MADISON – A new approach at Liberty Middle School is providing essential classroom supplies to students while avoiding interruptions to teachers who are conducting a lesson.

The new service at Liberty will help students with their immediate needs for school supplies, according to Sandy Brand, Library Media Specialist at Liberty.

Liberty Counselor Karen Clayton created the “Self-Serve Supply Station” after she realized that students who did not have necessary supplies, such as pencils or notebook paper, were causing excessive disruptions for teachers in the process of presenting material.

Clayton collaborated with several Liberty teachers, plant manager Rickey Reid and members of the Beta Club to make the Supply Station a reality. “I am very excited about this project,” Clayton said. “I have watched instruction be interrupted too many times when a student doesn’t have supplies.”

“Recently, I was in a teacher’s room when a student needed a pencil. That teacher took precious instructional minutes to take care of the student’s need,” Clayton said. “Even more striking, the teacher mentioned to me that she had already distributed 400 pencils she had previously purchased.”

The Self-Serve Supply Station at Liberty is available to all students who need supplies, whether the need results from financial reasons or if a student just forgot his or her materials for that day. “The changes in the adolescent brain mean this age group as a whole has difficulty with organization and forgetfulness. If we know this is normal for the age group, we need to keep (that situation) from affecting instruction,” Clayton said.

“Teachers need help if 400 pencils in an academic year is not enough” to dole out, Clayton said.

Liberty Beta Club is responsible for monitoring and daily restocking the Self-Serve Supply Station. Local agencies and churches initially donated materials to stock the station.

Any residents or business people who want to contribute can provide pencils, notebooks, notebook paper, folders and other items to Karen Clayton at Liberty Middle School, 281 Dock Murphy Drive. Email kaclayton@madisoncity.k12.al.us.