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Library Mission Statement
The mission of the Roanoke Catholic School Library is to help students and faculty gain access to the wide world of ideas and information available in the 21st century. In addition, the librarian is dedicated to the proposition that the key to success in life is the development of a lifelong love of reading and learning. All Roanoke Catholic students are welcome and encouraged to take advantage of the resources provided by their library.
RCS Library Resources
The RCS Portal is a bookmarking site with annotated links filed under headings that are arranged alphabetically. You will notice that core subjects are grouped together for Lower School (LS, PreK-7) and Upper School (US, 8-12). There are also files for general use, parents, and teachers. Another site recently made available to the school is Quiz Hub, which is a source for online interactive quizzes for grades K-12 on numerous topics from letter recognition and simple addition to French and Spanish to Chemistry and Biology. See your teacher to get the user name and password. You can also now access the RCS OPAC (Online Public Access Catalog) from any computer anywhere in the world!
You can contact the librarian by email if you have a question or need information about library classes.
Library Policies
Technology and Internet Acceptable Use Policy
Technology and Internet Acceptable Use Contract
Instructional Materials Selection Policy
Local Library Links
You can access the Roanoke Valley Libraries OPAC to locate and reserve print and electronic resources or browse the best-seller and awards lists. Many additional resources – like FindItVA, TumbleBooks, and SparkNotes – can be accessed through the homepages of your local public library (see links below). For example, you may want to check out Literati Public, a new collection of databases offered by Roanoke Public Libraries. Of particular interest to students doing research would be eBooks on Ebsco. These are electronic nonfiction books and classics that can be accessed online from home.
The first four libraries listed below are all part of the Roanoke Valley Libraries cooperative. If you have a library card from any one of these systems, you can visit each of their respective websites and take advantage of any resources you find there. If you have a library card from Montgomery-Floyd, Bedford, or Franklin, you are eligible to apply for an RVL card.
Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library
Franklin County Public Library System
Other Library Links of Interest
The Library of Virginia, located in Richmond, serves all Virginians, from the governor and other state employees to educators and the general public. Its collections focus on Virginia history, culture, and government. Be sure to click on the About Us link at the top of the home page to learn more and watch “The Library of Virginia: Virginia’s Collective Experience,” a 15-minute video narrated by David Baldacci.
The Library of Congress is the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress. It is also the largest library in the world, with millions of books, recordings, photographs, maps and manuscripts in its collections…. It also has an awesome website.
“Summer” Reading Lists
Below are the ”Summer” Reading Lists for each grade for Summer 2013. We think of them as Summer Reading Lists because that is the time of year when we have the most leisure time for pleasure reading, and all of the books listed are intended for reading pleasure when you’re at your leisure. Also, the lists are updated in the Spring to take into account the many wonderful new titles that have come out during the school year. Please note: The lists will be re-posted by June 14 with hyperlinks for each of the titles. Please check back then.
English 9: Introduction to Literature
English 10: American Literature
English 11: British Literature
AP English Language and Composition
Other Links for Readers
Be sure to print out a reading log to keep track of the books you read and earn credit toward next Fall’s Book Fair. When it is full, turn the log in to the librarian signed by a parent or guardian. To find out how many AR points a book is worth, go to the AR Book Finder website. This is also a good place to get a brief summary of the book, as well as the book’s reading level. Another website you might be interested in is the one for the Virginia Readers’ Choice award program, where you can find this year’s lists and past years’ winners. Finally, older readers may want to join in reading the current selection from Roanoke Valley Reads before the movie comes out later in 2013.
Supporting the RCS Library
Supporting the RCS Library is a great way to ensure that our students have all the intellectual resources they need to succeed in life. Fortunately, the Internet makes it a little easier for members of the RCS community to contribute.
Those who cannot attend the book fair in person can still support the library while stocking up on good books to read during long winter nights and long summer days by shopping the RCS Book Fair Online.
You can also support the library by enrolling your student in the Birthday Club. If you did not receive one, you can print out and send in a copy of the Birthday Club Enrollment Form. Then when you are ready you can go to the Birthday Club Webpage to purchase a book in your student’s name.
Other Links of Interest to Teachers
RCS subscribes to Discovery Education Streaming for in-class educational video feeds.
Teachers who like working with Web 2.0 tools may be interested in a graphic organizer created by Samantha Penney and hosted by the University of Southern Indiana. It is a collection of icons arranged in a Web 2.0 pyramid, with steps set up according to Bloom’s Taxonomy. Click on the image to go to the working website.
