A couple of weeks ago the teens at the Annex were participated in our first ever "Rock Band" competition organized by Annex staffer Kali Merina. If the success of an event can be judged by the noise levels, this was a chart-topper (Apologies to our neighbors, especially the PV Board of Realtors who have the misfortune of being directly below the Annex. Next time we'll do it after normal business hours!)
Looks like fun, doesn't it!
Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.
I came across this blog posting from Jenny Levine of the Shifted Librarian about her visit to DOK, the public library in Delft, Holland and I had to share it. You've got to love a library that has designed its facilities and services around the idea that “life is all about having more fun than you can think of, and it starts at the library.”
Not all of the "ultra modern" furniture and ambience would play well in our PVLD libraries but ideas like computer "pods" and listening stations? Collections identified by "natural language" names? Modular shelving and display stations on wheels? Embracing genres such as graphic novels and romance novels? There's plenty that we could figure out how to do here....and not all of them take much $$$
While I love my job, some days and weeks seem to be more of a struggle than others andthe past couple of weeks fit that category. Little issues to be resolved, too many meetings, not enough time in the sunshine, and the lingering effects of being sick over the holidays have been sapping my energy.
Even during this low-period, though, things happen that remind me that this is a great job in a great community -
1. Last week we opened an envelope that was probably dropped off at the library over the holidays but didn't get opened due to staff vacations and illnesses. Inside was $50 in cash and a letter, written in pencil on looseleaf notebook paper, that read
"Dear Librarians,
I would like to donate my birthday money, $50, to this library. I enjoy coming here to rent books and use the study areas. This library is a very important and helpful place to me. Thank you and I hope you have a great holiday.
Sincerely,
[Name withheld to protect privacy]
5th grader of Montemalaga
Now if that doesn't lift your mood I don't know what will!
2. Yesterday a local family came to the Annex with their arms loaded with boxes which turned out to be the hot video game "Rock Band" which they were giving to the Annex. Within 1/2 hour the kids had the drums, guitars, and microphone set up and it has been in constant use ever since.
3. Over the year-end period there has been a steady stream of donations to both the Friends of the Library and PVLD.
All of this is evidence that the library is making a difference in our community, and people appreciate what we do...and that's what makes the tough days and weeks worthwhile!
It's hard to believe that a year has passed since the Annex opened! Yesterday the Annex staff celebrated with a birthday party - and I got the following email from Ali Orr last night -
"FYI today’s Annex Birthday Party was a huge success. We had 61 attendees! They ate 10 pizzas, played lots of games, 4 of them won cool prizes and (the best part of all) they even helped us clean up the popcorn which was *everywhere*. There were two boys who wanted to use the vacuum. We had to have them alternate so they both got to do it!
We also had quite a few new patrons – I would estimate around 10-12. I talked to a few parents who were quite excited to learn about the Annex and 3 seniors who said they had heard about the Annex and wanted to check it out. (Of course, I encouraged them to come back tomorrow morning for the OWL event.) "
As you can see from Ali's email older adults also think the Annex is cool! Today we are having our third event for OWLs (Older Wiser Livelier adults) at the Annex.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed to making the Annex a success - especially the Peninsula Friends of the Library for providing funding and being willing to take the risk of a new venture, our partner Freedom4U who does such a great job of running the Annex on the weekends, the Annex staff past and present (Ali, Justin, Kristen, Kali, Ji, and Melanie), the Facilities staff for not only doing the construction work to create this fabulous space but also keeping it clean, and the Adult Services staff who have created the OWL program (especially Debra and Louise). THANK YOU!
On Tuesday PVLD hosted its inaugural event for "seniors" at the Annex (I hate that term but we've yet to come up with a better one...in our Strategic Plan we say "Boomers+"). About 35 people came to enjoy refreshments, video games, prizes, and more. The event made the front page of our local paper, the Palos Verdes Peninsula News - http://www.pvnews.com/articles/2007/07/26/local_news/news2.txt
It is great to see this space used for multiple purposes and since I was unable to attend I enjoyed seeing these photos of participants playing Wii and just enjoying the event!
http://www.slide.com/r/ezasaplZ5j95Z62aTWOq6u8ghXqOdSea?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original
Participants were asked to complete a brief survey to help us plan for future programs for older adults at the Annex and in our libraries. We're all looking forward to more events like this, and to collaborating with our local Seniors group, the Peninsula Seniors, to explore joint programs and multigenerational program opportunities.
Thank you to the dedicated staff members who planned this event - Debra Petersen, Phil Wesley, Ali Orr, Louise Beebe, and Erik Adams. Great job!
The January/February issue of the Utne Reader (www.utne.com) reprints a very interesting article on video games from the August 2006 issue of the Wilson Quarterly (www.wilsonquarterly.com). The article is titled "Playing With Our Heads: Why Video Games are Making Our Kids Smarter - and More Obedient". Much of the article is a review of the increasingly accepted idea that video games have educational value, however it reaches an interesting conclusion -
"Whether you find the content of video games inoffensive or grotesque, their structure teaches players that the best course of action is to accept the system and work to succeed within it....That isn't to say that there aren't ways to innovate from within the system. Gamers are famous for coming up with creative approaches to the problems a game presents. But devising a new, unexpected strategy to succeed under existing rules isn't the same as proposing new rules, new systems, or new patterns. Our video game brains, trained on success machines, may be undergoing a Mr. Universe workout, one that leaves us stronger but less flexible. So don' worry that video games are teaching us to be killers. Worry instead that they're teaching us to salute."
The article didn't change my view that there is a role for video games in libraries - but it did raise a new challenge. What can we do to balance the skills that videogames teach with opportunites to develop skills in creativity and innovation?
PVLD staff have been talking a lot about how to incorporate video gaming into our services, programs, and collections so I was pleased to see this posting on the "Designing Better Libraries" Blog
http://dbl.lishost.org/blog/2007/03/31/libraries-and-gaming/
Why video games in libraries? Because they support many of the things we see as our core mission! They provide intellectual stimulation, facilitate skill-building (e.g. problem solving and manual dexterity) and as this photo from the Annex shows - they even promote social interaction and community building. They can even impart real knowledge - at last year's Public Library Association conference one of the speakers told of bringing his son, who has Downs Syndrome, to Boston for the first time. As they travelled around the city the boy, who had never been there, pointed out various landmarks and even helped give directions. Where did he learn how to navigate Boston? From a "Tony Hawk" skateboarding video game that is set in that city! Some games - think "Dance Dance Revolution" or Nintendo Wii - even promote physical activity.
And video games aren't just for teens! Check out this video from the Sedgebrook Senior Center in Illinois! You'll need to scrolll down to the video called "Calling all Bowlers".
This New York Times article also discusses the seniors and video games
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/arts/30seni.html?_r=1&ref=arts
Here at PVLD we have taken our first steps into the brave world of video gaming by having video game stations at the Annex (and hosting our first ever video game tournament at the Annex during Spring Break this week) and offering video games for circulation at the Miraleste Library, and soon at Peninsula Center Library.
Ideas we are exploring include:
We'd love to hear your thoughts and suggestions!
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