Sydney Morning Herald - School Libraries and inequality

Illustration by Craig Smith from Black Dog by Christobel Mattingley

"For some students, a school library 

will be their only access to books."

Here is the full headline from the Sydney Morning Herald 6th May 2026:

Young people are being let down by lack of school libraries 

SMH opinion piece by Cathie Warburton Chief executive of ALIA 
(The Australian Library and Information Association)

I worked in NSW Department of Education primary schools in their school libraries from 1985-2017 in various libraries from small rural schools, a larger country town and a huge metropolitan campus. I have visited school libraries in NSW and in Canada and I currently volunteer in two libraries for children. The topic of this piece in the newspaper today is a very important one and a personal one too.

It is very easy to spot a great school library - the ingredients are not mysterious - a current, well-organised and attractively displayed book collection in a warm welcoming space AND a Teacher-Librarian - not just someone with specialised qualifications (I have these) but also a Teacher-Librarian who is passionate about reading and about providing children (and their teachers) with the best books and other resources available.

The barriers are not mysterious either - disinterested or ignorant school executives, limited budgets, inappropriate staffing, inadequate spaces, and of course the saddest situation of all when a school has no library or a library but no appropriate library staff. 

Some points that resonated with me in this article:

• In every State and Territory in Australia there is currently no legal requirement for a school to have a library.

• The NSW Department of Education has a school library policy BUT it is not mandated in law (so) the existence of a school library is largely dependent on the school system followed by the school principal.

[I have worked with every 'type' of Principal from the deeply committed to the apathetic and the openly hostile. At times, justifying my role and the importance of the school library felt like a daily battle]

• What is a modern school library? It is a physical and digital and wellbeing space with well-resourced collections and qualified staff who work with the school community to enhance all aspects of teaching and learning.

[This was one of the huge joys of my role - finding resources for teachers and encouraging new staff to read books and extend/develop their teaching repertoire]

• (Currently there is no data) on the number of schools with a library and qualified staff ... (in Australia).

• Wealthier independent schools are able to support well-resourced, often multi-campus school libraries and employ teams of qualified staff ...

• The lack of school libraries (in government schools) contributes to a widening gap in academic and wellbeing outcomes (for our students).

• The value of literacy initiatives focusing on reading for pleasure as a key driver of child and adult literacy have also become increasingly known ...

Tonight on the news the reporter named the "best" performing schools in Sydney as measured by a test called NAPLAN - I totally disagree with this testing of very young children BUT I would love to know about the library provisions in each of these 'top' schools - the news item named Beecroft PS; Lindfield East PS; and St Ives North PS among the 'top' three.

Cathie Warburton reinforces this measure when she says "Research by the ACER shows that students in schools with qualified teacher librarians achieve higher NAPLAN literacy outcomes and well-resourced, staff libraries are linked to higher student achievement overall."

If you are reading this AND you are a parent in Australia with a school aged child, make sure you check out the situation in YOUR school. Ask to see the library if you are touring a school, find out the name of the Teacher-Librarian, talk to your child - do they visit the school library every week? what happens when they visit? who works there? are books coming home? If you don't get 'great' answers to these questions ASK why.

I have talked about aspects of this issue previously:

Australian School Library Day

Library Snapshot Day 1st April

The Final Chapter SMH Good Weekend Magazine 

Reading is in the news they say we need a revolution - lets revolt!

"Children are forgetting the joy of reading books"

Libraries, books, time for reading, and more

The Book Without a Story by Carolina Rabei

This could be the perfect book to read to your younger groups in your school library at the beginning of the year. What do the children think happens to a library book when it is borrowed? Of course it has an adventure and then when the book is returned this adventure is shared with all the other library books.

I thought of the Bluey episode Bob Bilby Season One episode 12 called Bob Bilby where Bingo brings a class toy home and the family record Bob's weekend with the family. Following this idea and the one in A Book without a Story the children write an adventure for their library book - showing plenty of reading time and sharing!

Blurb from author page: When the library closes, and the last librarian has gone home to bed . . . the books come alive and tell stories of their adventures. But Dusty the book has never been borrowed and dreams of finding someone to share his story with . . .   Will he find his perfect reader?

