May 18-28 will be EOG/ECO Testing:

Please make sure that you arrive on time each day. Students are not allowed to bring book bags to school after May 15th. 

Vision Statement

The Bertie Middle School Media Program seeks to create a 21st century environment that promotes learning for all students by providing equitable access to information, teaching information literacy skills, and encouraging lifelong learning. The Phoenix Media Center strives to be a center of collaborative learning that produces creative students who have an appreciation of literature, critical thinking skills, and a respect for others and self.   

Mission Statement

The mission of the Bertie Middle School media Center is to provide students with the opportunity to become not only lifelong users of information, but also creators of information. The media center will support the curriculum by collaborating with teachers, developing a collection that is representative of the community, and implementing literacy instruction for students.

Core Values

1. Students need to be taught “how” to think and not “what” to think.
2. Students’ personal interests should play a vital role in their educational experiences.  Students should be given voice and choice in choosing what to read and what to explore based upon their personal interests and learning styles.
3. Students should have access to both print and non-print texts. Text type is a matter of personal choice and that choice can change depending on the context in which it is being read/used.  One format (print versus digital content) is not inherently better than the other.
4. Students should be allowed to read a wide range of books not limited to reading levels, formats, or specific genres.  
5. Our students may have been born into a digital world, but they have to learn digital literacy the same way they had to learn to read a book.  Our students are effective consumers of technology, but they need to be taught to be effective users of technology.
6. We should not just read aloud to students, but we need to also “think” aloud.  We need to model what good readers are thinking while they are reading. (questioning, predicting, monitoring, etc.).  
7. To read one must write, to write one must read.  The only way to improve scores in either of these areas is to get students to do both.  Life-long readers are made because they learn to enjoy reading, not because they are forced to.  If you want to create readers, you need to create personal, pleasurable reading experiences. To do this, students need to be able to “see” themselves in what they read.  Hiring certified media specialists who know books and who are trained how to put the right book into the right student’s hands helps facilitate the creation of readers.
8. While libraries are becoming more than just places for books, (Makerspaces, etc), Literacy/Critical Thinking/Problem-Solving needs to remain a key component of each new project we take on.  Out of all the other subjects, the ability to read well is the key indicator of student success.
9. Learning experiences in schools should emulate authentic, real-world applications of knowledge.  As much as possible, we should be teaching students using the skills that they will have to use when they leave the walls of the school.  
10. Students should be given equitable access to information from a broad range of viewpoints - free from bias.  In addition, student reading choices should not be used to single students out or discriminate against them. As much as possible,  students’ reading records should be confidential.