Gentle Reader 44 Book Lane
Librarium
Bookinghamshire
Dearest Gentle Reader,
This writer is compelled to tell you of the most marvellous of treasure troves to be found within an educational establishment: the library. Some may go so far as to say that this illustrious place is oftentimes the beating heart of institutions where quality instruction is delivered with a sense of great duty and care. Upon careful pondering of the matter, I must wholeheartedly agree.
Our story begins most intriguingly, once upon a bookshelf, where dear reader, I take my leave and invite your imaginations to feast at the table of enlightenment, joy and sanctuary. I do hope that one continues to spread the cherish-able act of imbibing literary knowledge amidst other great works of wisdom and expressions of the human condition.
Until the next time,
Yours truly,
Lady Reading of Bookshire
Once upon a library
Sudeshna Chakravarty, Head of English and History, Eaton Square Prep, embarks on a journey through libraries
Although Lady Reading of Bookshire may be a fictional character, her sentiments about a school library perhaps ring true for many within our communities. However, if you have glanced through the Libraries for Primaries report compiled in 2023 for a bit of light reading, it seems that our schools may be amongst the fortunate numbers where libraries are celebrated, treasured, and cherished. The report attested that one in seven state primary schools in the UK do not have a library, and this increases to a quarter of primary schools in deprived areas. Concerningly, one in ten children from disadvantaged backgrounds do not have a single book of their own at home. I cannot be alone in feeling shocked by these statistics; it is no wonder that fostering a love of reading can seem an uphill struggle in some school communities. As
educators, the reminder of the correlation between a child’s ability to read and their success later in life, can often have us resolving again to reach for the latest, most engaging of tomes to furnish our shelves for their betterment, but how can a library help improve outcomes?
Let’s take a small step off the path to consider a very brief history of reading. Whilst undoubtedly a wonderful tradition, the reason we continue to read has evolved. For a long time, reading and religious worship would often go hand in hand; the reading of holy texts forming celebratory parts of rituals. Reading in the classroom, as we appreciate it now, actually blossomed in the Middle Ages, although back then, the teachers would be the ones to read complete texts aloud to pupils — perhaps not the most prudent use of lesson time for modern teachers. With the
‘The books transported her into new worlds and introduced her to amazing people who lived exciting lives’
advancement of the printing press, reading materials were more widely available, although still mainly religious in style. Literature for children really only came into existence when oral traditions of fables and legends were committed to the page, around the 17th century. Lewis Carroll’s publication of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in 1865 was the major herald of reading for pleasure where children were concerned, and soon after the offerings grew exponentially with the likes of Beatrix Potter, Robert Louis Stevenson and Louisa May Alcott. With books for children becoming more and more readily available, it’s no wonder a hankering for adventure or flights of fancy cemented itself as a core experience for children. As Roald Dahl wrote in Matilda, ‘The books transported her into new worlds and introduced her to amazing people who lived exciting lives.’
Speaking of Matilda, she was a character who found solace and deep happiness in a library. The focus of reading for pleasure can sometimes overshadow the concept of reading for wellbeing. When Professor Mark Richardson, a neuroscientist from King’s College London, took EEG scanners into the British Library, he found that visitors’ alpha brain waves (those associated with calm and focus) increased by 37%, having sat in silence amongst bookshelves. The idea of a library being a treasured space is further elucidated by some of the most famous
‘Just as schools do more than impart education, libraries do more than house books’
libraries in the world, such as the Strahov Monastery in the Czech Republic, which purportedly inspired the library from Beauty and the Beast, and Trinity College Library in Ireland, where the Book of Kells is kept. Is the introduction of modern reading technology something of a double-edged sword? We can all appreciate the increase in accessibility e-reading provides, but can one really get lost among the lines on a tablet when notifications pop up, with little respect for plot twists and denouements? It’s also quite difficult to appreciate the sensory aspect of reading with a Kindle. Dancing dust motes amongst whispering, feathery-soft corners of pages doesn’t quite translate in the same way electronically. However, experience aside, one cannot ignore the benefits of being able to discover the meaning of vocabulary quickly by
simply hovering over a word — clever features like this open up a range of learning opportunities which allow children to keep up with each other. I suppose like all good things in life: everything in moderation.
Just as schools do more than impart education, libraries do more than house books. They provide a source of connection in a community; a safe space; a chance for escapism; an opportunity to lose yourself amongst lines of descriptive prose, and marvellously, find some aspect of your life reflected back at you within a book. So, having meandered off the topic, at the root of the root and the bud of the bud, we all know in our hearts that libraries contribute significantly to positive outcomes. They provide calm spaces in which to study, research or enjoy passing time, so where better placed are they, than as a central resource in a school? ■
