According to GHS librarian Mrs. Beauchemin, a library is “a place where students can get the things that they need.” To many other students, however, a library is a place where students can do more than just that. Students can collaborate with other students or even with other teachers and staff members. They can also receive academic support for their homework or tests/quizzes from tutors found anywhere in the school. Students also find books, get research & reading materials, and get access to a lot of technology found in that big space. 

Getting to the Library

For GHS, its library is easy to find. It’s right in the middle of the school where people pass by to get to their classes, and it’s connected to the Grizzly Den at 206. There are two ways to get there: from the main lobby & from the 200 wing of the school. Students can come to the library either before school or after school. They can also go during lunch or use that space as a PREP period after 30 mins of reading. However, students need permission from their teachers.  

Sections of the Library

There are a lot of sections in the Goffstown High School’s library. The main section of the library is a general workspace, where students can sit down and just either do their work, chat with friends, or even have fun. In that same section, students can also find two areas with low comfortable seating, and it’s used for reading and working. There’s also a classroom space on the other side of the general workspace area, and it has resources for teachers to use in their classes. Next up, students can find a silent-working space right at the back of the library right in the middle of the book stacks which can be used for studying, doing homework, or reading silently. One can also find print stations where students and staff alike can print documents out in either color, black, or white. The circulation desk is right in front of the general workspace, and there, people in this school can find a librarian so that students and staff can get a computer, get some help, or ask any questions, issues, or concerns.

Another key section in the library is the librarian’s office, where librarians store things that they need to keep in their office. At the tech department, students and teachers can get help from technicians if they have either technical issues or difficulties. A DVD center is the section where students and teachers can get DVDs, so that they can watch movies or shows either in their classes for their own downtime, or at home.

Homework Den is a special space where Mr. Lambert, the Biology teacher for 10th grade, helps students with their homework three times a week, after school. Finally, there’s the bookcases at the back of the library, with three big sections: nonfiction, the middle (comics, manga, & picture books), & fiction. People can find any book in the library with the help of the Dewey Decimal System, as each represents a subject, so the books are organized in that way, and when searching the catalogue, students can easily find the number of that book and all books around it are on the same subject as that book that has been found.

What to Use in the Library

Within reach are a lot of tools and materials that students and staff alike can use in the library. There are laptop computers students can sign out from the library, take to their respective classes and PREPs, or even just work on stuff and have fun. Headphones are also there so people can watch and listen to something without annoying the whole area.

The student supply center is where students can get paper, sharpen their pencils, use the hole puncher, or even staple their assignments together. Sign-in systems, in this library, are 2 computers that students can use to sign-in & let the librarians know what they’re working on in the library. Then, there’s book displays that show new books that the library receives. Printers & copiers are there to copy & print documents from the printing stations or from your own laptop computer. The self-checkout station is always there at the circulation desk so that students can use their ID to sign their own books out from the library.

There are also two resources for book recommendations near the catalogue: a book portfolio & an iPad that allows students to search for a book. Also, 32 Driver’s Ed manuals are there, free for anyone to use them if they want to do Driver’s Ed or start driving. Professional books are books in the library for teachers so that they can learn more about education and improve their teaching skills and curriculums.

The Promethean Board is where librarians and teachers use this to provide lessons for their classes. Book Return is at the circulation desk, where students can return books when they are due from the library. Last, but not least, mobile carts are carts in the library full of laptop computers that teachers can borrow for an entire class period so that students can work on schoolwork and projects.

People at the Library

There are three main people who work in the library. First, there’s Mr. Mailhot, a part-time assistant librarian at GHS. Mr. Mailhot is in the library in case students want to come to the library at the end of the day and do homework/research. Then, there’s Ms. Beauchemin, the full-time librarian at the GHS library. She works at GHS all school day and helps students and staff with anything that they need. Finally, there’s Mrs. Charest a full-time librarian assistant. 

Library Rules

There are only a few rules in order to show respect at the GHS library. According to Mr. Mailhot, one of the rules is “students have to behave, be respectful, & do their work, as the library is considered a working environment.” Students are allowed to do homework, read a book, or even do some research for a project.  No food or drinks are allowed, except for water. Students can take out a book from the library for only two weeks, and then, they can either return it or have it for renewal. Finally, if students take out a computer from the library, students must return the computer immediately at the end of class or PREP, and the same thing applies with mobile laptop carts too, but they are signed out by Mr. Mailhot.

Conclusion

In conclusion, because of how much the librarians care for the library, students and staff alike are taking out or renting more books and DVDs from the library than ever before. About 400-500 books are being taken out & returned to the library every day. What makes GHS’s library so special, however, is that it not only holds a special place for books to be stored, but a lot of students and staff here at GHS tend to use this place for school and for their own downtime.