In a previous LIBE class I wrote: 

The most vital people to connect with are students, teachers, and administrators (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, 2015).  Find out what the library’s function in the school has been previously and what are the hopes and dreams that each group has for the future of the library.  As well, you can connect with Teacher Librarians in other schools, and connect with professional associations.  Having a network of fellow Teacher Librarians will be helpful for mentorship, collaboration, and problem solving.  If budget and time allows, visit libraries at other schools to get an idea of what other Teacher Librarians are doing in their schools. (Danzig, 2021)

I look at this as a starting point for directing future TL me starting out in a new role as a Teacher Librarian. So much of the role of a TL is about sharing. Sharing resources, sharing ideas, sharing time, and sharing visions. 

So much of this sharing depends on the relationships a TL is able to develop with members of the school community. As Weisburg and Toor state in their book New on the Job: A School Librarian's Guide to Success, the relationships that are the most critical to establish, at the core of a TL's ability to be effective in the work that they do, is the relationships with their teaching colleagues (2015). At my current school, the TL has a strong relationship with their fellow teaching colleagues and that is reflected in the amount of collaboration and co-teaching that exists between the TL and the classroom teachers. The library and the TL are at the heart of much exiting learning and exploration.

Weisburg and Toor advise Teacher Librarians to connect first with those sharing your teaching and learning philosophy, and building from there (2015). I can see the effectiveness of starting this way as a way of building success and momentum. When you are able to successfully collaborate with eager teaching staff, others will be able to take note of what is happening and hopefully be pulled in by the excitement of the work that is already underway.

I have observed TLs use many different strategies to reach out to teaching colleagues. Strategies sharing new resources at staff meeting or making offers to staff to help plan or co-teach units. Some TLs connect with their staff through email newsletters or by offering 'lunch and learns'. The TL at my current school offered book talks to the teachers to introduce resources that were new to the library.

Sometimes responding to the needs for the school can be about connecting school staff with professional development from outside professionals. I have been to many workshops over the years that were arranged by my school's teacher librarian.

Works Cited

Danzig, S. (2021). Theme 1 Assignment. [Unpublished Paper]. Faculty of Education. UBC.

Weisburg, H. K. & Toor, R. (2015). "Reaching Your Teachers". New on the Job: A School Librarian's Guide to Success. 2nd edition. Chicago: American Library Association.