accountability and responsibility

By Jeanette Stottrup

From the very beginning, libraries have grappled with the “overdue factor.”  Patrons looking for materials in the Pioneerland catalog see these items marked, not as “available,” but “overdue” or “billed.”  Just a small portion of the over 700,000 items checked out annually in Pioneerland go overdue. Of those items that are 30 days overdue and billed, about half are not returned after three months.  Some of the reasons for this are accidental; some are from carelessness while others are just plain mysteries. 

 The Millennium automated checkout system used by Pioneerland, now two and a half years old, has a record of this overdue activity. The Litchfield Public Library has taken active measures in recovering our old overdue materials which has finally involved the court system. After a period of time an overdue item becomes a stolen item in the eyes of the law according to Minnesota Statute 609.541.  After a long silence from the overdue patron, we finally have some communication. The court starts the dialog by asking for restitution of the items not returned.  We can come to an understanding when those people who have long overdue items talk to us.

 In the first half of 2008 the Litchfield Library still had thirty five patrons with a total of  $3,800.00 worth of materials which have been billed but not as yet recovered. The titles, paid for by local tax dollars, are no longer in circulation because they have not been returned. The item is an unusable resource.  The asset is frozen somewhat like the present credit market.  

After materials are 30 days overdue a bill is sent from headquarters asking for the price of the item plus processing costs. When the item is returned the billing and processing cost is removed. If there is no response to the billing notice, we then call the patron and explain that they will soon be in violation of Minnesota Statute 609.541. If people will come and talk to us about their overdue accounts, we can discuss options. If they do not come forward our next step is to send a certified letter.  This letter documents our sincerity in contacting the patron.  If the letter is never received, or received and ignored, the local court then begins the process of mediating a settlement.

help children become readers

I’m reading a wonderful article written by Bonnie B. Armbruster, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Fran Lehr, M.A., Lehr & Associates, Champaign, Illinois,
Jean Osborn, M. Ed., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  I found this article at the website for the National Institute for Literacy, www.nifl.gov.  This website has so much information about helping children become readers, as well as many free publications that can be ordered.  So I need to thank Bonnie, Fran, and Jean, for these thoughts on helping children learn to read.

“When does a child learn to read? Many people might say, "In kindergarten or first grade." But researchers have told us something very important. Learning to read and write can start at home, long before children go to school. Children can start down the road to becoming readers from the day they are born.

Very early, children begin to learn about spoken language when they hear their family members talking, laughing, and singing, and when they respond to all of the sounds that fill their world. They begin to understand written language when they hear adults read stories to them and see adults reading newspapers, magazines, and books for themselves. These early experiences with spoken and written language set the stage for children to become successful readers and writers.

Remember the old saying "children should be seen and not heard"? Research tells us that for children to become readers, they should listen and talk a lot.

By the time children are one year old, they already know a lot about spoken language--talking and listening. They recognize some speech sounds. They know which sounds make the words that are important to them. They begin to imitate those sounds. Children learn all of this by listening to family members talk. Even "baby talk," which exaggerates the sounds and rhythms of words, makes a contribution to children's ability to understand language. Children who do not hear a lot of talk and who are not encouraged to talk themselves often have problems learning to read.”

I love to watch parents interact with their young children, especially when I’m shopping. Some turn the experience into a game as they talk about colors and sizes of things and what to buy. Some don’t talk to their children, for whatever reason.  I often wonder how this baby or that toddler will do at five or six, the age most of us would say a child learns to read.  Visit the website for National Institute for Literacy, the Partnership for Reading, for more information about how parents can help their children, from birth, learn to read.

Please take time during the holidays to talk, talk, and talk to your young children.