Readers will find themselves wanting to hug a book after reading this story. Kirkus

Companion book:

Sorry Miss Folio

You can see more books by Carolina Rabei here. She lives in the UK. These three are especially worth hunting out plus Snow also by Walter de la Mare:

Little Bones by Sandy Bigna

Did you know

that if you wish for something

in the stealthy shadows of your bedroom,

if you whisper the words

soft as the brush of a moth's wing,

if you feel the words rush through your blood,

your wish might come true.

What was this wish?  Bones has found a tiny bird skeleton.

I close my eyes for a moment,

then whisper

will all the longing in my heart,

I wish I could talk to you,

I wish you were alive.

There are five kids in this story. Bones and two other girls who are just finishing Primary school - Akio and Edie. Akio was a best friend to Bones but then along came - Edie and everything changed. And then a new kid who moves in next door named Tenny. Tenny is gender neutral:

Tenny kicks their legs against the dumpster,

just staring and chewing gum.

And the fifth kid is Nico. Spoiler we gradually discover he has died in a terrible accident. Bones now lives with her Nonna because mum has left to work up North. They do talk on the phone but the connection is often disrupted by bad reception and Bones misses her desperately.

Here are some text quotes to give you an idea about the tone and plot of this story:

It was Edie who gave me my nickname:

Bones.

She thinks it's an insult

but I've claimed it as my own.

Bird has a sweet sense of humour:

'Oh ...

umm ... I guess I meant

I wished you were alive

the way you once were,

with feathers and skin and ...'

Bird stares at me

with his hollow eye sockets.

'Well, you could have specified that.'

Wishing for a once-living thing

to be alive again,

the way it was,

goes against the laws of nature.

I cannot be as I was,

so the moons' power has transformed me into

something

no creature should be.

Bones has no idea how to reverse the curse but then she remembers her brother had a book called The Encyclopedia of Moon Magic. Alas, when Tenny and Bones go to the library they discover the book is out on loan. Now the hunt is on. They need to find this book, and they need to complete the ritual with Bird by the light on of the next full moon. Wait any longer and Bird will be trapped forever. There is also another major problem. Bones cannot, will not, ever return to that place in the forest. (Note the library visit scene on pages 84-87 would be a great passage to use if you are book talking Little Bones although this does contain the spoiler that Nico has died). 

There are several references to the story of Icarus in this book so familiarity with this famous myth could help the reader anticipate Nico's fatal accident. As the text says:

His favourite was

the story of Icarus

(the boy who flew so close to the sun

that his wings melted

and he fell

to his watery death).

I am not sure if this word is too strong but in some ways the journey taken by Bones to restore Bird back to his resting place feels like atonement. And there are also themes of grief, healing, and making new friends. Bones has witnessed the fatal fall of her brother as he climbed a tree to return a baby bird back to its nest. It was at her urging that he was hurrying. 

When I opened the parcel from University of Queensland Press (UQP) I actually squealed - a verse novel! An Australian verse novel! Little Bones is a debut novel for Sand Bigna. This book will be published on 4th March. It is always wonderful to share verse novels with students in a library. This one will be enjoyed by readers aged 10+. I also expect to see Little Bones listed as a 2026 CBCA Younger Readers Notable title. 

Here are the teacher notes - they are very detailed. You can meet the author at an event in Canberra on 19th March, 2025.

I was interested to read this from Sandy Bigna. You can find her on Instagram.

How did Little Bones come to be? Much of this book was written over a summer break when I had the freedom to dream, play and create. The voice of Bones came to me first, and along with her voice came an image of a lonely girl who collected animal bones and was dealing with issues of loss and fractured friendships. The story idea was inspired by my own fascination with animal bones – the symbolism of them, the way they tell a story of life rather than death. Growing up in Canberra, with its rich and evocative wetlands, bushland and forest areas, inspired the setting for this story.

Other books and verse novels that explore the loss of a sibling or a significant family member. In each of these we follow the journey of grief through to some level of acceptance or restoration.

Right as Rain

My Brother Finch

It is interesting to link Nico with Finch because both boys really embrace life.

