[ISLMA-Share] lost books

Email list for the Illinois School Library Media Association islma at list.railslibraries.info
Wed Feb 22 09:44:37 CST 2017


Every so often, we have locker clean-out day.  I always make it an amnesty day and have an announcement that there would be no fine nor questions asked about any book returned on that day.  I am always surprised how many wandering books are guided back home.

I also have had alumni return books they found on their bookshelf years later.  Mostly they have been previous year graduates, but the best was when a man in town for his 40th reunion turned in a book he found in his collection.  He had checked it out from the school library and never returned it.  He wanted me to calculate what the fine would be.  I told him I’d settle for a donation and that he could decide on the amount.  It was a geometry book and I told him he could keep it.  I’ll never forget his reply.  “No thank you.  I always hated geometry.”

Brian Andrusyk
School Librarian/Sub Coordinator
IC Catholic Prep
www.andrusykslibrary.weebly.com<http://www.andrusykslibrary.weebly.com/>

Currently Reading:
Fake ID  by Lamar Giles


From: islma-bounces at list.railslibraries.info [mailto:islma-bounces at list.railslibraries.info] On Behalf Of Email list for the Illinois School Library Media Association
Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2017 9:14 AM
To: islma at list.railslibraries.info
Subject: Re: [ISLMA-Share] lost books

I have this problem, too. At the end of last year, I spoke with all of the seniors and told them to go through their cars, bedrooms, lockers, etc., and find the books that they took out of the library in years past without checking them out. We didn't have a full-time librarian a few years ago, and kids would come in and grab a book and forget to bring it back when somebody was here to check it out. I told them there would be no consequences and no questions asked. I got a few books back. I think they appreciated that they could return them, and I wouldn't hassle them about it.

I also printed out a list of the lost books after inventory last year and went around to the classrooms to look for them. It seems like several books get put on the English teachers' shelves or stuck under desks in classrooms.

Also, you could speak with your maintenance staff. Our awesome staff leaves me a stack of books they find over the summer in lockers, locker rooms, classrooms, etc.

Good luck!

On Wed, Feb 22, 2017 at 8:46 AM, Email list for the Illinois School Library Media Association <islma at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma at list.railslibraries.info>> wrote:
My library has no walls, and with so many kids in the building after hours, it’s way too frequent.  I also find books in the most bizarre place—and I finally saw it happen: A kid picked out a book, but then he saw a different book he wanted as he was walking toward the desk, so he just exchanged them.  **sigh**  They don’t see why that is a problem.  Responsibility is a learned trait, and not all kids have it yet. At least they are stealing books instead of wallets. And sometimes it can be an honest mistake—like getting distracted at Cracker Barrel by all the store products and forgetting to pay and having to go back later and circling around the store so it looks like you just walked out of the restaurant and over to the cashier.  Not that I’ve ever done that! ☺

Valerie brunner
315 S. Henderson
Mt. Zion, IL 62549
brunnerv at mtzion.k12.il.us<mailto:brunnerv at mtzion.k12.il.us>
217-864-2369<tel:(217)%20864-2369>

“be kind.  Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle”

From: islma-bounces at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma-bounces at list.railslibraries.info> [mailto:islma-bounces at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma-bounces at list.railslibraries.info>] On Behalf Of Email list for the Illinois School Library Media Association
Sent: Wednesday, February 22, 2017 8:30 AM
To: islma at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma at list.railslibraries.info>
Subject: [ISLMA-Share] lost books

Even though I do an inventory at the end of the year and mark all missing books as lost, I still cannot find books.

Just now, a teacher came in looking for a popular book and it was not there.  I am embarrassed.  I cannot explain it except that perhaps kids take them out without checking them out.

Do any of you have this problem regularly and if so, have any suggestions for keeping better track?

Thank you!
Sue Meegan
District 157
Calumet City


_______________________________________________
ISLMA-Share mailing list
islma at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma at list.railslibraries.info>
For list archives and subscription options, visit:
http://list.railslibraries.info/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/islma
To unsubscribe, send a message to:
islma-leave at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma-leave at list.railslibraries.info>

_______________________________________________
ISLMA-Share mailing list
islma at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma at list.railslibraries.info>
For list archives and subscription options, visit:
http://list.railslibraries.info/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/islma
To unsubscribe, send a message to:
islma-leave at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma-leave at list.railslibraries.info>


_______________________________________________
ISLMA-Share mailing list
islma at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma at list.railslibraries.info>
For list archives and subscription options, visit:
http://list.railslibraries.info/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/islma
To unsubscribe, send a message to:
islma-leave at list.railslibraries.info<mailto:islma-leave at list.railslibraries.info>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://list.railslibraries.info/pipermail/aisle/attachments/20170222/e52de84e/attachment-0002.html>


More information about the AISLE mailing list