Catalog maintenance Saturday night

The Morton Library catalog, SFX and MetaLib will be offline for scheduled maintenance, from Saturday at 9 pm until Sunday at 10 am. You will not be able to search our catalog, access your personal account information, or reach full-text materials through the links resolver. This means that SFX links will be disabled, and services such as MetaLib and Find E-Journal will not be available.

We apologize for the interruption in these services and we will undertake to resume them on schedule.

Paula

Your Library Card is Expiring

Did you know that library cards expire June 30 each year? In order to continue using your library card, all you need to do is stop by the Circulation desk so we may update your information.

We update annually to ensure we maintain your current contact information, fines are paid, and overdue/lost books are returned. Fines MUST be paid before updating your account. We accept cash or checks only.

Please be sure we have your current email address. The Library uses this information solely for the courtesy reminder notices of upcoming due dates. We do not share or sell any of your contact information.

Rachel

Bible Stories Can be Dangerous If.....

.....the illustrations limit the story; if the text, in an attempt to simplify, is inaccurate; if children don't connect the story with the Bible; if too much interpretation is involved; if you stop with Bible story books and children never begin to use a “real” Bible.

If you understand this, then here are some suggestions about when and how you choose Bible story books for children. The best age for Bible story books is from original awareness of books (The Word and Picture series by Carol Wehrheim) through about 2nd grade (Tomie de Paola's The Parables of Jesus). Beyond this age children,who are absorbing information like sponges, are ready for dictionaries, atlases, background information.

At this age some judicious editing of Biblical content is required. Stories of the patriarchs and matriarchs, Moses and the Exodus, Samuel and David, Jesus and the early church offer an introduction to names and events that children will be able to eventually see as one family story. Verses from Psalms are a very valuable introduction to praise and prayer.

It's important that adult and child are to enjoy these books together. Don't buy a book that you won't enjoy sharing. Art styles are very important and should be varied. Discussing the pictures may be a valuable experience of learning. And children should connect the book with the Bible itself.

By 2nd grade the child should have his or her own Bible or, perhaps, several Bibles. The one read in worship should be available in the home. The Bible this child will be growing into should have cross references and maps. Properly chosen and enjoyed, Bible story books are preparation for a life time of hearing God's Word.

Thanks to guest blogger Virginia Thomas, author of Children in the Worshipping Community and Children's Literature for all God's Children.

Future posts will highlight some outstanding children's Bible stories available in our children's collection.

Summer Projects

You may notice some partially empty shelves, cleaning cloths, and moving carts throughout the stacks. This summer our Circulation staff is moving the green pamphlet boxes to a storage area downstairs to alleviate the overcrowding of shelves. If you need access to a pamphlet that you don't see in the stacks let us know and we'll be glad to help you at the Circulation desk.

Also, we have already begun our annual cleaning of each book and shelf throughout the building, including the Reference and Reading Reserve rooms. These projects will be completed before the fall semester begins.

Rachel

ERRONEOUS NOTICES

Many patrons received erroneous courtesy notices today showing overdue items, fines, etc. THESE NOTICES WERE SENT IN ERROR and do not represent your actual account information. Please disregard them!

We apologize sincerely for the alarm and inconvenience you may have experienced. These systems are wonderful -- until they go wrong!

If you still have concerns about your account, please check with the Circulation Desk.

Rachel

The Presbyterian Leader

Just want to call your attention to a new website called The Presbyterian Leader. This project of the Presbyterian Church USA is described as "an online resource for pastors, elders, deacons, educators, worship leaders, musicians and other congregational leaders."

It offers links to how-to information, like "Serving as Elder," social policy summaries and PCUSA position statements, doctrinal studies and catechisms, and practical guides such as The Protestant Wedding Sourcebook. Some of the resources are available by subscription; the Presbyterian Worship Planner, for instance, will be produced only in this format from now on.

You might want to have a look at this new site and see what it has to offer you.

http://www.thepresbyterianleader.com/

Paula

Staffing during the summer

As you might expect, many staff members try to take their vacation time during the summer, when classes are not in session. So sometimes a person you may want to see or speak to will be unavailable. Please have patience with us ... we need our time off, just like anyone else!

In addition, most offices will be lightly staffed on Friday afternoons during the summer.

Paula

Teaching the Bible with Technology

In an earlier post, we shared information about the new multimedia creation lab that is being developed in the Library. One May Term class (Teaching the Bible) already made good use of the lab, reading some of the reference books and software to help them set up a wiki and a podcast, and making use of our large flat-bed scanner.

You can see one group's teaching plan using technology to teach a passage in Isaiah by accessing their wiki: http://intl365.wikispaces.com/.

Ann