Creativity in the Media Center

We just finished our 2nd annual bookmark design contest. This year our students really upped their game, and the competition was fierce.

Students had to design a bookmark around the theme: The adventure begins @ the media center. Faculty and staff voted on their favorites (Hopefully, next year, students will be able to vote, but I didn't get that together this year.).

The top five (above) will be printed and distributed for the rest of this year, and until we run out next year. I would love to hear what kinds of things you are doing to help create creators in your media center.

Creating Communicators

The experiment continues, and today we are creating communicators in the media center. If our

students are to exhibit 21st century skills, they will be critical thinkers, creators, collaborators and communicators. We are helping to make that happen. 

When I first moved to this media center, classes almost never came in. And if they did, it was to use the computers. I really wanted to see more use out of all this space.

Unfortunately, teachers didn't see the space as a learning common. It was "The Library." That has changed, but it didn't happen overnight.

It took some recruiting on my part. If I heard a teacher was having students present something, I invited them down to present in the media center. Eventually, someone took me up on the offer because they were trying to have two classes together and needed more room.

I had everything ready for them, when they got there. Welcomed them with a smile, and served them in every way I could. It was a success!

Over time, more and more teachers began using the media space for a large variety of activities. It's been great, but last year my principal told me about a school that had an actual presentation space. She thought our school needed one. 

I agreed, and so I began thinking and studying. I came up with an idea, but I was going to have to move some bookshelves. Okay, move is putting it mildly. I was going to have to tear out some bookshelves. 

In my opinion, we had WAY too many bookshelves, so one day, I just did it. (Don't tell anyone, but I didn't ask, I just did it. It's that whole forgiveness-permission thing.) In about three day, I had a presentation area that has really added a new dimension to creating communicators.

I would love to hear what you are doing in your media center to help build communication skills in your media centers.

Just Un-Dewey It

I know, I know, Dewey is already categorized, so we don't need to do anything with our non-fiction books. But, can the kids really tell where each classification starts and ends? If not, our collection isn't very user friendly.

I've been struggling with the choice over un-Dewey-ing my collection for quite a while. Last year, I couldn't take it any longer, and I pulled all the graphic novels out of the nonfiction. Something about nonfiction novels bothered me.

But what about the kids who ask, "Do you have any books on war?"

"Well yes, of course we do. We have historical books in the 900s, and books about weapons in the 600s, and books on the effects of war in the 300s. What were you looking for?"

"Um..., never-mind."

That was before.

Now we just refer them to the Weapons and War section, and they can find the book they are interested in. And, it seems to be working. Between the first day of school and the last day of October last year, we checked out 3,279 books. This year, we have circulated 4,642. Sure, there may be other circumstances that are effecting these numbers, but I believe the fact that kids know where to find what they want is helping.

Of course, I keep hearing, "But we have to teach them how to use the catalog, and...

I'm not saying there is no value in that (and our kids still use the catalog, by the way), but once they get out of public school, they will have to use a whole new system anyway. Colleges use Library of Congress cataloging.

Where else does a person have to search through an almost endless list of numbers to find something? That's just not the way we do things anymore. We use headings and placeholders. And yes, Dewey has those things, but they aren't obvious.

I could have just made signs and divided Dewey, but then I still have that issue of, "Do you have any books on war?" This was a good bit of work, but I like it, and better yet, the kids really like it.

Up next: generification!

Managing the Manga Mess

The new "GRAPHICS" section is a success.

You can read more about it in the comments my previous post:

Are nonfiction books still relevant?

Are nonfiction books still relevant?

Our media center has over 5,000 nonfiction titles. Many of them, however, have never been checked out, or at least not since I've been here. Are nonfiction book non-useful, non-relevant, non-important?

I've thought about replacing the covers of these informational books with an image of the Google search page, but decided this wouldn't really address the underlying issue. Most students can access and store more information on their cell phones than we have information in the whole nonfiction collection. So, what should I do with these dust-collectors?

Of course, not all the nonfiction books are collecting dust. I can’t keep graphic novels on the shelves. Then again, are graphic NOVELS really nonfiction? Books of world records, sports and music all circulate fairly well (almost all of those are located in the 700s).

The three hundreds, which contain the social science books, don’t move quite so well. In fact, I’m not sure I've checked out a book from the 300s since in the year and a half Ive been here. The 800s don’t circulate much better, though the language arts teachers do check them out for class assignments sometimes.

So, what should I do with all these books that don’t get checked out? And what about all that space those shelves take up (though some of the shelves are only partially filled)? I could take out shelves and make more collaborative spaces around the media center.

I’m not ready to just scrap all those nonfiction books, even though I wonder about their usefulness. However, I do know I want to make some changes. I’m considering breaking down some of our bookshelves, and rearranging our nonfiction books around the room based on categories. But then I wonder, W.W.D.D. – What would Dewey do?

Perhaps he would roll over in his grave if he saw me take the graphic novels out of 741.5 and put them in a special collection. Or what if I just make a sports section? I think this is going to be my first big change.

Chaos may abound. The world may start spinning backwards. But maybe, just maybe, by separating the books into sections, it will make some of them more noticeable, and if kids notice them, who knows, maybe they will actually read them.

Let me know if you've tried this before. How did it go? Or, let me know if you think it’s going to be a disaster.

The Great 21st Century Library Experiment

The Great 21st Century Library Experiment

I became the media specialist at a middle school that was less than ten years old, but the library was much older. No, it didn't have dark corners filled with cobwebs, or old dank tomes with crumbling pages. Everything in the place was relatively new, but it felt old.

I'm not blaming the media specialist who was before me. She was a professional, who had done exactly what had been expected of her for almost her whole career. But, times, they are a changin'.

So, here I come, a brand new media specialist with no clue. During my interview, some teachers said the media center needed a make-over. They wanted a media specialist who could bring it to the twenty-first century.

I plastered on a huge smile. "I'm the guy for that." They believed me. Heck, I said it with such confidence, I even believed.

Don't tell any of them, but I'm still not sure what I'm doing. So, this blog is the "scientific" journal recording the observations, revelations, jubilations, and, yes, probably even some frustrations of my 21st century library experiment.

Like any good science, these observations have to be analyzed and scrutinized. And for that, I am asking for your help. If something seems a little fishy, call me out. If you've done "it" differently (for better or worse) let me (us) know. 

We learn from each other. We build on each other. We support each other.

Join me in The Great 21st Century Library Experiment.