About the Library Network
The collective mission of the CMP Library Network shall be to:
- Ensure that students have access to library materials that promote, further, and complement their academic studies and personal curiosities;
- Take an active role in educating students about digital citizenship, information literacy, and how to thrive in an increasingly technologically-driven world;
- Advocate for the inclusion and promotion of coding and computer science into the network curriculum; and
- Foster a climate and culture of inventiveness and discovery by encouraging and supporting Club Montessori- and library-based maker programs and initiatives.
Each of the libraries is supported by Central Administration, who shall assist each campus library by:
- Managing and administering the library automation software, as well as providing tech support for campus-level staff and volunteers;
- Advising campus and senior administrators on topics that the library has a vested interest or role in;
- Updating and maintaining network-wide library manuals and best practices; and
- Assisting in the cataloging of materials to maintain the integrity of each campus' collection.
Library Orientation
Digital Resources and Databases
The CMP Library Network is pleased to announce that all CMP students and staff now have access to a number of digital resources and databases through the library program. Students and staff may access these resources by visiting their campus' library catalog page (see right sidebar).
While connected to school Wi-Fi, students and staff will have access to the following resources for the 2018-2019 school year:
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Britannica School (grades K-8) - Digital encyclopedia with thousands of articles and supplemental materials (video, images, audio, web sites, etc.). Each article has three versions -- Elementary, Middle, and High -- which differ by reading level. Can be accessed outside of school with a username and password.
CultureGrams (grades 3-8) - Detailed reports on over 200 countries, every U.S. state, and all 13 Canadian provinces. Each report contains facts and supplemental materials about the area's history, society, people, and culture. Also included in each report are fun tools and interactive features, such as a currency converter, distance calculator, and list of authentic recipes.
SIRS Discoverer (grades 3-8) - A neat alternative to Google for students working on projects or assignments. This database is a collection of 2,000+ sources for general research, including newspaper clippings, journal/magazine articles, primary sources, and multimedia. This resource also contains over 500 full-text e-books.
eLibrary (grades 5-8) - Designed to help students select and refine a research topic and find authoritative information to support their research claim. Students can select from one of dozens of editorially-curated research topics or explore their own.
SIRS Issues Researcher (grades 6-8) - Provides a safe and school-appropriate avenue for students to explore the sensitive, controversial, and "hot button" issues of today. For each topic, editors have summarized the topic, identified different viewpoints, and collected scholarly and academic resources that support or refute one viewpoint or another.
ProQuest Student Central (grades 7-8) – This multidisciplinary resources allows students to search twelve of ProQuest’s most popular databases through one portal. This resource, which resembles those that students are likely to see in a high school and academic library, contains credible and scholarly sources from numerous fields of study, including science, social science, and biology. Also includes full-text newspaper articles from thousands of publications, from the early 1900s to today.
School & Educators Complete (teachers, some grade 7-8 content) – A collection of over 12,000 electronic books from numerous publishers and across multiple genres. Each e-book is multi-user access-enabled, meaning that entire classrooms can read the same title at the same time through their Internet browser.
ProQuest Research Companion (grade 8) - Contains video tutorials and research tools that help guide students through the research process. Students are shown how to find, evaluate, and use the information in their own projects and assignments. Each step of the research process is broken into manageable sections and include tools such as a citation generator and sample research guide.
Teachingbooks.net (teachers, some student content) – collection of curated and vetted materials for teachers to enhance instruction, engage learners, and stimulate thinking with ready-to-use digital resources for instructional areas. Teachers can use teachingbooks.net to identify exceptional books that reflect diverse cultural experiences, interests, and ability levels, as well as obtain resources paired with book titles that further reading enjoyment, contextual knowledge, and educational relevance. Staff can use their cacmp.org e-mail to create an account for home access and to save and share resources.