Connecting to the At Risk Student

As I looked through the Google Blog search engine for related articles, I came across this one entitled, The Library and the At-Risk Student. I think it fits my topic of interest perfectly. The article comes from the blog, Top Shelf: the "best stuff" for school librarians, and provides research on how the library and the librarian can build positive relationships with students who are classified as "at-risk". The article reads,

"Librarians can help build resiliency in the environment in many ways. They can provide support for at-risk students by developing relationships with them and serving as mentors. Students who have trouble in the classroom environment may come to the library with a “clean slate” and find refuge and success.

Librarians can also help build resiliency by providing opportunities for meaningful participation: clubs, games, poetry readings, and other events offer at-risk students the opportunity to interact socially with their peers and caring adults. Students who are involved have less risk of dropping out....."

For further reading, check out the blog at http://topshelf.edublogs.org/2009/03/04/the-library-and-the-at-risk-student/