We are so lucky to have such a comprehensive programme of Library classes running throughout the year at Babreck, St Catherine’s Junior School.

Teacher Librarian Mrs Victoria Baldacchino works with every single student from Prep to Year 6 to instil a love of reading and the joy of books in our girls. Every week, as our Junior School students select books to take home and read, they do so under Mrs Baldacchino’s expert guidance. Her wealth of knowledge of children’s literature not only helps develop the students’ literacy, but encourages students to develop and broaden their interests and taste in books.

Each Year 6 student is presented with a custom bookmark, reminding them of all the services available at the Nicholas Library

However, by the end of Year 6, we run into a small problem – our students have quite literally ‘read the library dry’. In Term 4, as our Year 6 girls prepare for their transition into the world of Senior School, we invite them to have their library sessions in the Nicholas Library, located in the Senior School. During these highly anticipated sessions, the girls are introduced to the space, the staff and most importantly, the collection. These sessions are the girls’ first steps into the world of Young Adult and Adult literature and we focus on selection strategies and introduce them to some new and more complex literary genres.

In these last weeks of Term, the Year 6 girls are also invited to visit the Nicholas Library before and after School to borrow and read, and many have already formed a close relationship with the comfy beanbags in our reading nook.

While this transition program provides an extension to the Year 6 Library course, it also serves as an introduction to a familiar and calm space that students may use in the whirlwind of the first few weeks of 2018. The start of Year 7, whilst exciting, can be very overwhelming and it’s always useful for the students to have a ‘chill out’ space to go to during this time. While our core business will always be reading and literacy, it’s wonderful to know that we can also play an important role in the wellbeing of the students at St Catherine’s.