One month ago, Amador welcomed the new library assistant, Karla Sanchez.
“I just want to connect with students and make the library a more welcoming place, somewhere where kids can go where they can feel safe, where they can relax. And of course, I want to spread the love of reading,” said Sanchez.
A reader from day one
Since her childhood, Sanchez has loved reading books. She has surrounded herself with books her entire life.
“When I was a kid, every summer, my parents would send my brother and I to the library… That’s where I fell in love with the library. Getting to know the library and the public library, I was really excited and motivated to work in a library,” said Sanchez.
Sanchez originally wanted to become a teacher, but she found her love of books outweighed her love of teaching.
“At UC Davis, I actually was originally planning on being a teacher… When I graduated, I was like, let me get some work experience before I become a teacher. And that’s when I decided to go into being a paraeducator, which is working with Special Ed students. And then I realized teaching is not exactly for me, so then that’s when I moved toward the library,” said Sanchez.
From storytime to study time
She has experience as a librarian, but limited experience working with teenagers.
“I was just at Valley View Elementary for six years, and I just transferred a month ago,” said Sanchez.
So far, the Amador library has been less chaotic and less busy than her old school library.
“The kids would come in, we would do story time, we would do an activity, we would check out. And it was on a consistent basis. So really, it was really, really busy and really crazy. Like, I would have three kindergarten classes in one day, followed by a fifth-grade class and a fourth-grade class,” said Sanchez.
A new chapter at Amador
Although she is excited to be here, Sanchez has one concern about her job.
“[I’m] nervous about working with older students because they’re just much taller than me. Like, even when I was at Valley, even the fifth graders were taller than me,” said Sanchez.
She plans to improve her experience as a librarian by forming connections with staff and students alike.
“I really just love the library, and I’m so excited to learn more about being in the library and getting to learn more from my new coworker, Mr. Scherer. So I’m just really excited to be here. I’m excited to learn, and I’m excited to make connections with the kids,” said Sanchez.
