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March 24, 2023
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Back in the Stacks with Siobhan
Wish List Project 2023
As much as I possibly can, I involve the children in the authentic work of managing and maintaining the library here at school. Over the last year, I have been cataloging the books in our collection (find our online catalog here) and, by so doing became aware–together with many of my colleagues–that our collection has a problem that needs to be solved. After muddling over it for some time, I finally realized that the best way to get this problem solved is to involve the students. We started by asking questions, thinking about our own relationships with books and the characters in them, and using our empathy skills to relate to the experiences of others. Then we did a lot of noticing and collected some data. Through this process, the problem became clear to our students (all of them from ages 3-11) as well. The problem is–as can be seen on the charts below–-that our library collection doesn’t fairly represent all kinds of people and identities. For this particular project, we focused in on one identity that we noticed needed much better representation in our library collection.
Wish List Project 2023
As much as I possibly can, I involve the children in the authentic work of managing and maintaining the library here at school. Over the last year, I have been cataloging the books in our collection (find our online catalog here) and, by so doing became aware–together with many of my colleagues–that our collection has a problem that needs to be solved. After muddling over it for some time, I finally realized that the best way to get this problem solved is to involve the students. We started by asking questions, thinking about our own relationships with books and the characters in them, and using our empathy skills to relate to the experiences of others. Then we did a lot of noticing and collected some data. Through this process, the problem became clear to our students (all of them from ages 3-11) as well. The problem is–as can be seen on the charts below–-that our library collection doesn’t fairly represent all kinds of people and identities. For this particular project, we focused in on one identity that we noticed needed much better representation in our library collection.
The essential question that emerged from all this work is: how do we solve this problem? The answer: get more books that center characters of color and by authors of color! I proposed to the kids that we start a wish list, which they were happy to help with. We checked out lots of books from the public library so that we could try them out. And we did a lot of research on the computer–zeroing in on the interests and favorite genres and subjects of each kid, figuring out keywords for searching, and getting really excited about all the amazing books we have found. By the end of this book-gathering and researching phase, my goal is that each child in the school will have added at least one book to our wish list. I am extremely proud to say that these kids have put together a collection of fantasy, graphic novels, picture books, and nonfiction books that they cannot wait to add to our collection. We are so excited to share these wish lists with you when they are completed, and to involve you in this work of activism that our kids have so joyously engaged in.
Note: the Upstairs Neighborhood has been doing a deep dive into this problem, reading lots of books and working on book reviews. We will share when their work is done!
Drawings on the Library Walls
Drawings on the Library Walls
It started with the Barn Owls. One particularly busy and energetic day, we needed their library time to be deeply restful and peaceful. Their teachers and I decided that listening to a podcast and free drawing would be a great way to accomplish this. We gave them 10 minutes to browse and check out books and then we got some paper and pencils and put on an episode of Grimm, Grimmer, Grimmest. My reasons for choosing this podcast are plentiful, but mostly it was because it fits well with our overarching storytelling theme this year; it incorporates children’s voices and opinions about the stories they are hearing; and it is incredibly appealing and entertaining for a broad audience of kids. (I highly recommend it for kids 7 and up–or younger if your family feels comfortable with it!)
We put up most of the drawings that came out of that day on one wall of the library. Many of them were characters from books and a lot of them were drawings made by following along in how to draw books. Once the whole school got involved, that one wall of characters quickly expanded to five walls and two small sections, each with a kid-inspired theme. The categories of the five walls (Characters, Mythical Creatures, Animals, Space and Science, and Everything) and the two sections (Minecraft and Mystery) emerged completely from the drawings the children have done. They have total ownership of this project. When it comes time to make a new wall, the children let me know what they think the theme of the wall should be.
Here are some of the myriad effects this drawing project has had so far:
They are able to broadcast to the school community what they love and find interesting, and they inspire each other’s curiosity in those same things. The character wall, for instance, has inspired kids to pick up books they wouldn’t otherwise. I often have kids come in and want to tell me the characters they recognize, and to express their curiosity in the characters they don’t.
The kids have discovered the drawing books that live in the “Making Stuff” category. This has led them to explore other books within that category and to acquaint themselves with an area of the library that had been little used up to that point.
Seeing the work of each child allows me to get to know their interests better, and therefore to better tailor my book recommendations to them. It has also allowed me to cater book acquisitions to our current students, making the library work better for all of us.
There has been an uptick in the amount of time and the amount of concentration with which many of our students engage independently with books. Spending focused time drawing a favorite character or reproducing a photograph from a book about animals or space is what some of our friends have come to call “research.” They are taking time to notice details about the illustrations or the photographs that they are studying in order to reproduce them. They are choosing books that they feel drawn to spending a significant amount of time with, whether because of the subject or the stories within them. They are also finding out what is visually appealing to them, and without even realizing it, studying elements of illustration and photography.
The kids practice two skills related to science when they make and complete a drawing. First, copying a drawing or photograph from a book mimics the observational drawings they so often do of things in nature. Second, they have to decide how to categorize their drawing when it’s finished. When a kid hands me a drawing to put up on a wall, I always ask, “Where should I put this?” Mostly the answers are predictable, but sometimes they’re not so straightforward. A good example is a Pokemon drawing. I assumed those would go on the Mythical Creatures wall, but the kids decided that they should live on the Characters wall. Both are good options! This kind of thinking is part of the work of a librarian and other kinds of scientists.
It’s important to acknowledge that not everything can or should be categorized. Hence, the Everything wall, which allows for total freedom in deciding what to draw and where they would like it to live.
Last but not least, this project has allowed all of us to take ownership of this space that was new to the school five years ago, and then was all but off limits until this year due to pandemic restrictions. The process of filling the walls with colorful, kid made creations has been joyous. They have great pride in seeing their work displayed immediately, particularly if it makes it on the ceiling! These kids know that in this library, their interests and curiosity are vital, their opinions matter, and that books can be really fun and super interesting (and that you don’t need to be able to read to engage with them!).
Notes from the Field With evan
One of the most consistently generative ways students interact with the natural world and make both predictable and unexpected discoveries that lead to new understandings and inspire fresh questions and curiosities during maple sugaring season is by joining the Sap Crew. These mixed groups help to make the rounds on a given late winter day, visiting each tapped tree and bucket to make observations and collect sap. These forays happen with whole groups during regularly scheduled Links times and also spontaneously whenever it becomes apparent (and enthusiastic kids notice) that sap needs to be collected, providing students a chance to work outside their usual schedule and cohort groupings in response to the ecological factors that align to make the sap run. While the careful collection of sap and corresponding data are the primary objective during these forays, each stop along the way is rich with opportunities for planned lessons around science and history related to maple sugaring as well as the much more invaluable opportunities for us to notice and stand in the presence of evanescent and typically unobserved phenomenon and feel our innate sense of wonder fully activated. Perhaps even more frequently than during planned experiences, these unexpected encounters with the miracles of biology that allow us to glimpse the forces and dynamics of nature at work lead directly to new directions of exploration and learning and provide the spark for students to make meaningful connections and cement transferable understandings. Our familiar practice of nature journaling equips us with the tools and skills to systematically investigate, document, organize, and communicate our encounters with nature at and around the maple trees while collecting sap.
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