Bird

The Probability of Everything

Telephone of the Tree

Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth

Bridge to Terabithia

Meet me at the Moon Tree

Wild wings

1000 Books before School

 

If you have a child aged 0-6 and your local library logo is on this poster, why not investigate this program. This program is also run in other parts of Australia such as Victoria. 

I know 1000 books sounds like a lot of reading but really a picture book only takes a few minutes to read and if it is a winner with you and your child it will be a joy to re-read. 

Read three books a day and you will finish in less than one year. Read one book a day and you will finish in less than three years. Every book that your child completes or listens to counts!

How the program works:

• A library membership card is required. Not a member? Join for free at your local library or online. 
• Visit a library to register and receive your first reading record.
• Mark your reading record each time you read together with your child.
• Once you have read your first 100 books, visit your local library to receive your ‘I’m reading 1000 Books Before School’ book bag.
• Each time you reach the next 100 books milestone, bring your reading record into your local library to receive a merit patch for your book bag.
• After reading 1000 books, children are awarded a certificate to celebrate their achievement.
• The program finishes once your child reaches the goal of 1000 books, starts school, or turns 6 years of age.

These charts are about school aged children but it is so important to start your daily read aloud routine in a family during the early years.

February 14th Library Lovers' Day

 

Love in the Library by Jimmy Buffet

On the corner of Government and Bay Avenue

The old doomsday fanatic wore a crown of kudzu

Sirens where wailing in the gulf coastal heat

And it seemed like the whole world was in forced retreat

I paid no attention, revolved through the door

Passed the newspaper rack on the worn marble floor

Near civil war history my heart skipped a beat

She was standing on fiction stretched high on bare feet

Love in the library, quiet and cool

Love in the library, there are no rules

Surrounded by stories surreal and sublime

I fell in love in the library once upon a time

I was the pirate and she was the queen

Sir Francis and Elizabeth the best there's ever been

Then she strolled past my table and stopped at the stairs

Then sent me a smile as she reached for Flaubert

Love in the library, quiet and cool

Love in the library, there are no rules

Surrounded by stories surreal and sublime

I fell in love in the library once upon a time

She gathered her books, walked while she read

Words never spoken but so much was said

You can read all you want into this rendezvous

But it's safer than most things that lovers can do

Well stories have endings and fantasies fade

The guard by the door starts drawing the shade

So write your own ending and hope they come true

For the lovers and strangers on Bay Avenue

Love in the library, quiet and cool

Love in the library, there are no rules

Surrounded by stories surreal and sublime

I fell in love in the library once upon a time

Here is my post from 2020 celebrating Library Lovers Day.

The Library by Barbara A. Huff

It looks like any building

When you pass it on the street,

Made of stone and glass and marble,

Made of iron and concrete.

But once inside you can ride

A camel or a train,

Visit Rome, Siam, or Nome,

Feel a hurricane,

Meet a king, learn to sing,

How to bake a pie,

Go to sea, plant a tree,

Find how airplanes fly,

Train a horse, and of course

Have all the dogs you'd like,

See the moon, a sandy dune,

Or catch a whopping pike.

Everything that books can bring

You'll find inside those walls.

A world is there for you to share

When adventure calls.

You cannot tell its magic

By the way the building looks,

But there's wonderment within it,

The wonderment of books.

Read more about Libray Lovers' Day here. 

Library Lil

Sorry Miss Folio (this is the BEST book ever about libraries and librarians!)

Little Bo Peep's Library Book

Book Speak Poems about books

The Lonely Book

The Book Uncle and Me

Houndsley and Catina series

A Library book for Bear

The Greatest Treasure of Charlemagne the King

On special days like this I used to enjoy setting up small craft activities for the children to enjoy at lunc time.  Take a look at this Craft Lunch in the Library Pinterest with 465 ideas. I also have a Library Lovers' Day Pinterest with 48 ideas.  My friend from Kinderbookswitheverything has a Pinterest of books about libraries and today her blog has a post with love stories to share with your youngest students. 

IT HAPPENED ONE FRIDAY BY RUTH STREET

ARRIVED AT MY DESK: it was seven forty-five

In swarmed the kids like bees to a hive

All day they buzzed round me with questions so varied

Up down round and round. My beleaguered mind scurried.

