" Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed...Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders."  - Henry David Thoreau

Librarian: Mrs. Julia Levner

Clerk: Ms. Maryann Bartolomeo

The Benjamin Cosor Elementary School Library features a bright and airy space that invites readers and researchers to explore the riches within, from books to magazines, to computers to a quiet place to read or research. We are proud of our child friendly library, featuring cuddly friends to accompany special books which entice the children to read them, an automated check out system as well as 4 electronic card catalogs where students can search for library books within their library by subject, author or title. There is a colorful semi-circular story telling room where classes can enjoy a wide variety of literature and/or sit back and watch/listen to curriculum related materials. Connected to the beautifully decorated library is a research lab that includes 27 computers and a SmartBoard. Teachers can sign up for their class to work on projects, research materials or create reports.

The BCES Library houses approximately 15,500 books. Approximately 200 books are checked out of the library daily. These books are divided into several sections: Easy, Easy Non-Fiction, Fiction, Non-Fiction, Reference, sound recordings, Teacher Resources and Parent/Professional materials. The library also has the daily newspaper as well as current magazines for the students, parents, teachers, and administrators.

The school year is divided in half, giving each class half a year for 42 minutes of structured library time once per week. Students are assisted with book selection and general library usage. Information literacy skills are taught at age appropriate levels to Kindergarten through 6th grade.  Some of these skills include library catalog searches, use of the Dictionary, Encyclopedia, Atlas and Almanac, as well as computer information searching skills and access to the BCES databases. All students can visit the library in the morning from 9:00 to 9:15 to check out/return books or they can visit the library throughout the day with a pass from their classroom teacher. The library is also available at various times during the day when regular classes are not scheduled for teachers to bring their classes for book check out/return, research, etc. Parents are encouraged to come in and check out books to read to or with their children.

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