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Clear your diaries and head down to Catalyst, Libraries Week is coming!
We may be biased, but here in Learning Services we absolutely love libraries.
Whether for losing yourself in some fabulous fiction or stretching your academic skills muscles, a great library is a breeding ground for personal development, good mental health and connecting with your university or local community. What’s more, the dawning of the digital age has meant not only have many libraries embraced technology, but some have even re-written the rules and catapulted the sector into the user experience stratosphere (hello, Catalyst!)
In celebration of our commitment to innovation and student happiness, we’re just-finished-a-book delighted to be putting on our arts and craft hats for this year’s Libraries Week. With a national theme of ‘Wellbeing’, here are just a few of the events we have planned…
Take What You Need Tree @ Catalyst Help Desk
All week
We all need a little pick me up now and again. For some its chocolate, for others its spending sprees, and for some, a nice note from a beautiful synthetic tree just hits the spot. Feeling kind? Take a tag and write a supportive or encouraging message for fellow students. We’re feeling fuzzy inside already 🙂
Mindful Colouring @ Catalyst
All week
There’s no doubt about it, adult colouring is all the rage. Why? Research suggests just 10 minutes a day can boost your mood and help to reduce depression and anxiety. We’ll take 10 crayons, please!
Self Help book display @ Catalyst
All week
Who doesn’t love a good self-help book? With shelves lined with expertise from psychologists and psychotherapists alike, we’ve decided to collate our favourites into a one-stop-shop for feel-good literature. Got a recommendation? Join the conversation on Twitter with #LibrariesWeek.
Book Club Launch @ Oak Room
Monday 8th October 13:00-14:00
In collaboration with Edge Hill’s Big Read, Monday marks the launch of #CatalystBookClub. Bring your friends and thoughts on Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine and be ready to leave inspired, raring for the next one and perhaps even with a few goodies.
Paper Flowers workshop @ Oak Room
Tuesday 9th October 12:00-13:00
Whether you’re an avid reader or merely a cereal box browser, everybody has a piece of literature that lingers with them long after it has been read. How cool would it be, then, if you could take your favourite pages and make an origami rose? Back by popular demand, this session will show you how.
Knit a bookmark workshop @ Oak Room
Wednesday 10th October 13:00-14:00
Nourishing your soul, practicing mindfulness and impressing your grandma are just a few of the benefits of coming along to our knit a bookmark workshop. Aimed at beginners and with all materials provided, we’ll show you step by step how to create an envy-inducing page holder.
The Great Textbook Giveaway @ The Hub
Thursday 11th October 11:00-2:00
Following the donation of over 800 books as part of our successful Pass the Book scheme, we now have a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction titles seeking a new home. This means you can come along to The Hub and take away your next read **completely free!**
Bullet Journal Workshop @ Oak Room
Friday 12th October 12:00-13:00
Staying organised is one of the biggest challenges of university life. Providing stationary, templates and #BulletJournal inspiration a plenty, we’ll show you how to set up a fun and creative system that means no essay deadline can ever go amiss.
All workshops are bookable on CareerHub.
Written by Maisie Prior.
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October UniSkills Workshops
We have lots of exciting UniSkills workshops coming to Catalyst this term. We have workshops to help you develop your academic writing skills, sessions focused on searching for academic information, techniques on how to give powerful presentations and support on starting your undergraduate dissertation. Find out more about the workshops below and how to book your place.
Introduction to Academic Writing
This workshop acts as an introduction to the style of academic writing used at University and may be of interest to those who are new to academic writing or want to refresh their understanding of what academic writing is.
The topics we will cover in this workshop include: planning assignments, structuring your essay, academic writing style and an introduction to Harvard Referencing.
Here are the dates and times below.
- 15th October 2018 @ 12:00pm
- 17th October 2018 @ 1:00pm
- 22nd October 2018 @ 1:00pm
- 24th October 2018 @ 12:00pm
- 29th October 2018 @ 1:00pm
Developing Academic Writing
This workshop is aimed at students who have experience in academic writing and are interested in developing a more critical approach to their writing. Building on previous experience, learn to recognise and understand assessment criteria, apply critical reading and show critical analysis in your writing and the importance of integrating referencing.
