Open House

Open house is always such a fun time. When I was a St. Philip’s student I remember it being a very exciting day full of anticipation and fun. I see that same excitement on the children’s faces today. This is not the same excitement that occurs on the first day of school. Instead of wondering what their classroom will look like and how they will get along with their teacher, open house provides them with the opportunity to show off their classroom. It is now a space that belongs to them and is no longer unfamiliar territory.

I love seeing prospective parents come through the library. I am quite proud of our little space and the wealth of knowledge provided to the students. Perhaps one of my favorite aspects of open house is listening to the 8th graders give tours. I can hear them approaching the library saying things like, “and this is our new library”, this always gives me a chuckle and I wonder when we cease to be “new”.  In they walk with prospective parents in tow and I become very proud of our students. They speak about the various aspects of the library with confidence. These little tidbits help me see the library from their perspective. I begin to understand what they value and what they are most proud of.

Open house is also a wonderful opportunity to show off what library classes do. I had one very proud 5th grader bring her family to the library. She walk right over to where we store her folder for the year long research project. She probably spent about 5 minutes explaining the project and showing off what she had learned so far. It felt rewarding to know the children are proud of their work. Earlier in the week the kindergarten classes read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff. We discussed the plot of a story and cause and effect. They then wrote their own version of the story and drew illustrations. I told them to stop by during open house to see their work displayed. It was fun to watch them show off their work, read the story to their parents, and point out their illustration.

If you get a chance stop by to read If You Give a Snake a Popsicle and If You Give A Dog an Egg by the kindergarten classes.