Ind eng-487-doc
- 1. In with literature! Out with litter! A project by Loreto Da School Sealdah, Kolkata Change makers: Neha Begum, Sreyoshi Dutta, Midhat Samar, Snigdha Sardar, Priyanka Sarkar and Sania Sheikh. Mentor teachers: Ms N. Bir, Ms M.Gomes, Ms R.Ghosh. Step 1- Feel: We have been using the senior library since the time we stepped into class V. Somewhere down the line we seem to have forgotten that this place which has for so long enriched our minds with information, satiated our imagination and filled us with wonder with stories of home and distant lands might need some help from us. • Over the years the stock of books has increased but the space in the library has not. The books have thus stocked up in a somewhat disorganized manner in an area adjacent to the library which we call the ‘annex’. • The biggest problem area, we noticed, was this annex. Here a large number of study materials have been hoarded. These range from books which do not fit in the library and those returned by girls of the previous years, to charts prepared by the seniors for exhibitions and competitions which are stored so that the unused sides can be used for making more charts and projects to be used as specimens for juniors. • Accessing books and magazines as well as charts and files for competitions and exhibitions had, as a result, has become a rather difficult and tedious job. Step 2-Imagine: • Discuss the problem with our librarian Mrs. K Basu to find ways of organizing the materials in the annex. • Ask students of different classes to come up with various ways of dealing with our overloaded annex. • Form a task force of five to six and go through the annex to locate any unnecessary items to be discarded or kept elsewhere. • Separate the books/materials subject wise. • Catalogue the materials stored in the annex with the help of the librarian. • Ensure that after organizing the annex, it remains so through proper use.
- 2. Step 3-Do: • We formed a group of six. • We drew up our plan of action. It consisted of dividing the work into seven days. The four walls of the annex are all lined with shelves and cabinets full of books and other study materials and there is also a large table on which things have been piling up for a while. We decided to tackle the shelves on
- 3. the walls in the first four days, the table on the fifth day and leave the last two days for restoring and cataloguing. • We went through the contents of the shelves minutely. • We separated the material into different subjects and topics. We did this for each of the four shelves and the table. • We stored all this material temporarily in a corner of the library. • Once the shelves and table were empty, we went on a sweeping and dusting spree in the annex. • We lined all the shelves with newspaper. • Next we put back all the material which was now separated into categories, into the shelves. • We labeled the shelves with the manes of the different subjects and topics. • Next we sat down with our librarian Mrs. K.Basu and made a simple list of all the material in each shelf as well as the stack in the centre. • We also wrote messages on paper and put them up around the annex as well as the library to make the students aware and to remind them to use these precious materials in the most effective way possible. • We have also decided to take turns and check on the annex once every day to ensure that the things are being kept in an orderly manner. Step 4-Share: We recorded everything that we did in the form of a report and took some photographs while working. We have today realized how much effort goes into keeping a place clean and running smoothly. It was interesting to draw a comprehensible list of so much material. Also, creating a tangible action plan on our own and executing it has given us a new confidence. The biggest lesson that we have learnt is that if you want something done, the best way is to start doing it yourself. We are proud of whatever we were able to do and will fear hard work a little less from now on.