​​Libraries / resource centres empower pupils, not only by supporting the teaching and learning in the school, but by giving them the freedom to make their own choices about reading and learning experiences. Resource centres in schools give children the opportunity to:

• extend their reading experiences
  
• discover and use information
• learn research skills

School resource centres are important to the learning outcomes of the whole school and the impact goes beyond its walls to the family and the wider community. (The Australian Library Association)​​

​At St Francis Xavier we are fortunate enough to have a modern resource centre, designed to meet the needs of our community.  A modern and welcoming Resource Centre is considered important to our school because it supports teachers in their planning and teaching, it provides a modern and stimulating space for the children to work, explore and play and it provides easy access to reading and research materials to meet both their academic and recreational needs. The resource centre is also used by the wider school community for meetings, seminars etc.

A​​im​s

At the St Francis Xavier Resource Centre we aim to​​:

• Provide an opportunity for students to borrow b​​ooks they are interested in each week (these books are the children’s own choice – levelled readers are provided through the classroom)

• Provi​​de borrowing for parents and carers

• Provide opportunities for the children to develop skills​​ in co-operating with and assisting others

• Create space​​s that facilitate reading, listening, viewing and studying, both alone and with others

• Provide ​​literature and materials to support all areas of the curriculum

• Foste​​r a love of reading to develop children’s imaginations, create understanding of how texts are structured, explore new worlds and develop awareness of, and empathy towards, other peoples and places

• Provide​ access to modern technologies that will not only support student learning now, but will give them vital skills to carry them forward

• Provide lun​chtime and before and after school opportunities for the children to borrow, read and play in the resource centre

• Teach the children that books are a precious resource and therefore need to be treated with care and respec​t.  For this reason the children need to have an approved library bag (available through their book list or direct from the resource centre) and must return borrowed books in good condition before they borrow again.