New Year - Last Year's Usage Statistics

 Hello everyone.  Just checking in with my library's latest usage statistics.  These are from the 3rd Six Weeks of school, November 3 - December 18, 2025.

This time around I am most impressed with the number of student visits.  I think that I have talked about this before, but it bears repeating.  Summit is one of the smaller high schools in our district, and our student enrollment is a bit over 1800 students.  So the fact that we clocked in 6,482 visitors during this 6 weeks is exciting.  This number obviously means we have a lot of repeat visitors.  These visitors are actual students coming into the library by themselves either during class, before/after school, or during lunch.  We do not count whole classes in this stat.  Class visits have a whole separate category.  So the number of student visitors let's us know we must be doing something right. 

I received this note from a student today.  She came in the library this morning just to deliver it to me.  It made my day, but also made me laugh since I come to work "almost" every day with a smile on my face.  Truer words have never been spoken.  I'm not sure anyone could come to school every day with a smile on their face, but I do most days because I really love what I do.  So I guess I must be doing something right.

Keep Reading!

Most Popular Books this Semester

 

We have checked out a lot of books this semester.  To be precise, we have checked out 3288 books this semester.  Last year at this time, we had checked out 2652 books.  So I am pretty proud we have increased the amount of books from one year to the next.

In looking at the actual books that have been checked out this year, the graphic novel section is overwhelming the most popular area of the library.  Here is the countdown of the 10 most popular books this semester which started on August 13 and ended today.

10 - Slam Dunk

9 - Shatter Me

8 - Death Note

7 - Big Shot (series: Diary of a Wimpy Kid)

6 - Assassination Classroom 

5 - Allegedly: a novel 

4 - One of Us is Lying  

3 - Naruto 

2 - Bleach 

1 - Demon Slayer

7 of the 10 listed here are graphic novels. 1 is Science Fiction, and 2 are Mysteries.  It always amazes me when I see Bleach and Naruto among the most popular.  Authors are cranking out manga like crazy; yet these 2 old school series are outlasting some of the newer books.  Then there is the Diary of a Wimpy Kid right there in the mix.  Yes, I teach at a high school, but the nostalgia runs deep. Everyone loves this series.  I even have a few volumes in Spanish and Arabic for our English Language Learners.

To learn more about our top 10 books, click on the links which will take you to a great resource called TeachingBooks.  There you will find a summary of the book, something about the author, book guides, activities & lessons, and sometimes even a book trailer or an audio exerpt.

Whether you are a fan of manga and graphic novels or not, the statistics don't lie.  Our high school students can't get enough of this genre.

Happy Reading!

Tuesday's Tome: The Summer I Turned Pretty Trilogy

 

I will admit that I originally started this series due to the popularity of the NetFlix series based on these books.  The students in my library were requesting the books, and they were always checked out.  So I decided to give this trilogy a try. 

I really enjoyed the first book.  Two mothers take their children to the beach every summer.  The children have been going since they were little.  This year Belly (the main female character) is 15, turning 16.  And all of a sudden boys start to notice.  Every year, she was the tag-a-long baby sister, and a nuisance for sure.  To be honest, she is still a nuisance to her brother. However, the other 2 boys, Conrad and Jeremiah, seem to see Belly in a new light.  Jeremiah has always been Belly's best friend, and she has always had a crush on Conrad.  So needless to say the question becomes "are you team Conrad or team Jeremiah?"

Again, the first book was fun and a quick read.  The second and third books seemed really long, and to be honest, I sort of lost interest in which boy Belly was going to choose. It was just a bit too much team Conrad vs team Jeremiah for me.  However, I am not the audience for which this story was intended.  My 9th and 10th grade girls just love these books - all three of them.  I feel that The Summer I Turned Pretty is a solid stand alone book.  For those of you who are watching the NetFlix series, you might want to read all 3.  

I started the NetFlix series and had to turn it off.  I was so annoyed with book 2 and 3 that I let it interfere with my enjoyment.  I was ready for a "NetFlix and Chill" kind of evening, but what I got was "NetFlix and Frustration." I am sure it is a good series, but I'll have to try watching it later.

Happy Reading!

Tuesday's Tome: Eruption

 

I realize that Michael Crichton died before this book was even published, but he did all of the research and had written extensively on the subject before James Patterson came along.  I really like both authors; so I chose to listen to this one with my Libby account through the Dallas Public Library.

This is a fun read and exactly what you'd expect of a Michael Crichton disaster thriller where science meets chaos.  James Patterson expertly uses Crichton manuscript to speed up the pace which reflects the intensity of the volcano's story. This tale follows a team of scientists at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory who realize that the volcanic activity around them isn’t just heating up . . . it’s about to explode in a catastrophic chain of events. And of course, the government knows a whole lot more than it’s saying.