This session aims to:
- Help you build on what you already know about academic writing
- Explain the terms used in assessment criteria
- Apply critical reading
- Help you to understand how to show critical analysis through your writing
- Understand the importance of integrating referencing with your writing
Here are the dates and times below.
- 16th October 2018 @ 12:00pm
- 18th October 2018 @ 1:00pm
- 23rd October 2018 @ 1:00pm
- 25th October 2018 @ 12:00pm
- 31st October 2018 @ 12:00pm
Finding Academic Information
This workshop aims to improve your search strategy, find resources for your assignment (including books, eBooks and journal articles) using the Library Catalogue and Discover More and learn how to evaluate your sources.
The topics we will cover in this workshop include: getting the search right in the Library Catalogue, using Discover More to find journal articles specific to your subject, reading lists, Google Scholar and evaluating information.
Here are the dates and times below.
- 19th October 2018 @ 12:00pm
- 24th October 2018 @ 1:00pm
Powerful Presentations
This workshop may be of interest to those who are delivering a presentation as part of their University course. This workshop will cover the different stages of putting together a powerful presentation, including: recognising the importance of planning and structuring your presentation, learning how to create a presentation that is both accessible and visually appealing and how to deliver your presentation to an audience with confidence.
Here are the dates and times below.
- 23rd October 2018 @ 12:00pm
Writing Your Undergraduate Dissertation
This workshop may be of interest to those who are starting to plan and think about their undergraduate dissertation. The topics we will cover in this workshop include: how to keep a narrow focus, what is originality of research, explore the structure and function of each section. This workshop also includes a troubleshooting group discussion.
Here are the dates and times below.
- 26th October 2018 @ 12:00pm
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Introducing our Student Advisors
We would like to give a warm welcome to our new team of Student Advisors: Dylan, Claire, Shelby, Rachel and Jade!
The Student Advisors are based in Catalyst and they are here to support you. The role of a Student Advisor is to provide help, support and guidance to other students on a peer to peer basis. The team are all current second, third year or Masters students and between them they bring a great variety of subject knowledge from their individual disciplines together with a wealth of experience from studying at Edge Hill, using all of that to support other students on their own University journey.
The support they provide revolves around getting the most out of your Library, locating and using physical and virtual resources for your studies. They can help you to develop a range of introductory academic skills and can introduce you to more specialised support where necessary.
They can help with:
- Searching the Library Catalogue for books and eBooks
- Using Discover More to find online journal articles and other online resources
- Navigating Learning Edge and your subject specific ‘My Library’ Tab
- Harvard referencing
- Finding and accessing UniSkills academic support material
- Turnitin assistance
- Locating books
Catalyst Tours
Catalyst tours are taking place weekdays from Monday 17th September to Friday 28th September. Tours start at 10am and are taking place every half an hour, with the last tour meeting at 3:30pm.
The tours are being led by our current Student Advisors’ who will show you around Catalyst, giving you the opportunity to see all of the fabulous facilities, learning spaces and student support available!
For more information click here.
Getting Started
Getting started sessions are peer to peer support sessions with our team of Student Advisors. Get started with your key resources, including: how to log in to Learning Edge, your My Library tab, Readings Lists Online, Library Catalogue, Discover More, accessing UniSkills support and much more.
Getting Started sessions will take place:
Monday 1st October to Friday 5th October 12pm-2pm
Monday 8th October to Friday 12th October 12pm-2pm
Drop in sessions will take place in Willow Training Room, 1st floor Catalyst. There is no need to book so just drop in and speak to one of our knowledgeable Student Advisors for peer to peer support and guidance on how to get started with your key resources.
Drop in sessions will take place at the following times:
12:00pm – 12:30pm
12:30pm – 1:00pm
1:00pm – 1:30pm
1:30pm – 2:00pm
For more information click here.
Book an appointment with a Student Advisor
During term-time you can book a 15 minute appointment with a Student Advisor, between 11am and 4pm, Monday to Friday.
Get help with:
- Searching the Library Catalogue for books and eBooks
- Understanding the Dewey decimal system of shelving (shelf mark) and how to find books on the shelf after you’ve searched
- Using Discover More to find online journal articles and other online resources
- Navigating Learning Edge/Blackboard and your subject specific ‘My Library’ Tab
- Finding and using the Harvard referencing guide
- Finding and accessing UniSkills academic support material online
Book an appointment with a Student Advisor here.
