Today I sorted supplies, both new and old - for the circulation desk and the library office. We are lucky to have so many supplies, but of course we need to make sure they are organized. Thousands of rubber bands (in Maine we call them elastics), paperclips of all shapes and colors, zillions of roles of masking tape (some past their prime which need to go), and much more. I even found some old wooden shelf markers from yesteryear in one of the filing cabinets during our early spring cleaning. Sorting office supplies is not that different from categorizing books into library sections (writing utensils go here, extra paper goes here...). Best to grab yourself a cup of coffee, and once you have, let the work begin!
Because we have drawer space now from re-arranging some of our circulation desk furniture earlier this month, we are able to organize our supplies better. We also received a file cabinet yesterday and are putting all of the loose papers that had been in trays into a filing system. Small things have been put into containers to keep them more organized.
In organizing materials, I stopped to think of what the circulation desk really needs, so that there is not too much clutter. Less is more because that way supplies are easier to find and keep organized (less fumbling). The top of the circulation desk is now completely clear and patrons can see what you want them to see - bookmarks, info sheets, and announcements. In addition, they have more space to check out books and staff have more room for working. Break/lunch schedules are now on the back counter out of view from the public. The circulation desk appears very professional. I also want to make sure that we have extra supplies readily available at the circulation desk for patrons to borrow as well - pens/pencils, erasers, paperclips, correction fluid, scissors, rubber bands, stapler + staples, a ruler, and a hole puncher. As for extra supply quantities, it's better to keep them in a separate compartment not too far away for easy restocking (again less clutter), and these are now neatly stored in a large cabinet in my office.
In organizing materials, I stopped to think of what the circulation desk really needs, so that there is not too much clutter. Less is more because that way supplies are easier to find and keep organized (less fumbling). The top of the circulation desk is now completely clear and patrons can see what you want them to see - bookmarks, info sheets, and announcements. In addition, they have more space to check out books and staff have more room for working. Break/lunch schedules are now on the back counter out of view from the public. The circulation desk appears very professional. I also want to make sure that we have extra supplies readily available at the circulation desk for patrons to borrow as well - pens/pencils, erasers, paperclips, correction fluid, scissors, rubber bands, stapler + staples, a ruler, and a hole puncher. As for extra supply quantities, it's better to keep them in a separate compartment not too far away for easy restocking (again less clutter), and these are now neatly stored in a large cabinet in my office.
In the end, all supplies went to one of seven places: 1) the circulation desk area, 2) my office desk, 3) library class kits, 4) office cabinet, 5) the staff room (free give-aways), 6) the middle/high school libraries, and 7) the dustbin. Our next step is to label the drawers/doors so that people can find things easily and know where to put things back. We also need to go through all the pens and markers to make sure they still work.
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