Our school library is housed in the original Laguna schoolhouse, a beautiful sandstone building erected in 1881. Our current librarian is Mrs Deanne Baker, who has taught at Laguna school for over 20 years.
Each week the junior and senior classes have their own library session, which is much more than simply returning and borrowing books. Children learn about how a library is organised, and where to find a particular book. Music is a big part of the library lessons and children learn about different instruments, musical notation and the joy of playing music together! Each library session the children also have an opportunity for art and craft, with their colourful creations displayed for all to see.
Events also organised by Mrs Baker include Book Week, where we celebrate books by having dress-up days, a book fair for children to purchase new titles and a fun day of activities where parents and grandparents join their children in art activities based around new children's book releases. Mrs Baker has also established a very popular chess competition that runs through two terms, and we now have a new recorder group, which practises twice weekly.
For the senior students, Mrs Baker coordinates a project each term, focussing upon a particular text type (explanations, information reports, expositions etc) and a topic that the students are studying in class. Below are some photos of a recent project where the children had to construct a solar-powered cooker, and write an explanation of its workings.
A lot happens at the Laguna PS library!