DEAL MS LIBRARY NEWS!

Greetings Families,

The library has been busy this year! We had wonderful check out statistics for February and March with ELA classes visiting to find independent reading books. Mr. Reichlen and some students have begun work on cataloging Deal Yearbooks, documents, and memorabilia into an archive. It is also a great time to read selections from this year's Battle of the Books list which are available from the library and ELA teachers! See more information below! Reach out to Mr. Reichlen if you have additional questions.

Our LibGuide features resources for Women's History Month with featured articles and resources. The LibGuide also links to our SORA and library collections' featured titles to celebrate the month. The LibGuide is also featuring links to resources at the public library, Library of Congress, and other local institutions celebrating WHM! Check it out here:

https://dcps.libguides.com/c.php?g=1333065&p=9875036

In addition to our LibGuide, our library is full of rotating displays of recommended books.

Deal students will have the opportunity to sign up for our Deal Battle of the Books team in April this year. Until then, they can read the books! They have learned about the program from Mr. Reichlen during ELA library visits. They can borrow physical copies of the 10 books from ELA teachers and the library. They can borrow e-books and audiobooks from SORA and Libby (DC Public Library) or purchase personal copies. More information about the district competition and a list of the books can be found at the following link:

https://dcla.org/DCLA-Battle-of-the-Books

Starting in 2025, Mr. Reichlen began to organize and catalog old yearbooks that were located in Deal storage. This year, student volunteers and and community projects have helped to get these resources out in the public once again! The work will be slow and tedious, but we are hoping to have most of the Yearbooks scanned and uploaded to a web space by 2027!

Please reach out to Mr. Reichlen if you have or know someone who wants to donate any Deal memorabilia. We are missing yearbooks from the 1930s - early 2000's. We are also looking for any materials and documents related to the old Reno school which is now part of our 7th grade wing at Deal! In the picture, you can see a display for Black History Month combining excerpts from Deal Yearbooks with library books and local newspaper clippings from the past 100 years to celebrate and contextualize Black History from a Deal perspective!

If you are interested in learning more about the archive or seeing what we have stored, reach out to Mr. Reichlen through his contact information at the bottom of the newsletter. We hope to digitize this collection over the next few years. Please reach out if this is a project that interests you or if you have a son or daughter still deciding on their 8th grade community project!

Students in DCPS now have the ability to use their student login credentials to access DC Public Library (DCPL) resources such as physical checkouts, placing items on hold, digital checkouts, and online resource access.

The library has access to thousands of books and media in a variety of formats, including:

• Physical books and media content such as DVDs and CDs.

• e-Books, audiobooks, interactive e-readers, digital magazines, and newspapers.

• Online databases of research articles, music, film, television, and tutoring services.

Procedure for Access:

1. Navigate to www.dclibrary.org

2. Click on the top menu item: “Find & Borrow” to access books, e-books, audiobooks, and other physical and digital media that need to be checked out or placed on hold. Items on hold will require students to go to a specified Public Library location to retrieve requested items.

3. Click on the top menu item: “Research & Learn” to access the DCPL databases for research and educational platforms. Here, students have access to newspaper archives, subject-specific databases, homework help and tutoring, film, music, and media archives/ collections, and much more! These items are immediately accessible and do not require students to retrieve items from a physical library location.

4. Students can log in to the DCPL website with the following credentials when prompted:

   • Username: DCPS[studentID] example: DCPS2001234

   • PIN (If prompted): studentID example: 2001234

5. Any physical materials need to be returned to the library when students have finished with them. Items can be returned to any DC Public Library location.

Mr. Reichlen creates a new display of book recommendations each month. Also, students and families have the opportunity to make featured recommendations for the library displays by filling the linked form: https://bit.ly/DealMSLibraryRecommend

More information about the Must Read lists and digital resources on the web at the Library's LibGuide Page: https://bit.ly/DealMSLibGuide

- A libguide is a public facing website that provides additional information for the library, reading recommendations, monthly news and themes, ELA resources, and research help and tips! The libguide is curated and managed by Mr. Reichlen. Please reach out if you have additional questions or comments.

Give additional feedback using the Deal Library Survey Form:

https://bit.ly/deal_library_survey_2024

This month, our Must Reads features books for Women's History Month! We are celebrating books by female authors and stories featuring diverse and empowering female characters. Both of these lists are linked below! Some of our titles from the February lists are featured this month in the new archival display in the library also celebrating 100 years of Black History!

The SORA app is located in Clever, the DCPS hub for digital learning. Students have access to thousands of e-books, audiobooks, interactive readers, and magazines! New titles are added on a regular basis. Students can access SORA through the app available for iOS, Kindle, and Android platforms in addition to accessing through the web. Click on the image to learn more.

Students at Deal will be checking out books during the month of September during our beginning of the year library orientation. Students are allowed to have up to 5 books out at a time and will begin to receive overdue notices after 30 days. Mr. Reichlen sends out two emails to families per year. One will go out before the winter break and one goes out at the end of May or early June. There are no fines for lost or damaged books but books that do not get returned will end up on the student's record through high school unless the student or family communicates with Mr. Reichlen. The library will also accept donations of new or gently used hard cover books published within the last 5 years and age-appropriate for 6th grade students. Students will never be disciplined for lost materials and it will not affect future checkouts as long as Mr. Reichlen is notified. To read the full library policy document, click on the image.