By Diana Maliszewski
October is a busy month. In Canada, many special occasions fall during the fall, such as Yom Kippur (October 11), Thanksgiving (October 14), Diwali (October 31), and Halloween (October 31), to name a few. For library folks, October takes on added significance because it is Canadian Library Month.
History
Canadian Library Month was established in 2006 by the Canadian Library Association as a way to publicize the opportunity “for Canadians not familiar with their local library to come down and experience all the services available to them” (Gordon, 2006). Every October we celebrate the critical role of all libraries with Canadian Library Month. By devoting an entire month to recognizing libraries of all types in Canada, it became easier to recognize more specific groups of libraries, The month shines a light on specific types of libraries with First Nations Public Library Week (in the first week of October), Ontario Public Library Week and Saskatchewan Library Week (in the third week of October). Canadian School Library Day (CSLD) was established in 2016 to “celebrate the central role that school libraries play in the education and development of young people”. CSLD began its existence as “National School Library Day”, run by the Canadian Library Association. Celebrated annually on the fourth Monday of October, this occasion allows school libraries to take the spotlight and shine. In British Columbia, the British Columbia Teacher-Librarians’ Association (BCTLA) runs their Drop Everything and Read event to coincide with CSLD, and Manitoba hosts Manitoba School Library Day on the same date.
2024 Events
In Ontario, the Ontario School Library Association (OSLA) is focusing their efforts on their Dear School Library project. Based on the 2024 Forest of Reading Blue Spruce nominated book, Dear Street, the intent is for students and users around the province to write letters of appreciation to their school libraries. Even authors have joined the action – watch Debbie Ridpath Ohi’s video version of her “Dear School Library” message online, along with many others!
Even in places in the province where school library professionals aren’t plentiful, Canadian School Library Day entered the spotlight. In celebration of Canadian School Library Day, Near North District School Board (NNDSB) Library Services centrally purchased a set of Forest of Reading (FoR) Blue Spruce books for each elementary school in the board, as well as purchased a set of Red Maple books for each intermediate-secondary school. In addition to purchasing a set of Forest books for each elementary and intermediate-secondary schools, NNDSB centrally purchased FOR registration for the schools. NNDSB Library staff are excited to share this wonderful program with students and staff while continuing to promote the importance of literacy in their schools.
In British Columbia, the British Columbia Teacher-Librarians’ Association ran their annual conference on October 25 in Victoria, BC. The theme of this year’s conference was “From Pages to Possibilities: Planting Seeds”. Their keynote speaker, Dr. Shelly Wilton (née Niemi), director of Victoria School District’s Indigenous Education department, spoke about the importance of connecting to land and community in our work. She discussed cultural safety in learning environments and reminded us of the Lekwungen words, Eyē? Sqâ’lewen, referencing “good heart, good mind, and good feelings” as shared by Elder Dr Elmer George . In other happenings, in a backroom, because that’s where all shady deals are made, OSLA president Wendy Burch-Jones pitched a national Dear School Library campaign to CSL chair Joseph Jeffery and board member Lila Armstrong for next year’s Canadian School Library Day. Will the board accept? Keep reading to find out.
at Diana’s school library.
The Alberta School Library community continued to beam signals of strength and perseverance in the absence of an organized and institutionally supported school library culture and community. One school in Edmonton celebrated by “ordering books on the spot” for students requesting new, specific books. Seeing the “proof of order submitted” agency in students, reinforced collective ownership, responsibility, trust, and respect for representation and diversity of voice. Students excitedly shared their anticipation of the arrival of orders, discussing who would get to read various books, first.
To paraphrase a common saying, we can think nationally and act locally. In my own school library, to honour Canadian School Library Day, I encouraged students to borrow as many books as they could carry. I just received my statistics from that simple promotion, and it added up to 717 books being checked out in a single day, a possible record for my school!
Canadian School Libraries, in partnership with OSLA, is proud to announce that the theme for 2025 will be Dear School Libraries. What does that mean? The Spring journal edition will have all the details, including how to participate, the materials you’ll need and a whole lot more. Once TMC8 is done we will be turning the board’s attention to this fantastic endeavour.
Diana Maliszewski, OCT BA BEd MEd is a member of the CSL Board of Directors. She is the teacher-librarian at Agnes Macphail Public School in the Toronto District School Board and has worked as a school library professional for over twenty-five years. From 2006 – 2018, she was the editor-in-chief of The Teaching Librarian, the official publication of the Ontario School Library Association. Currently, she is the co-Vice President of the Association for Media Literacy and Canada’s representative with the North American and European chapter of UNESCO’s Media and Information Literacy Alliance. Diana developed and still facilitates the Teacher Librarianship Additional Qualification courses for York University and Queen’s University. Diana has been honoured with several awards, such as the Follett International Teacher-Librarian of the Year in 2008 and the OLA President’s Award for Exceptional Achievement in 2013. She blogs weekly as part of her reflective professional practice at mondaymollymusings.blogspot.com.