The taken-for-grantedness within my own Resource Centre where I have been at the helm for the last five years has become a habit! The centre runs smoothly, the children love visiting each week, we have a wonderful budget, are able to buy and have access to the newest, highest quality resources, the staff are welcomed and arrive with smiles, it is an overall warm, buzzing hub at the heart of our College. I have taken the ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ mentality. However, it has only been this year, due to welcoming a new staff member on board in our centre that I have started to look through a new lens, focusing on spaces and how our spaces are used.
Upon entering the Resource Centre our visitors walk through a newly artificially turfed area topped with large, brightly coloured sails for shade. This area was re-developed a year ago to maximise the inside-outside relationship for staff and students. It has been a great success and become a very special place for gathering before and after school, as well as during lessons and break times. It sets the tone for entering our building and reflects a strong sense of pride, fun and community. This is one of my favourite spaces for reading with the students and sharing conversations. It attracts you to walk in the front door through to a bright, airy and vast space. The ceilings are high, supported by brightly coloured feature walls and windows adorning one complete side of the centre for natural light. This first impression is a positive one and one in which many visitors comment on.
The Resource Centre is divided into three levels. The lower level is devoted to the Early and Junior Years precincts. This is one large rectangular space being divided by a huge bookshelf, on one side is the quiet reading area and on the other side a teaching and learning area. Whilst each section is very well equipped and resourced, the space does not provide the Early and Junior Years students with a great deal of room to simply lounge round and read. It is a space that is often shared by two classes and therefore gets quite crowded and loud, not encouraging quality learning. This is an aspect to be reconsidered as we plan for 2013, some new furniture and rearranging of the shelves would provide a more inviting and usable space. The students do love visiting and borrowing, however they too have become accustomed to the way it has been for the last few years. Certainly time for a change to this space!
Although the space is currently not ideal, there are a number of factors that I feel proud of – the New Books stand shouts at the students as they walk down the stairs into this area, the book tubs are colourful and filled to the brim with exciting and engaging picture books, the six new cushion dots from Raeco are scattered across the bright and fun IKEA mat, the big box of Lego needs a clean from the many hands who adore it at lunchtime, our tub of furry, well-loved plush toys have been packed up with love and care, the signage is clear and visible for all height levels, the pin board is adorned with student work, the coloured series boxes (a new addition) are being used everyday and the aqua and white funky striped wall welcomes the children, down into this special area.
The upper level of our centre has been organised and arranged to suit the needs of our Middle and Senior Years precincts. This area has been rethought this year and improved to suit the needs of these learners. There is one teaching area that is well equipped, a broad range of resources, a study area, a small group learning space and a relaxation area. The resources are arranged in ways to promote access, with clear signage and in some cases ranged in genres and topics as opposed to the Dewey Decimal System. The thinking behind this is to ensure the students are accessing and using the resources, instead of spending half their time searching. The furniture can be easily moved around to suit individuals, groups and whole classes and seems to be functioning well. The area is not overly big and the shelving units do take up a great deal of space, however the areas promote learning and collaboration. In the near future we will need to weed some stock and reconsider the Non-fiction collection, with all of our Year 8-12s have their own MacBook this collection is hardly being used, whilst taking up a large amount of space.
Overall, there is a strong sense that the students are valued and that the spaces being provided for them are attempting to meet a broad range of needs – including educational, social and recreational. It has been a valuable experience reconsidering the spaces for our young people as my taken-for-grantedness has been given a shake up in preparation for the 2013 planning process.
Posted by Sarah Scavarelli
Topic: Visit your school library and evaluate the current spaces being provided for young people
