Nooks and Crannies: Claim Every Square Inch of Your Library Space

by Julie Brem, Librarian at Weiss High School in Pflugerville ISD, TxASL Talks Editorial Board Co-Chair

A/V Storage Turned Quiet / Collaboration Room

Name it and claim it! We often associate this phrase with a sweaty televangelist in a gilded chair, but these are actually good words for school librarians. Currently, most of our spaces sit sadly empty of the children and young people we love to serve in person. Unfortunately, when spaces sit idle, administrators begin to sniff out...heavens, no! ...office and storage space. In the words of that televangelist, we must demand they “get behind me!” Okay; maybe I’m getting a little carried away by the spirit here. 

As many of our districts are experiencing an influx of one-to-one student devices and other tech, in addition to changing needs due to the pandemic, we must be wary of “temporary” solutions utilizing our spaces becoming permanent. I have served as librarian at schools old and new, yet from a storage room filled with outdated equipment to empty rooms with uncertain purposes, as librarians we are always thinking about how these spaces can be used for KIDS. Over the years, here is what I have learned and observed about maximizing every square inch to meet the varying needs of our patrons. To continue with my church lady theme, we must exorcise the demons! That is to say...get rid of obsolete equipment and weed, weed, weed. Free up those spaces. Can you consolidate your storage to one particular area? Can you *gasp* relocate infrequently used items to an unused closet in the building?

Storage Closet? Nope. Maker Room.

Now that you have spaces freed up, think about your congregation--er, patrons. Do you have students (in a “normal” year) asking for a quiet space? Do you have students asking to eat in the library? Do you need a space for board games (chess is extremely popular right now!)? What about a makerspace? A room for clubs and groups to reserve? A study session room? Consider administering a brief needs assessment survey to a sample of your patrons. Bring in thinking-partners for fresh, out-of-the-box ideas for your space--colleagues, your PLN, etc. This could be done virtually. Don’t forget about visibility. Will you be able to supervise the space? Do you need a convex mirror, camera or other equipment? Once you have determined various desired zones, invite your learning community in on the process. Are you designing a sensory area? Perhaps your special education team can give tips, or students can vote on sensory items like bubble lamps and rainbow lights, etc., that bring them calm. A kindness rock or meditation garden? Ask around to see if student clubs or organizations would be willing to take on the project for community service. I’ve had two green screen walls painted by Eagle Scout candidates and an outdoor table area facilitated by a Girl Scout for her Gold Award. Lastly, publicize these exciting changes through school newsletters and social media. Order or print attractive and professional signage. This is really important. If an administrator walks in looking for an office for a testing coordinator or parent liaison, but he or she sees a sign that this office is actually a student podcasting/green screen studio and set up as such, they may be more hesitant to commandeer the space. We want each and every student to sing “hallelujah!” with joy when they have found their “home” in the library, so have fun reimagining your spaces for that glorious day when our students fully return to our spaces.

Do you have ideas or examples of reimagining nooks and crannies in your library to meet the needs of students? Do you have “problem areas” that could benefit from fresh insight? Please email me -- I would love to incorporate your examples or problem-solve in my virtual “Nooks and Crannies” session at the upcoming virtual TLA conference! (Juliebrem at gmail dot com)

Teacher Day @ TLA: Teachers + Librarians = Dynamic Duos

 by Joni Harris, School Librarian in Garland ISD, Garland, TX

Collaboration is an important part of every school librarian’s job description. While collaboration can take on many different forms, every form of collaboration has a goal of supporting and enriching learning opportunities for our students. However, collaboration with our teachers does not happen overnight. Spark a collaborative partnership and create a new dynamic duo with a teacher by attending the virtual Teacher Day at this year’s TLA conference! 

The TLA Annual Conference will be held virtually for the 2021 year, but will continue to be made up of books, authors, technology integration, makerspaces, curriculum connections, and supportive librarians. This is a teacher’s dream!  Connect with your teachers, encourage their innovation, inspire them to greater collaboration, and impact their instruction by inviting one or two of your teachers to join you at this year’s Teacher Day @ TLA!

Teacher Day @ TLA will take place on Saturday, April 24, 2021 from 10:00 a.m. through 12:00 p.m. This year's Teacher Day will provide classroom teachers with the opportunity to experience a special one-day event during the virtual TLA conference. With pricing designed for the teachers, they will have access to the full virtual conference experience. 

This is your chance to inspire your teachers and spark a new dynamic duo collaborative partnership! You, as the sponsoring librarian, will play a crucial role in identifying interested teachers, and helping them secure permission to attend and secure funding. You, the librarian, will also help guide them through the registration process and ensure that our guest teachers have a positive experience. 

The planning committee is already at work putting together a fun, interactive, virtual day for the teachers who attend, as well as the sponsoring librarians. Now is the time for librarians to put a plan in place to identify strong candidates among the educators they know to attend and experience the TLA annual conference.

The focus of Teacher Day is to provide an opportunity during the conference for educators to learn about strong school libraries and their potential impact. The goal is for the teachers that experience Teacher Day to return to their districts as library advocates - or perhaps even become librarians themselves. 

Details and application information can be found at www.txla.org/teacher-day. This event has become an annual highlight, and you won’t want to miss this opportunity to increase collaboration on your campus.