LIBRARY STEREOTYPES TAKE FLIGHT

LINDBERGH: FORMER ART TEACHER USES
VISUAL CONCEPTS TO SELL THE CULTURE OF READING.

Sunday, October 4, 1998

By Alessandra Djurklou
Long Beach Press Telegram


It's quiet, and it has books in it, but this is no ordinary school library.

And that impression is confirmed even from the outside. Although the main entrance to Lindbergh Middle School looks like the main entrance to dozens of middle schools in Long Beach Unified, that is not the case about 10 feet farther along the building.

At that point, there is a small patio of sorts, its low walls covered with a colorful mural -- dragons and monkeys and flowers, all characters from children's literature. There is a large double door, with 12 stainedglass windowpanes -- again images taken from children's literature.

Over the doors, there is a scrolled sign: ``The Reading Room.''

Once inside the Reading Room, one first notices the way the books are grouped: Sci-Fi, Geography, Humor, Self-Help.

Self-Help? What is this, Barnes & Noble?

Well, sort of, said librarian Helen London, except, of course, that most of the books aren't for sale.

``A school library should be more like a bookstore; there needs to be a marketing of books and reading,'' said London. ``(At a bookstore) the books shout to be picked up.''

The bookstore motif is further confirmed by the plush sofas in the middle of the room, the comfy chairs, the large cushions and the soft rug. There are also tables, both with computers and without -- and tables for chess, as well. London wants Lindbergh's chess players to challenge another middle school in a tournament.

Oh, and then there are the field trips, to places such as the Huntington Library. And the puppet shows staged for younger kids in the area. And, of course, the Distinguished Scholars program, which encourages children to read a little each day, so that they may become the kind of person who enjoys reading and studying -- a true scholar.

It's all London's doing. The former East Coast resident appears very calm on the outside, but inside, ideas are spinning around faster than you can say ``Dickens.''

She spent 8 to 10 hours on each stained glass window pane. She encouraged students to paint the mural. She managed to get the sofas and other furniture, albeit with a lot of support from parents and organizations like the National American Insurance Company of California.

An art teacher for more than a decade, London said she believes in a visual approach to reading. After teaching art for three years at Long Beach Unified, she decided to apply for a librarian job. It seems like a stretch, but it really isn't -- London had written a proposal back in Boston which outlined a way of teaching academic subjects by using visual arts. It's not enough, she says, to just tell kids to read, they have to be immersed.

``There's a whole culture that goes with reading,'' London said.

Lindbergh students seem to be absorbing that culture. Before and after school, the sofas are packed with small bodies, all with their noses stuck in books.

``I think it helps the students learn,'' said eighth-grader Sopheak Born, who is a distinguished scholar. ``I would like more people here, so they can learn better.''