I missed saying anything about National School Library Month in April, which is sad, since I am a school librarian (if not a practicing one). The PTO here makes a big deal about Teacher Appreciation Week, which was in the beginning of May, and classroom teachers get appreciated that week, but somehow, when I taught (and you have to be a licensed teacher to be a school librarian) the school librarian wasn’t usually remembered (except for a few extremely special kids, who I will never forget). And I fell a little behind there too.

So now, here, we are headed into the last week of school. Yes, I know the rest of the world is in school until sometime in June, but here, school is out on Thursday. So my opportunity to say anything to my son’s school librarian this year is coming to an end very soon.

At the beginning of the year, the kids at my son’s school were supposed to choose from a selection of age-appropriate books for kindergarten. My son, used to picking out his own books, wanted the shelves where the monsters were and went bananas. I know because I got a call at home. We talked for awhile, and concluded that reading all kinds of books, with and without monsters, was the way to go. And he started to bring all kinds of books home, some with monsters, some without. I see this as a good thing- reading should widen the world beyond just one topic, and there are so many other things to read about in addition to monsters! He began to bring home some longer books, and was allowed to keep them for more than the allotted week while he studied them intensely. And then he discovered the Crestwood Books movie monster books. Either he was really burrowing for something or she found them for him, because they’re in a nondescript, if very durable, school library binding, and not the original attention-drawing, orange covers. Many libraries weed their collections frequently to keep the collections current and to remove items that are falling apart and I am thankful that she kept these for my son to discover. Even though I had to tell him we couldn’t read them at bedtime because the pictures were too scary. Even though his grandmother told me the books were “gross”. He has loved them so much! And he has had the opportunity to discover them, learn from them, create new drawings and stories, and read the books again and again because she kept them and put them in his hands.

Now, he was already an enthusiastic reader, and a pretty good one, considering that he is a kindergartener. But imagine the fire the right book can light in a child who doesn’t like to read or who struggles with it. The book, or the idea within, that lights that fire, doesn’t always come from the hands of a librarian. But it can.

So take a moment to thank your school librarian and say how much you appreciate her (or him). It doesn’t happen enough, and while your child might not say anything much at home, you can never underestimate the impact a school librarian can make.

Thank you, every single one.