use Policy whenever you are online.
Be aware of the image you want to portray online for our library and use good judgement when posting on social media platforms. What you publish online will remain there permanently.
Seek out opportunities to engage library patrons on social media platforms and provide recommendations and resources.
If you make a mistake, take responsibility for it and be honest.
Community engagement is valued and encouraged at Fairfield Elementary School and in the Virginia Beach City Public Schools District as a whole. The Volunteers in Education Program is an active part of connecting community members to opportunities to volunteer in public schools in our district. Volunteers can aid in the library and help organize special events and student enrichment opportunities. To volunteer in the Virginia Beach City Public Schools District, complete the Request to Volunteer form and return it to the school of your choice or the district office for approval. Report to the security desk to sign in and out of a school building when volunteering. A valid driver’s license will be required when signing in. Volunteers will be provided a visitor’s badge and will be expected to wear it while volunteering. The volunteers will collaborate and work under the direction of the library media specialist, and library media assistants, to plan, organize, and implement activities.
Volunteers are responsible for their scheduled times and must notify the school if they are not able to keep their committed time.
Volunteers are also expected to respect the school administration and staff members.
Volunteers are not to discuss school matters or student information outside the library.
Volunteers are expected to dress appropriately for the task they are given.
Volunteers are not to let their own personal feelings interfere with their work as a volunteer.
The weeding process will be based on the system established in Resource Alignment: Curriculum Support in the School Library Media Center by Karen Lowe. Texts that reside in each topic are replaced based on the suggested guidelines presented in the textbook.
“Reference Materials” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 years except historical materials (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Encyclopedia” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Computer Science” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 3 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Ethics and Character Education” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Use determines the value of these texts. Replace most after 10 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Religion” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Use determines the value of these texts (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Social Studies” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Use determines the value of these texts. Make sure to represent all sides of controversial issues (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Yearbooks” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Politics” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 10 years. Use determines the value of these texts (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Economics” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Government” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 10 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Social Welfare” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 to 10 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Education/Commerce” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 10 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Customs/holidays/folklore” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace when books are worn out. Discard texts published before 1970 (excluding classics) (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Languages” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Use determines the value of these texts (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Science” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Health/Technology” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 5 years. Keep important historical texts (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Art/Music” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Retain basic resources but replace books about sports teams and players after 5 years (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Literature” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Retain basic resources (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“History” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 20 years. Use determines the value of the texts as well as validity of the facts and objectivity of the perspective (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
“Fiction” and “Easy Fiction” (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20)
Replace after 20 years unless the text is a classic or award-winning book (Lowe, 2016, pp. 19-20).
Citation:
Lowe, K. R. (2016). Resource Alignment: Curriculum Support in the School Library Media Center (Revised Edition). Millers Creek, North Carolina: Beacon Consulting.