A good week

It has been a very good week at the library. First, as we mentioned on Facebook earlier this week, we finally got our books out of customs! We now have a total of 276 titles in our library, and a much greater diversity of content. I spotted one of our 9^th grade students who is a very talented artist paging through the image pages of a book on Surrealism during recess earlier this week. Plus, the new additions make our shelves beautifully full.

We've also instituted a new policy that makes Thursday afternoons our open drawing hours. This time is already extremely popular and we've seen dozens of students coming in to draw huts, cars, people, and one particularly lovely thank you card.

Even my least favorite moment of the week served to remind me of the importance of our work. The principal of the school insisted on taking me with him to hand back report cards to the 9^th graders. This exercise in public shaming was extremely uncomfortable to witness, but the worst part was at the end when he proceeded to ask the students who had not passed their exams “Why do you make us hit you?” and tell them they were worthless. These are the same students who continue to work on their magazine and are showing a level of focus I have not seen from them previously. I am incredibly proud of their work this week, and the experience with the report cards reinforced the importance of our mission to provide a space where students are valued and encouraged to develop their potential through creative and critical thinking rather than “encouraged” through threats and humiliation. It is an important reminder to all of us that we have a responsibility to ensure that no child, no matter where they live, is made to believe that they are worthless.