Middle School -- the in-between years.  A place where reading traditionally begins to slacken as interest in everything else intervenes -- and one of the biggest challenges in any school library.  With a library curriculum that covers all library users - Kindergarten through 12th grade, middle school students find themselves on a continuum that prepares them at the elementary, reinforces a broad range of literature and technology curriculum, and prepares them for the challenges that wait in the high school.

The library program at AIS-R has three essential goals:

-The promotion of books and the love of reading.
-The promotion of appropriate technology in support of higher level thinking skills - a way to  find, process, and present information
-The promotion of the library as a place in itself.  A place that students will find of greatest value for the rest of their lives.

These are guiding principles but at each level we differentiate and design instruction and programs appropriate to that age group. For instance, one of the most spectacular additions to our middle school collection is graphic novels.  These illustrated books offer a wide range of literary excitement and offer us a means to promote even more challenging texts later on.  We constantly stay tuned into where our kids are at in their personal use of technology so we can provide challenges in their comfort zone.  E-books, interactive web sites, podcasts, and real time connection to some of their favorite authors are available. 

To further support the library's mission there are necessary prerequisites, in collaboration with the administration and staff that we are doing to insure our student's use of appropriate technology.  Of all the tech tools that have come our way in the past two decades, some of the most important and relevant are ones we rely on in the library:

-Our online search catalogue
-Online databases
-Tools to guide and connect teachers like NoodleBib and Turnitin
-Networked computers that are always available to do research
-Computers are also loaded with productivity software such as Office and Photoshop

Although we must remain current in the technology necessary for our students to be successful, the sacrosanct role of the library has always been and should remain the promotion of reading and the love of books.  To that end the AIS-R library offers our students an excellent collection of print materials to inspire and guide them in becoming lifelong readers.  To insure this goal we are constantly adding items like graphic novels, or any book that will inspire and hold the attention of our middle school readers.

Access, availability, and an atmosphere conducive to study, whimsy, and scholarship are extremely important as well.  We cannot afford any slippage in the excitement traditionally created in the elementary library.  To this end the AIS-R library provides multiple places for study and recreational reading.  We open at 7:20 AM and close at 4:00 PM and the library is open for students and classes all day.  The library is constantly filled with small groups and independent students relaxing with a book, studying, or using a computer to do research.  Reading promotions such as Banned Book Week, Teen Read Week, GuysRead.com, Battle of the Books and more are a few of the many library sponsored promotions to focus the excitement of reading for middle school students.

With the tremendous support of the AIS-R Board and administration, the library will continue to be a focal point of the school - the heart, the soul, and the living room of AIS-R.  The library has forever been and remains one of the most respected institutions in the world.  It is the gatekeeper for intellectual freedom, a place to promote lifelong reading habits, and a place to be inspired by a showcase for all human knowledge. 

The expectations of our parents and staff for these students are enormous.  To instill a love of learning, to foster the desire to be an educated citizen of the world, to be a lover of books and ideas - these are the enduring legacies the library at AIS-R wish to leave with our students.