Academics
Library
Grier’s Library is an information center that houses a high quality educational and recreational collection of physical and online resources freely available to students and teachers.
The library is conducive to individual or group reading, researching, and studying. Students may use the library during free periods, non-academic times, in the company of their teachers, and during evening study hall Sundays-Thursdays. In addition to daytime hours, the library is open most evenings and weekends.
Literacy Promotion
- Borrow - Students may borrow books, magazines, audiobooks, eReaders, and DVDs from the Student Film Collection
- Displays & Contests – the library features themed displays and contests throughout the year, sometimes linked to a teacher’s curriculum
- Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Awards (PAYRCA) program – As part of this statewide program, students read nominated books and vote for their favorite. The library offers prizes and other incentives for participation.
- One Book, One School - We invite everybody in the Grier Community to read the same book during the course of the school year and celebrate with discussions and other related events.
- Author Visits
- Scholastic Book Fair
Library & Information Skills Instruction
Librarian, Rebecca Woolfrey, partners with teachers to offer annual library orientation and other research and information literacy instruction to students through their assigned classes. Instruction is based on the standards from the American Association of School Librarians for 21st Century Learners and helps prepare students for college-level research and become savvy information consumers.
Introduces students to the library staff, space, and services. The main focus is the library’s software Destiny, which allows users to create their own logins, search for print and digital materials, access digital content, and manage accounts.
Other instruction topics:
Library Orientation
Introduces students to the library staff, space, and services. The main focus is the library’s software Destiny, which allows users to create their own logins, search for print and digital materials, access digital content, and manage accounts.
Other instruction topics:
- Evaluating Web Sites for Credibility
- Avoiding Plagiarism
- Using Online Databases
- Paraphrasing
- Introduction to the Research Assignment
- Citation Using NoodleTools
- Note-taking and Outlines with NoodleTools
- eBooks and eReaders
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Students Stick Together to complete Sticker Mosaic
Students enjoyed working together to complete a mystery sticker mosaic. As they stopped by the library, the students could adhere a few color-coded stickers to the grid, revealing the image piece-by-piece. Carolyn and Ashley were proud to have placed the very last stickers on this brightly colored unicorn mosaic. Stop by the library to see the result of the result of their collaborative effort for yourself!Read More -
Wolfpack Unites Grier in a Thoughtful Discussion
Earlier this year, the Library launched the 2019-2020 One School, One Story school-wide read. This program challenges everyone in the Grier community to read the same book as a shared experience. This year’s book selection was Wolfpack: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Game by soccer legend Abby Wambach.Read More -
Research Skills Essential for College and Beyond
Research papers are a regular part of each English and ESL courses at Grier. Knowing this, many teachers opt to partner with Grier’s librarian to give their students specialized lessons in accessing, finding, evaluating, organizing, and citing information.Read More
These skills are essential for college-level work, and, as the decision-makers of tomorrow, today’s students must be able to critically evaluate sources of information for authority and bias. Grier’s Library continues to provide materials in the traditional format of printed books alongside online access to a multitude of searchable eBooks and databases of articles from newspapers, magazines, and journals. -
One School, One Story 2019
Read MoreDo you know just how powerful you are? Do you want to create a better world? Read what Olympic Gold Medalist Abby Wambach has to say about leadership, teamwork, and changing the world in her book “Wolfpack.” The library invites everybody at Grier to read this tiny little book with a great big message. Borrow a copy today. Be part of the conversation. -
Leave the Light On
Every year, the American Library Association celebrates the freedom to read with a week-long event called "Banned Books Week." During this week, libraries across the country highlight the value of free and open access to information. This is in response to individuals and organizations that would like to ban, or remove, materials from library collections because they are not aligned with their own personal beliefs and values. It is the role of libraries to provide materials for all patrons, not just the vocal majority.Read More -
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
You can celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month by reading a book written by a Hispanic or Latino author or that features a Hispanic or Latino main character. Many of these books on display in the Library right now, so please check them out!Read More -
2019-2020 Reading Program Nominees
The Pennsylvania Young Readerss Choice Awards (PAYRCA) Program is an annual statewide program that gives students the opportunity to vote for their favorite authors. At Grier, students who participate in the program receive Grier Bucks and chances to win prizes throughout the school year. To participate, students sign-up in the library between September and February and read titles from the list of fifteen nominees. Copies of the books are available through the library. Grier students vote before Spring Break and the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association declares winners in May.Read More -
Public Media Broadcaster Speaks to Grier Students
Read MoreGrier students and faculty attended a presentation by regional broadcast media professional Carolyn Donaldson on Tuesday afternoon in the Library. The presentation was the culmination of the Library’s One School, One Story, a program that invites all members of the Grier community to read the same book and participate in a series of discussions and related events. This school year, Grier read I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World by Nobel Peace Prize recipient Malala Yousafzai.Grier invited Carolyn Donaldson, Community Engagement Manager for WPSU Penn State and former WTAJ-TV news anchor, to visit Grier and talk about how media is a means to spread ideas and advocate for change, the way Malala did and continues to do through blogs, interviews on radio and television, streaming media, and printed publications. Donaldson tied Malala’s message and mission to US First Amendment rights and how public media entities like WPSU give diverse voices a place to be heard. She cited the WPSU program “This I Believe” as a way for anyone – Grier students included – to tell their own story. -
Virtual Guest Speaks to Grier Students about Gender Equity in Higher Ed
Read MoreTuesday, a graduate student Shannon DeHoff from Penn State University joined Grier via Skype video chat to describe her work with the University Park campus’s Gender Equity Center. Librarian Mrs. Woolfrey arranged for this presentation in conjunction with the schoolwide read I Am Malala by equal education activist Malala Yousafzai. The presenter addressed the biggest obstacles to higher education access for women in the United States today. Among the students who attended the program, many were members of the Grier Bridge club, which seeks to promote the welfare of girls and women worldwide. The Grier students in attendance engaged with the speaker, asking questions about her role and the challenges facing women on college campuses. After the presentation concluded, the students continued to discuss how they might apply some of the Gender Equity Center’s advocacy and education strategies to prepare Grier students for college life. -
Voting Now Open
Did you participate in the Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Awards Program (PAYRCA)? PAYRCA is an annual statewide program that gives students the opportunity to vote for their favorite authors.Read More
Grier students who read THREE or more books from the list of fifteen nominees are eligible to vote using the form or link below.Grier students may vote until March 17th. Grier votes will be tabulated and submitted to the state organization. Finally, the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association will declare a statewide favorite in May. -
Discussion & Donuts
Read MoreGrier students and faculty gathered in the Library for Discussion & Donuts where they talked about the school’s One School, One Story book selection I Am Malala by the young global education activist and Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Malala Yousafzai. The students participated in discussion sessions before school and during the afternoon Extra Help period. Students shared what they were most surprised to learn about Malala’s story after reading the book, their thoughts on the role of Malala’s parents, and Malala’s resilience and current mission. -
Mosaic Encourages Students to Stick Together
Read MoreAs students pass through the Grier library or take a break from homework, they can participate in a collaborative project by adding some of the nearly 4,000 half-inch, colorful sticker squares to a color-coded poster. The students are working together to create a sticker mosaic. The subject of the mosaic is a mystery at the start, but will be revealed slowly as students make progress. The mosaic unites the student body of Grier and promotes a great message: Stick Together!
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Lifelong Learning & Literacy
The library is conducive to individual or group reading, researching, and studying. -
21st Century Learners
Instruction helps prepare students for college-level research and become savvy information consumers. -
Love to Read
Colorful displays, reading programs, and events foster a love of reading..
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