Librarian
“Working with children makes me hopeful,” says Amanda Green. Ms. Green, who received her degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, came to PS 8 in September 2007, the first full-time librarian to work in the PS 8 library. Previously, the library had been entirely staffed by volunteer parents. “The parents did an amazing job, and what I love about my job now is that the library has a solid base that I can improve professionally. I can now focus on developing technical tools to make the students familiar with the process of research.” With funds from the PTA, Ms. Green has been able to purchase a scanner and speakers, so students will be learning with educational resources available through the Internet. “There are 9,000 books in the PS 8 library, which is great,” says Ms. Green, “but a lot of updating needs to be done, especially in the science and reference department: Many of our encyclopedias, dictionaries, and atlases are outdated.”
Ms. Green is very happy about the donations she has received, and she has established a wish list at Amazon.com, with 61 books thankfully received thus far.
Ms. Green’s first professional stop after receiving her degree was at Queens Public Libraries, then she taught at PS 32 in the Bronx for three years. About PS 8, she says, “I am overwhelmed by the enthusiasm that PS 8 students show towards reading. There is such a great spirit for learning at the school.” She was especially impressed by last fall’s Read-a-thon, when PS 8 students read over 250,000 minutes and raised over $30,000 for the school. Of this money, $1,400 went to the library to purchase new books.
With the Read-a-thon money, Ms. Green has focused on young readers in particular. She has established a section for new readers in the library, with easy-to-read books that use controlled vocabulary, such as Frog and Toad and Amelia Bedelia, to help young readers build their stamina, comprehension, and confidence.
In her spare time, Ms. Green loves to cook. Her favorite vacation spot is the Caribbean, especially Trinidad. When she needs a break from it all at home, she cooks Creole fish made with the recipes she has collected while traveling.
