February Spotlights

SEMESTER START-UP REMINDERS   

• Passwords for all resources in the Digital Resource Hub have been updated.  Check out the new password bookmark in the Staff Hub beneath the Library menu. Bookmarks with passwords are available in the library -- using designs from the winning entries from the Fall 2025 bookmark contest

• Yes, the library now subscribes to the New York Times and to the Times Colonist online.  Look for the user names and passwords in the Literacy tab on the library web site. Log in with vhstaff1914 for all Staff Hub menu tabs.
  

READING THEMES & SPECIAL EVENTS

 Themes of the Month

•        Black History Month
•        Reading and Intellectual Freedom 

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       Weekly Reading Themes

•      February 2-6:     Must-read books by Black Canadian authors
•       February 9-13:  "Love is in the Air: -- love stories and rom-com books
•       Feb. 16-20:       Must-read books by Black authors around the world 
•       Feb. 23-27:       Freedom to Read Week -- "mug shots" of Vic High teachers who                                      have read challenged/banned books

I         I will be using the staff "mug shots" from last year's Freedom to Read Week initiative.  If 

          you are new to Vic High or didn't have your photo taken last year, I will be inviting staff to 

          be photographed with a book of  their choice next week.

        Vic High Reads 2026 -- Kick-off Assembly

   Two assemblies will be held during Blocks A & C Thursday, Feb. 19 in the Multi-             

    purpose room.  As students in Language Arts in B & D blocks will be invited to  attend, I 

    will send out a list of students who will be missing class for the assembly.

       

       RESEARCH SKILLS & INFORMATION LITERACY

       The Digital Resource Hub is an excellent starting point for any research task in the    Humanities and Sciences, but it's worth having the teacher-librarian show          students strategies to build specific competencies in research, including

•          narrowing a subject/topic to a focused inquiry question.

•          understanding the criteria of a reliable source

•          distinguishing between popular sources and academic sources

•          developing full citations in APA style

       Don't hesitate to reach out to Wendy to discuss your project and students' skill needs.