Last day

Yesterday was my last day. I was given a going away party (Sandwiches, cake, card, chips, and even a gift card from Best Buy) I feel so loved and missed already. OK back to blogging. I shelved books and straightened shelves all night minus the 30 minutes I took off for eating food.

Librarian Tip of the Week:
When shelving books straighten the shelves as you go. If you have time then read the shelf if not just straighten them out. This only takes seconds per shelf.

5 Hours down zero to go my 150 hours are complete.

Week before the last day.

Two hours of my five hour shift I shelved books. The rest of the time I spent pulling holds and calling patrons to come and get the material that they requested. I worked the circulation desk for 10 whole minutes on Saturday. Then I went back to straightening out DVDs and VHS tapes.

Librarian Tip of the Week: To assist in the DVD section, the library should buy cases with the call number on them. That way when librarians pull the DVD out of the boxes, they will go in the right place and not filed alphabetically at the librarian discretion. Every librarians should be on the same page.   

15 hours down only 5 more to go.

Only 2 weeks left!

I had to change the days of the week I worked due Thanksgiving. I assisted in a children’s reading program. I read one book “Brown Bear Brown Bear What do you see” and I did it in sign language. I even participated in the singing of three songs. The rest of my time was spent shelving and pulling books on the item holds list. After pulling the items on the holds list, I then called the patrons and told them their items they requested was in and they could come and get it.

Librarian Tip of the Week: When checking in books always look at the screen. Sometimes the screen may say Petal, Mail Service, or Item Hold. If the person checking in these materials don’t catch this then the material may be shelved and then someone else has to go get the book again to place the material in the correct spot. This makes double work.  

15 hours down only 20 more to go.

Week of Nov 19

I shelved books for almost three straight days.  I also pulled the holds list for three days. The holds list is when a patron requests an item and it comes in, or they see an item they want online and the computer says it is on the shelf, they have an option to place a hold on it. I pulled all of these items from all sections of the library (Fiction, non-fiction, juvenile, large print, new, young adult, and DVDs). I then went into the system and placed a computer hold on this item. That way if another patron is searching for this item it will not show up as available. I even called the patron up and told them they had materials available at the Hattiesburg, Public Library. Due to privacy issues I never tell the patrons what the item is. 

Librarian Tip of the Week: Whenever a librarian is walking amongst the shelves and finds a book lying out, pick it up and shelve it in the correct spot. Or at least place it on the shelving cart to be shelved at a later time.

15 hours down only 35 more to go.

Nov 8-13

I wrapped new books for one whole day. I held in my hands new books that were not even allowed to be put out for the patrons to checkout. I held the new Clive Cussler and James Patterson newest books. I wrapped them just liked before, but this time I completed them. I also put on the RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags. These tags are used for security purposes and for assisting in inventory. Then I matched the tag with the barcode and completed wrapping the books. The other two days I shelved books and straightened shelves. Next week I am going to assist in the children’s reading program and I volunteered to read a book or two. One book will be read in sign language. Yikes!

Librarian Tip of the Week: Whenever a new librarian is hired always give them a tour of the library showing them all of the different sections. Give them an information sheet showing hours, numbers of items allowed to be checked out at a time, and how to get a library card. These questions will be asked throughout the person time there. Even if he/she is a volunteer this information should be given.

15 hours down only 50 more to go.

Nov 8 Blog

I am now pretty much on my own. I clock in and start working on the materials to shelve. If I see Ms. Herrington or Ms. Davis I tell them hi and ask them is there anything extra they need me to do. I assisted the reference desk one day and while I was read/straightened the CD/MP3/magazine section. I looked items up in the catalog and I then showed the patrons where the materials are at on the shelf. In my library since it is so small I just point in right direction since my library only have 10 shelves and two of them are reference shelves.

Librarian Tip of the Week: After pulling items on the holds list always go into the computer and flag the item. That way the hold will not show up on the hold report again. I look/see items on the hold list that I know I pulled already.

15 hours down 65 hours to go.

