Welcome to the William Dean Public School Library.
The library's mission is to provide a well-resourced,
inviting and inclusive environment which promotes a
love of literature and effectively fosters the
development of student information literacy skills.
The library provides a variety of resources displayed
according to the following categories:
•Non-Fiction
•Fiction
•Magazines/ Periodicals
•Junior fiction
●Picture Books
•Premier's Reading Challenge
•Series
•Teacher Resources
Library Class Borrowing
It is important for your child to bring a bag to the library when borrowing to ensure the protection of our
library books. This can be a hessian bag, pillowslip or shop bought Library Bag. We sell William Dean Public
School Library Bags at the office. Plastic bags can be used temporarily, as they tear easily.
If your child has an assignment or class activity that requires a number of resources, students are
encouraged to make a special loan (on top of their current loan allocation). Each class follows a borrowing
schedule allocated for library class borrowing and lesson days:
LTA- Monday
LTC- Wednesday
LTEK- Tuesday
LTH- Tuesday
LTK- Friday
LTL- Monday
LTM- Wednesday
LTR- Thursday
LTS- Wednesday
LTZ- Wednesday
Our extensive range of junior picture books
Award winning author Peter Carnivas promots the
enjoyment of literature.
Our reading corner offers students a comfortable place
to read with friends.
Our computer area accomodates students during
technology sessions, library enquiry, and lunch time play.
The annual book fair always draws a crowd.
Students and family share a story to celebrate
National Year of Reading at our 2012 Open Day.
Start with 'My Library'
'My Library' is a NSW public schools' tool your child
can access from any computer via the NSW
Department of Education and Communities portal. It
links into their school library catalogue and offers
resources selected by librarians and curriculum
experts across NSW.
Library Blog- William Dean’s Daily Prophet
An educational blog is an online journal where a student makes comments on articles (posts) relating to
their learning experiences, or recent events within the school. The teacher (administrator) then decides
which comments will be approved before publishing.
On March 1st WDPS Library made its first ‘post’ to the new Library Blog- known as ‘William
Dean’s The Daily Prophet’. Within the first two weeks there were over 50 comments made
by enthusiastic students across Stages 1 to 3.
Since then many posts have been added by Ms Porter regarding new book arrivals; the
2012 Premier’s Reading Challenge; weekly Library Learners award winner’s; short video’s
celebrating the 2012 National Year of Reading; Harmony Day celebrations and much more.
The WDPS Library Blog is not available to the general public. Only staff and students of William Dean have
access to the blog. The blog can be accessed from home, when students log in using their DEC student
portal.
All photographs that appear on the blog are in accordance with the ‘Approval to Publish’ forms that are sent
home at the beginning of each year.
If you have any queries or concerns, please feel free to request an appointment with
Ms Porter or Ms Dichera.
NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge
All students from years K to 6 are encouraged to participate in the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge, a
reading venture comprising three separate categories for students in primary school. The three categories
are K-2, 3-4 and 5-6.
Students in K-2 are required to engage with 30 books, including 25 books from the NSW Premier’s Reading
Challenge K-2 Booklist. Students from years 3 to 6 are required to independently read 20 books, including
15 books from the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge 3-4 or 5-6 Booklist.
2012 reading logs are due to Ms Porter by the 31st August 2012
Children’s Book Week
Children's Book Week is the longest running children's festival in Australia. Each year, many schools and
public libraries from all over Australia spend a week celebrating books and Australian authors and
illustrators. Classroom teachers, teacher librarians and public librarians develop activities, offer competitions
and tell stories relating to a theme to highlight the importance of reading.
Sorting fact from fiction
You can't always trust what you read when researching information for assignments. Here are ways your
child can tell a good website from a bad one.
Reader beware
With so much information on the web and no-one responsible for fact checking, kids need to look out for:
•
bias and hidden agendas
•
factual errors
•
outdated information
•
information which is country-specific
•
commercially motivated information.
Play the detective
The ability to question information is a vital tool for all school kids.
People can publish something that looks great but is full of factual errors. And websites, like any publication,
can reflect a bias.
Have a conversation with your child about the sites they are accessing. You could ask questions, such as
"Can we find out who wrote this information?", "Does the website tell us anything about who they are?" and
"Are they really an expert in this area of information?". Stay Cybersmart when researching online.
The QUICK guide
The quality information checklist or QUICK –
is a useful guide to finding good information on the internet.


Is it clear who has written the information?
Find out about the author by searching their name to discover if they are a recognised expert and
what their motivation is for creating the information.
Can the information be checked?


If an article refers to experts or research, the quote should link to the original source, so you can
read it yourself. Failing that, copy and paste the quote, the expert's name or the name of the study
into your search engine and see if you can verify it.
When was the site produced?
In theory, the web should always be more up-to-date than books because it can be changed
instantly and constantly. That's not always the case. Look for dates on websites to help determine
how current the information is. Also, on Google you can type your search keywords and click on
'News' in the top left. That will track down current news stories about your topic.
Is the information biased in any way?
Does the information address conflicting evidence or opinions? Do you see a political or commercial
motive? Who do they offer links to? Do they support their opinions with links to expert evidence?
Find more homework and study help on the School A to Z website.
Open Hours
The Library is open at first half lunch Monday- Thursday.
Students and parents are welcome to visit the library between the hours
8:30- 9:00am and 3:00-3:30pm, from Wednesday to Friday. Ms Porter is
available most mornings in the library if you have any queries.
During open hours students are encouraged to use the library resources
to assist with class assignments. The library computers have free access
to the internet for all students, including Microsoft Word; Excel;
Publisher; and Powerpoint. All printing must be approved by staff.
The Teacher Librarian is
Ms Porter
"The more that you read, the more
things you will know. The more you
learn, the more places you'll go."
— Dr. Seuss