What is an activity a beginning librarian should avoid right after arriving at a new school?

A beginning librarian should focus on familiarizing themselves with the library's resources, establishing library hours, and meeting with teachers as initial activities upon arriving at a new school. These tasks are crucial for understanding the existing environment, building necessary relationships, and effectively planning how to manage the library.

Hearing stories read aloud, while an essential activity in the librarian's role, may not be the best initial focus. Before engaging students in reading, the librarian needs a solid grasp of the library's layout, cataloging system, and available resources to effectively lead such sessions in the future. Additionally, conducting storytime before building relationships with the staff or understanding the library's strengths and weaknesses could lead to less effective programming. Establishing a strong foundation of knowledge and collaboration is key to the librarian’s success in creating engaging and relevant programming later on.