New week new skills learned

I checked books in and separated the books for each library section. Of course I put the books in the correct order on the carts to assist the person shelving.  The main thing about checking books in is to watch the location. The Hattiesburg Library has books going to the Petal Library, new books, holds, and 2 different mail runs.  After checking in books that were requested for holds, I checked the books into holds, called the patron, and told them their material is available at the Hattiesburg Library. I only told the patron that they had material available and never told them the item title. This is for privacy reasons. I then shelved the books into the holds section. I read the reference section one day. There were over 18 books in the reference section that were not reference. Now there are 18 books in the correct spot in the non-fiction section. After I read the shelves I dusted. Dusting shelves is crucial especially after rearranging shelves.

Librarian tip of the week:  When shelving books do not cram the books in the shelves. If a patron pulls a book out a lot of time many books gets pulled out. Then the patron puts the books back on the shelf in any order. If the shelf is full then rearrange the books to make the rows above and below equal in length. That way if another book comes for that row all he/she have to do is shelve the book. Yes it is nice to have the 599 end on one row and the 600s to start on the next row, but sometimes you have to seperate the sections.

15 hours down 80 hours to go.

Back to LIS 489 Practicum

I have been given passwords to the labs. I am now a dangerous person. I was taught how to checkout a computer in the two computer labs. I am unofficially in charge of pulling the holds list and shelving the non-fiction. I just clock in and check in with Ms. Herrington and she usually tells me to work on the shelving, holds list, or DVDs. I am then on my own the rest of the night. Shelving at the Hattiesburg Public Library in a never ending battle as fast as one cart gets shelved another takes its place. This week I learned where the Mississippi collection is located at and who have the keys to the room if I ever need to shelve in there. I also learned how and where to put DVDs at. I am becoming more comfortable around the men and women who works there and more importantly they are becoming more comfortable with me.

Library tip of the week: When shelving books make sure the books are pulled forward to edge of shelf. This is done for two reasons: 1) It makes the shelves looks neater. 2) It also assists the person dusting shelves. This way, the person who is doing the housekeeping all he/she have to do is dust the area next to the books and not the entire shelf. This will save housekeeping some time.

15 hours down 95 hours to go. Yeah double digits!

Dr. K LIS 458 Class Project 4

I will be graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi with a Bachelor’s of Library and Information Science degree (LISBA).

The course I am taking is LIS 458 Internet Resources and Applications for Librarians and Informationalists (Fall 2010) - LIS 458 Sec. H001. I cut and paste this this from Blackboard so I know this is exact. This blog is part of Project 4.

Week 4

I worked three days and had three different jobs. Yes. Day one - read the LP (Large Print) section on the first floor and pulled the holds list. Looking at letters in the LP section is a lot easier than looking at numbers in the non-fiction section. Day two - I wrapped books and put on barcodes and pulled the holds list. Day three – I shelved DVDs and shelved all of the other books that came in overnight. Here is the link to the library I am lucky enough to work at.  http://hatt.ent.sirsi.net/client/default2e

I forgot to add I am the new Batman. When I was getting ready to leave I was told of an injured bat in the courtyard. Everyone was looking for something to get it out of the courtyard. I immediately sprang into action. I went into the courtyard and picked up the injured bat and took it outside the library ground and set it free.

Library advice of the week: After checking in books, put books on the cart in the correct order. This will assist the person shelving the books. Everyone knows that the person shelving the books is also dealing with the public. Any help that the person checking in books can assist him/her with will be greatly beneficial.

Fifteen hours down only 110 to go.

2nd full week

My second full week is officially down. All I did was read the non-fiction. The good news is I will be done sometime today with the non-fiction. Then I can move on to more important jobs. Even though I know that every job is important. Just some is more glamorous than others. Any job where you get to interact with others is more exciting than reading shelves and sitting on the floor. Fifteen hours down only 125 to go. I guess time is running short.

First week

First week of Practicum is finally over. Yes. I believe the 150 hours will be easier than getting a background check. I read shelves the first week. This is a very unglamorous but very necessary job in the world of Libraries. The books have to be in the correct spot or they might as well be lost. I did the biographies and started in the non-fiction. The Hattiesburg library is huge compared to the Sumrall Public Library and PRCC Library in Hattiesburg. I will probably do this for 2 more afternoons then I get promoted to the circulation desk and drop box. 10 hours down with only 140 to go.

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