The Library Maker Space

This school year brought about a lot of changes to our school and our library.   We migrated our SMS to PowerSchool from SDS, we got an almost new administration and we have a lot of new staff. Why not add something new to the library as well?  We decided to make a maker space in the library.  It's the ideal way to get kids to come in and visit, and it allows for some release from the norm of a tedious school day.

We were fortunate enough to have some money to use to buy tools and supplies for the space.  I wanted student involvement as much as possible as well. I created a survey with some potential ideas for the space.  We included things teens like to do and also added some stuff that we like. (After all, who doesn't love to play with Legos?)   We sent the survey to the student body and learned the following:

Duct Tape crafts are a HUGE hit.  Almost all of the kids who responded wanted to be able to make duct tape crafts.  They may be a little pricey, but we decided to float the project options week by week so we can make the tape last longer.   We also learned that origami is a classic favorite.   A lot of kids wanted to be able to come in and make origami.  The Legos and computers were a no brainer. Legos are awesome so we had to have those and for the computers, we updated all of our devices and had 150 Windows XP computers, so, we grabbed a few from the recycle pile and ordered a computer tool kit.   Amazingly enough, the computer tear down/ rebuild station is the hottest in the library!  One thing we did do was add a book that relates to the topic.  We have a Lego book with ideas, an Origami guide or two, and some duct tape craft books.   We aren't letting them circulate.  They will remain in the library with their respective kits. 

Aside from the maker space stuff, we also have some games we added last year:  Chess, Checkers, Apples to Apples, Life and Risk.  Kids love to play games in here so adding them was a wise choice.

It's exciting to see kids come in and ask to do crafts and play Legos.  It makes our day.

Welcome back: New Look in the Library

This summer, my library assistant and I spend several days moving shelving around the library to make it a more open space. We felt a need to make the entire library visible for the library staff and more accessible for the students.

We started by moving the shelving from the center of the library into one space near the circulation counter. All items in that section are non fiction.  We can see down every aisle.  We placed shelving against the wall on the exterior and made that the fiction section.  We have a few single shelves popping out here and there, but for the most part, the entire area is open. 

I decided to make a panoramic Thinglink of the entire space so students can see where everything is located. We also made a great deal of signage to place around the books to show kids where they are and what they find there.  I am truly excited to get the kids in here and get the year going.

We moved the tables around to different spots in the area to make collaboration centers and work zones. We also remodeled the coffee shop as well.  It is no longer behind the circulation counter, but it is now in my office.  I gave up the space because I seldom use my office, I prefer to do my work in the library around the kids and staff.

The final outcome is amazing.  The room looks like a new place.  I am excited to see what the kids say when they come back and walk in the first time.  The Thinglink will be available after school gets started.  We are going to have to move some of the books around and when that is done, we will have exactly as we wanted.

Revamping space in the library

I am one who rethinks about space a lot.  I spend a little time now and then looking at the library commons I manage and try to figure out what would be the best way to manage the space, especially on the limited budget I have.   I started a coffee shoppe last year and that has brought in a little income that I can use for my space, but not enough.  At this current moment, my library space is merely a book search area.  I want to change it to more of a tech hub/ nook/ reading space.  I want kids to come in and find a spot to relax and get comfortable.  I want to get new shelving so we can provide the students more open areas and we have more visibility.

I have started my process by watching sales and the internet.  I was lucky with one acquisition. The local library where I live was having a garage sale and I was the first to respond.  I got these great work chairs where kids can sit and work on the computer at the same time.  Things like that help me make the space where I work better for the kids.  They come in, find a spot, sit and work.

This summer, we are even going farther. Our custodial manager is also a master carpenter and we have asked him to build us some reading nooks.  Our library is loaded with windows, and the way we moved our shelves to out exterior walls allow for little window seats.  We are so excited to see that and the kids are too (mostly so they can text and read a book).

We are diligently working on a few grants too that might get us some money to buy shelving.  If we get that, the space we have will look like a totally new library.

What I am doing about Library Layout: Part Two

So my story of change continues. The summer before last, I decided the 1970s orange countertop that was waist high, made of laminate and particle board. It certainly wasn't a patron friendly space.  I wanted to be eye level and seated as I worked with kids.  I found some furniture in an old lab we no longer used and brought it in.  It was a beautiful color of blue, looked very professional.  I decided to paint the library to match.  So we went from drab brown walls to a lovely cornflower shade.  All of my orange was gone.  Next step, more shelving movements.

I am not a fan of tall shelving.  High School kids are more than willing to do what they aren't supposed to do if they have nooks and crannies to hide in.  I did everything in my power to do even more shelving relocation to open up spaces and make it hard for kids to be naughty.  My aid and I spent a few days with the drill taking apart the shelves and sliding them all over the library.  I am happy to say I now have a huge space where a class could meet and do lessons and I can see the entire thing happen.  I like to see it all. (That is why I added mirrors.

Last year, I got rid of the bean bags (they were dingy and well loved) and I got adirondack chairs. ($20, washable, and they are easier to maintain than the bean bags.) I kept the rugs and tables but relocated them to a quaint open space that is very visible from the circ desk.  There is a small chess area and a television (Which I got with an LSTA grant) right where kids can use it.  I moved my large magazine rack to the space so kids could come and go and read magazines as they relaxed.  We added a coffee shop so kids could come in, have a coffee and visit.  The library has become the school social ground and I love it.

My next plan?   Make my office into the coffee shop, move the circ desk to a more centralized location so I can work with kids and teachers but also be able to maintain a better social space. Hopefully I can find and win a $40K grant to get new, shorter metal shelves so I can open the space up and make it more of a "teen friendly area."  Maybe I can find money for new tables (since I have had to pitch four this year because they broke) and money for a coffee shop sitting area.  Guess I am dreaming now!

What I am doing about library layout: Part One

As many of my readers know, I have been in the process of genrefying the library and doing away with Dewey as an order of organizing.  One other thing I have been working toward is a layout of the library that accomodates the kids and also invites them to the media center.   When I took over the library in 2010, it was dark and unwelcoming.  Shelving was blocking views and there was nowhere for kids to sit and relax.  We had a very tight shelving space and a lot of outdated books.   I took charge immediately and decided I needed to make the library a welcoming place.  We had a huge card cataloging system from the 80s that had to go.  I had a little help, grabbed a sawzall and cut it apart.  (It wasn't very fantastic for those of you gasping at the thought of using a sawzall on a cabinent. It was particle board and laminate... ugly laminate.  It matched my shelving... which is not very desireable.) This left me with a large amount of space.

I started by finding some left over money to buy bean bags, end tables and a couple of rugs.  My thought, put a little effort in to make it comfortable. I made a small sitting area near the circ desk that was a hit immedaitely.  I decided getting a small area started and then progress to more demo later was key to success.

After the year started, I went on a rampage with shelving.  I brought the husband's drill (sorry, I broke some bits, dear) and took apart my particle board shelving and relocated it to a more uniform location.  No more hidden corners in my library.   I redid the layout of the fiction section, weeded a lot and mingled reference books into non fiction. (I had some thousand dollar sets of books that had never been cracked because they couldn't be checked out.

I spent the first year moving shelves, weeding books and formatting the layout to where I was a little happier. (I still dream of short shelves that I can see over and not the floor to ceiling shelving of years past.) I have moved a lot of things around.  This was just the beginning.   Wait til you see what I did next....