The book jumps right into the tension: earthquakes, unusual readings, government cover-ups, and a looming eruption big enough to cause global consequences. The science feels classic Crichton: detailed, believable, and woven into the plot in a way that keeps you learning without slowing things down. Patterson’s influence shows up in the pacing: short chapters, fast action, and constant cliffhangers.

The characters are solid, but not deep.  There is the "cowboy" vulcanologist and his team stationed in Hawaii.  You also have the General and the army stationed nearby who basically draft the Hawaiian team to help.  Then there is the billionaire and his team who are there "to help," but really they are there to chase the big eruption.  All of the characters argue struggle, jockeying for position, but in the end it becomes man vs nature, and nature is about to win.

The story is fast paced, but the ending seems a bit long.  Overall, it is a fun thriller that will keep you coming back for more.  A perfect read if you want something dramatic, fast-paced and binge-worthy.

Second 6 Weeks Check In

So I am pretty excited about my library statistics.  We had over 1,500 books circulated and over 6,000 student visits.  Last I checked, we only had 1875 students enrolled.  That means we have repeat visits.  Love that!  In addition to the student visits, we also had 146 class visits to the library or one of the labs.  It was a very busy 6 weeks.

I guess my elevator speech might look a bit different now.  I would still talk about how many students have visited the library.  I might also talk about how the top 5 books checked out are manga/graphic novels.  We have a lot of students checking out from that section of the library.

In my effort to raise the number of books checked out per student, I am also announcing the top 5 students who have checked out the most books every 6 weeks.  I am putting their names and how many books they checked out in the morning announcements, and then giving them a small prize when they come to the library to say they heard their name on the announcements. I'm not sure if that is working or if it is something else, but we have checked out more books at this point in time compared to last year.  Last year we checked out 1842 books in the first 12 weeks of school.  During the first 12 weeks of school this year, we have checked out 2596 books. Let's hope we can keep up the momentum.  Go Jags!

Tuesday's Tome: Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

 

I picked this one from my Libby account through the Dallas Public Library.  I often need books for my commute to and from Arlington.  This one fit the bill.  It's a clean, young adult romance.  When it's 90 degrees in October, it is fun to escape to a town that has an a actual Fall season.

Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice is a young adult novel by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc about 16-year-old Lucy, who loves the autumnal season.  She helps at her mom's coffee shop, "Cup of Joe's," and she enjoys the work. Just as the Fall season is taking off, the big chain "Java Junction" moves in across the street.  Lucy and her mom are concerned about the competition especially since they do not serve the ever popular PSL - Pumpkin Spice Latte.  This just happens to be Java Junction's speciality.  To make matters a bit more complicated, Lucy discovers the cute new boy at school just happens to be the son of the owners of Java Junction.  His name is Jack, and Lucy's competitive nature gets all tangled up with her attraction to Jack.  Throw in a PSL contest during the annual Fall Festival where a famous Influencer comes to town and pits Cup of Joe's against Java Junction, and chaos reigns supreme.  This definitely reminds me of a teen Hallmark movie.  If you are into wholesome books with a splash of romance, this is an excellent pick.  Recommended for ages 13 and up.

Everyone is Welcome

 

I always thought my library was welcoming until I invited our EB (Emergent Bilingual) classes to visit the library for a library orientation.  I let the teacher know ahead of time about the scavenger hunt, and she asked for a copy so she could have it translated into all the different languages her students speak.  That got me to thinking that I probably need to translate my presentation too.  After asking what languages were spoken in her classroom, it came down to 6: Spanish, Vietnamese, Persian, Arabic, Uzbek, and Pashto.  I had to simplify each slide down to one sentence because then I had to repeat that sentence 6 other times.  It really made me think what I really wanted them to learn about the library, and then I used AI to help me translate.  I used Chat GPT, but I know everyone has their favorites.  After that, I gave the first slide to the teacher to have the students read the sentence in their own language to make sure it made sense.  I love AI as much as the next person, but I had no idea if those translations were correct.  Turns out they were. Yay!

Here is my EB presentation.

Then I decided we needed signage in the library to help these students out.  So one of my goals this year is to translate the major areas of the library into these 6 languages.  These major areas include the Technology Office, our conference room, the circulation desk, school supplies, fiction section, nonfiction section, computer lab C 6 and C 9, computers, book drop, & Go Center. As I do with all of my goals, I like to set a timeline.  This one is no different.

Goal: to have library signage that is clear and readable in multiple languages (Voluntary Standards 5.5.2)

Timeline:

• September - have signs for Circulation Desk, School Supplies and Book Drop in time for EB classes
• October - signs for fiction, nonfiction, and genres
• November/December - all other signage 

Resources I have:

• Canva Pro to create signage
• Access to AI
• Students/Teachers to check AI for accuracy
• Poster Printer to print signage

I have links to all of the signage that has been completed so far.  There is still some time left in October, and all I need are the main Fiction and Nonfiction signs. So I call that a win-win.

Wish me luck, and see you soon!