Hours: 7:30 am to 3:15 pm daily

Staff: Jennifer Wenzel, librarian, wenzelj@mail.muhlsdk12.org
Virginia Sands, library secretary, sandsg@mail.muhlsdk12.org

Phone: 610-921-8034, x6

Middle School Card Catalog

Click here to access the middle school card catalog.

Program

The recently renovated Muhlenberg Middle School library is thriving. Students use the library as assigned or are allowed by the teachers for projects and recreational reading. The library is also open during study halls, enrichment, and after school.

While working in the library, students are taught to become experts in the use of many types of resources. The instruction follows the curriculum for each grade level, subject and teacher. The librarian communicates with classroom teachers on a regular basis to create integrated lessons during which skills are taught. All middle school students are encouraged to read for pleasure and to select materials appropriate for their interests and abilities. Book talks, special events, activities, and contests further promote the joy of reading.

Middle school students build upon their information literacy skills learned in elementary school. Students learn to be more discriminating in the sources they choose to use for research, taking into consideration the author's purpose and authority on a subject. They learn how to locate and access materials using the computer card catalog, utilize print and non-print reference resources, and use advanced search strategies to extract information from a variety of sources.

Collection

Students and staff have access to over 9500 books and an extensive young adult magazine collection in the middle school library. Wireless laptops and 11 computers are available in the library as well as two laser printers, scanner, and photocopiers. Teachers and students may search the library from any classroom or home computer. The collection is always growing and changing as we work to support the curricular needs of faculty and the current interests of our students.

We are fortunate to have four other libraries on the campus which allows us to easily share materials. District participation in the AccessPA database gives students and teachers access to the over 11 million titles of the participating schools and universities. The PowerLibrary project allows access to thousands of full-text magazine and newspaper articles, a major encyclopedia, and many other electronic reference sources.

Link to Power Library from school
http://www.powerlibrary.org/Interface/POWER.asp?ID=PL1273

Link to Power Library from home
http://www.powerlibrary.net/Remote/Remote.asp?ID=Berks

Circulation policies:

Loan period for student materials: Two six-day cycles, renewals allowed
Students may borrow up to 4 items at a time.

Overdue/Lost books: Fines of $.05 per school day are charged for overdue materials. Students must pay for lost or damaged books.

Sponsored Activities:

Volunteers: Students are encouraged to volunteer in the school library during study hall, enrichment or after school. They are trained to help with circulation, displays, computer use, shelving and other odd jobs.

Poetry contest: Middle school students are encouraged to participate in the Reading Public Library's Young Poets Contest by writing and submitting original works. The contest entries are due at the end of January.

Reading Olympics: Berks County librarians sponsor the Reading Olympics each year. Students read books from a list of 42, and then compete in April against other middle school readers to see who remembers the most details about the books.

PA Young Reader's Choice: Pennsylvania School librarians sponsor this reading program in which readers vote for their favorite book from a list of about 18 choices. Voting is done in March.

PA Center for the Book; Letters about Literature: Students are encouraged to enter this contest in which they respond to a favorite book, writing a letter to the author.

Spelling Bee: Middle school students around the country participate in the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee. Our local bee, sponsored by the Reading Eagle, is held in March, with qualifying rounds in January. Local winners are invited to participate in the Berks County Spelling Bee.

Link to Muhlenberg Community Library
http://www.berks.lib.pa.us/muhlenbergcl/