The school's specialism in business and ... - Park View School

Library / Learning Resource Centre
Park View School Library /
Learning Resource Centre is a
facility for pupils to do homework or
research as well as borrow books for
reading for pleasure.
The Library is open for personal use at
the following times:
8.00 - 8.30am
11.10 - 11.25am
1.35 - 2.10pm
3.15 - 4.30pm (not Fridays)
Homework clubs take place after school
and pupils need to arrive by 3.30pm if
they wish to attend. They should also
ensure they have told their parents/
carers they are staying behind. There is
also the opportunity to use the library as
a class as part of a research lesson.
A variety of resources are available to
borrow; books, CDs (music, story and
CD ROMs), DVDs, Islamic resources. In
addition there is a choice of news papers
and magazines to browse in the library.
ICT provision of twelve computers
gives access to the school network and
internet. The library catalogue contains
1000’s of suitable web sites pre-selected
for use in schools, and the e-resource
area is constantly under review and
development.
A short course of library skills to aid
information literacy is taught in Year 7
with a refresher in Year 8 to enable pupils
to get the best out of the resources. The
Librarian is always available to assist
with book selection for reading and
finding suitable resources for
homework. Pupil Library Assistants
assist the Librarian at break and lunch
times and are working towards
proficiency grades in pupil librarian skills.
All pupils are encouraged to suggest
suitable titles to be stocked in the Library.
The Key Stage 3 Reading Group meets
during the Autumn and Spring Terms to
participate in the Birmingham KS3 Book
Award, whilst Key Stage 4 pupils are
encouraged to shadow the National Book
Awards for Teenage Fiction (Carnegie
Medal and Book Trust Teenage Book
Award). To further encourage reading,
pupils are given the opportunity to
purchase books for pleasure and leisure.
They are given the opportunity to
purchase books for themselves at
reduced prices via the Scholastic Book
Club magazines which are distributed
each half term. Where appropriate, trips
to the Library Theatre in Birmingham to
attend author events are also a feature of
library activity.
The inter-form Library Challenge cup is
contested with a variety of competitions
and quizzes, such as ‘Countdown’.