Welcome to St Benedict’s School Library. Our library is a vibrant, welcoming, warm space, which encourages and promotes a life-long love of reading.
Our library is open every school day from 8:30am until 2:50pm and at both morning tea and lunchtimes. Students, parents, staff, and friends of the school are welcome at any time. Each class looks forward to visiting the library with their classroom teacher to read, research, spend time with friends, draw, play board games and relax.
On top of classroom visits, each class spends time with librarian, receiving reading suggestions, assistance with research and help finding resources that interest them. Teachers can also return and issue their own resources to replenish their classroom library. Older students regularly occupy the library to enjoy a book, or to complete independent studies or research during the school day.
Our library boasts over 6,700 resources for use. Purchases are continually made throughout the year to ensure our collection remains current and relevant to student’s current interests and needs. The library also coordinates with local public libraries as well as the National Library of New Zealand to borrow further resources relevant to topics that are being studied in class during each term. Each new school resource (for example, journals, classroom resources) passes through the library on its way to classrooms, in order to be recorded in an Accession Register so the school has a thorough record of what resources it has available to students.
Our students can search our catalogue and place holds for items through this link
In Years 7 and 8 students can become Student Librarians and are rostered on during morning tea and lunchtimes to assist the librarian in issuing and returning books, and reshelving. Throughout the year, our Student Librarians also work towards their bronze, silver, gold and platinum library awards; these are highly sought after awards.
The library really is the hub of St Benedict’s School. It is used for many other school activities including assemblies, both whole school and syndicate, choir, visitor presentations and House competitions. This ensures that our library is a hive of activity on a daily basis. We look forward to seeing you in our school’s library soon.
St Benedict’s School Librarian
Stories online
Reading
Epic books – digital reading platform of popular, high-quality books for kids. Whanau can sign up for free access to one ebook/day
Lit2Go – free collection of stories and poems – read along and download activities.
Literacy Online (Ministry of Education) – dual language texts and audio in languages from the Pacific
Marvel Comics – read free issues online
Sanctuary – retellings of pūrākau (myths) in comic format
School-gen (Genesis Energy) – online books in English and te reo Māori on the topic of sustainability
Super Felix by Phoebe Morris – helps to make sense of COVID.
Wellington City Libraries – stories, magazines, films, booklists and much, much more
The Book of Hope – short stories, poems, illustrations and essays by some of our favourite authors
Unite for Literacy – books for younger readers
Audiobooks
Down the Back of the Chair – read by the one and only Margaret Mahy
Goodnight Kiwi – New Zealand picture books read by Kiwis (people, not birds)
He Paki Taonga i a Māui – short films in te Reo Māori with English subtitles
James and the Giant Peach – read by Taika Waititi and friends! KidLitTV – authors read their books
LoyalBooks – listen to some kids classics
Rays of Sounds – books in Māori Kūki ‘Āirani, Gagana Sāmoa and Te Reo Māori
RNZ Storytime – picture books, chapter books and short stories
StoryNory – audio stories for kids
Sunshine Books –author Joy Cowley reads three of her titles
Tui Street Tales – read by author Anne Kayes (scroll down homepage)
Turi TV – books read in New Zealand Sign Language
Tui Street Tales – read by author Anne Kayes (scroll down homepage)
Turi TV – books read in New Zealand Sign Language
Activities and inspiration
Billie B Brown – great reading and activities from author Sally Rippin
Dog Man – fun activities from Dav Pilkey
Guinness World Records– activities and information for kids
Te Reo Singalong Songbooks – sing-a-long song books with author Sharon Holt
Literature Map – stuck on what to read? Just type in the name of an author you like to get suggestions for a similar author.
Magazines
Kiwi Kids News – find out what’s going on the world National Geographic Kids – facts, games, competitions Upstart – activities, videos, competitions, and the chance to contribute content competitions, and the chance to contribute content
Adapted with thanks to Sylvia Park School [Source here, downloaded 31.03.2022]