"Who wrote LORNA DOONE?”  “Will you sign my green slip?

“I hate to miss school but my folks look a trip.”

“I need some material on foreign relations.”

“Do you have a book of familiar quotations?”

“I want to read SMOKY. Is it always out?”

“Will you kindly tell me what Main Street’s about?”

“What is a classic?” “May I borrow two pins?”

“Please tell us the time when the assembly begins.”

"May I go to my locker" "I want Mendel's laws"

"My topic's inflation-the effect and the cause.'

“I talked with a teacher, that's why I am late.”

“Just where do I look for the copyright date?”

"Will you find me one a picture of an evergreen tree”?

“I need an example of a good simile”

"Must I pay for this book? The cause was our pup:

Before I could grab it he chewed it up"

“Can you find for me a favourite poem?”

“I'm reciting a speech about school and the home.”

"For the last book you gave me I'm grateful to you

I liked it so much I made Mum read it too.”

“I need Emily Post or some etiquette.”

“Do you know the difference between sit and set?”

“We're having a party and want some new games”

“Bill Cody's checked out, do you have Jesse James?”

“Shakespeare is my topic; do you have him in here?”

“Just where is that play called NO MORE FRONTIER?”

“Why can't we whisper'? We're talking our lessons-

the UNO, its charter and sessions.”

“Does chromium begin with a C or a K?”

“My assignment for Tuesday is on TVA”

“Who was that old king so renowned for his wealth?”

“Debaters are here and our topic is health.”

“I can't find Poticelli, though I hunt and I hunt”

“We're the programme committee and need a good stunt”

“A diagram please of the lungs of a frog.”

“Why can't I find verbs in the card catalogue?”

“Sorry to disturb, didn't mean to talk so loud.”

“Will you find me a picture of a cumulus cloud?”

Without lull or surcease-six hours endless stream

I cudgelled my brain—I tried hard not to scream.

When the hands on the clock said three thirty-one.

Pronto they departed. I was left all alone.

The books scattered round me were in vast disarray.

I began to restore them the Dewey Decimal way. -

In walked a teacher fatigued with much care;

Wearily she sighed as she dropped to a chair.

“It's so peaceful in here, quiet, orderly too-

But how do you stand it with nothing to do?”

Library Lovers' Day

Library Lovers' Day 2020

Image Source: Delicious Reads

Image Source ALIA Library Lovers Day 2020

Library Lovers Day is Friday 14th February.  You might think this is Valentines Day but in our library it is a chance to celebrate our love of the library!

Here is a collection of books from my friend at Kinderbookswitheverything.

Image Source Kinderbookswitheverything

Library Lovers Law

    Thou shalt not speak above a whisper – of all the treasures of the library, silence is golden.

    Thou shalt remember to return or renew books and other materials before they are overdue.

    Thou shalt not fold, spindle or mutilate any materials from the library.  Treat books with care and respect – they belong to everyone.

    Thou shalt set out to learn where things are in the library.  Knowing where to look is a valuable skill.

    Thou shalt not let too much time pass with out visiting your library, for in the library you will discover many wonderful things.

    Thou shalt not reshelve books unless you know exactly where they go.  A miss-shelved book is a lost book.

    Thou shalt not be afraid to report lost or damaged materials to the teacher-librarian.  Nothing can be repaired or replaced if the teacher-librarian doesn’t know about it.

    Thou shalt not forget to tell your friends about the good books you’ve read.

    Thou shalt seek to expand your interests and abilities by challenging yourself with good books.

    Thou shalt take much pride in your library.  Use and care for what it has to offer.

Here are a few craft ideas - I love to hold a craft lunch in the library to celebrate Library Lovers' Day.

One more thing - here is the perfect song to play while you enjoy this special day. 

Love in the library, quiet and cool

Love in the library, there are no rules

Surrounded by stories surreal and sublime

I fell in love in the library once upon a time

Of course you will also want to read lots of books - perhaps you can do this every day this week. Check out this list of 180 titles - you are sure to find one or two or even more in your local or school library!