Its magnificent size prompted me to reflect on my days at my childhood library.
It was an old fashioned red brick building with a small playground outside. A beautiful children's area filled with bean bag chairs, puppets, and shelves of books as far as the eye could see. The reference area had all of the latest additions of newspapers from around the world. Encyclopedias from different publishers dating back to long before I was even born. A spiral staircase that always made me hold on tight to my mother's hand took one up to the area where the microfiche machines were.
Wait a second. . . did I actually just type MICROFICHE? Kids today have no idea of what that even is! I mentioned a card catalogue to my 10 year old the other day and she thought that it was a catalogue that she could look in to order birthday cards for her friends---online! Newspapers. . . ink on your fingers that you rub on your face when you scratch your nose. Unheard of! Everything in this world is not digital. Do librarians even exist, or are they only there to make sure that the internet connection is working in the building?
All sarcasm aside, I think that the role of both the public and school libraries is changing dramatically, and I see both positives and negatives to this.
Obviously, the internet has changed everything. Information is at our fingertips as fast as we are able to type. This is wonderful. Our children have learned to satisfy their thirst for knowledge quickly, and can then continue to question in greater detail. However, are they truly savoring that initial satisfaction?
Being that we are able to locate information so quickly, we, myself included, don't always take the time to store it in our memory banks because we know that we will be able to recover the information just as quickly the next time that we need it. From my own personal experience, when I had to work to find the information I retained it better, and appreciated it more.
I think that there is something to be said for looking up your book in the card catalogue, recalling the Dewy Decimal System, and searching through the stacks to find it. Once you find the book, then searching the index for the concept that you are looking for.
Don't get me wrong, I love everything that technology has given to us as a society. I just believe that sometimes we value things more when we have to work for them.
Getting back to my new neighborhood library. . . I don't know what is in the grand plan for the building, but here is my wish list.
- bean bags in the children's area
- daily newspapers
- a card catalogue
- librarians who help the readers find what they need
- and a fantastic media center. . . today's society needs it all.
I learned to love libraries when I was very young, and when a trip to the library meant going to the larger town that was about 25 miles away. I still remember the wonderful librarian there, Mrs. Mattson, and the joy of browsing the shelves and finding delightful treasures there. (Can't do that online.) My childhood memories of libraries pre-date beanbag chairs and microfiche, but they certainly conjure up good feelings. I hope children will continue to learn to love libraries, and books.
ReplyDeleteBeth I am glad that you have good memories of your childhood libraries too. Let's spread the word, and get kids into the libraries!
ReplyDeleteAhhhhh, Sandi, your post brought back so many memories of my own childhood and walking down to the local library to bring home treasured books! I always won our summer reading program for the most books read. I hope your new library is everything you hope for and more!
ReplyDeleteDonna I am glad that I could help you to relive part of your childhood. Congratulations on winning your summer reading programs. Let's try to inspire today's kids to do the same!
ReplyDeleteI remember our 'childrens room' in the basement was dark and tiny with a stern, shushing librarian. Just books, no frills. At age 10 I had to request a special library card which allowed me to check out books in the main library with my parents' permission. I was thrilled!
ReplyDeleteInteresting post, Sandi. I saw a bit of research the other day on the television. I can't remember who did the study. But the study was trying to find out if we, the human race are getting more or less intelligent because of technology. We don't have to remember anything anymore because information is always at our fingertips, just a click away. But the study actually concluded that humans are becoming more intelligent, because more of our brain power is free to be used for problem solving, since we are using our brains less and less for storage. Interesting study... :) And probably way too much information for a Friday afternoon! :) Anyway...I just thought I would hop over and say "Hi." I am taking Anastasia Suen's writing class with you. So, nice to "meet" you! :)
ReplyDeleteCathy, I am sad that your children's room was so dismal. That certainly takes the fun out of reading. Glad that you took the step to request the special library card. . . look where it has gotten you to be involved with reading today.
ReplyDeleteNatalie-Great to be in the class with you. In fact, right now I am taking a little break from my homework assignment. I am already looking at picture books a little differently. Can't wait to read to my kids tonight! Sounds like an interesting study. I think that our brains are definitely changing as fast as we can keep up with the technology.
Sandi,
ReplyDeleteI still take my kids to the library every week. We check out books and they read every night. Yes, they also play on my ipad and are in touch with the digital age but I value libraries that I hope to see my books available in. That said, I fear that they will become just coffee shops to sit, sip, and read on your hand held computer.
Alison- My kids are definitely in touch with the digital age. In fact, my two older kids are reading now more on the Kindle than they were before. I still prefer to turn the pages of a paper book. Nevertheless, I agree with your fear. It would be heartbreaking to me if all of my tax dollars end up paying for a glorified coffee shop where everyone uses their own digital device instead of wandering through the stacks.
ReplyDeleteMy kids love going to the library & being around books. Only problem with their school library is they keep getting marked down as they don't borrow - mostly because they have so many books at home!!!
ReplyDeleteI love your wish list for the new library :)
We didn't have a library in our area when I was little, but we did have our school's library, which I did love :) that school has been demolished last year and we miss it. A library is so needed even in the little towns.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Sandi :)
love,
Denise of Ingleside
These are great insights, Sandi! There is nothing like picking up a book and perusing its pages. Hopefully, the traditional library and the Internet will be able to exist side by side for the benefit of each other.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you enjoyed your school's library, however I am sorry that it is gone. Hopefully a new one will be built soon!
ReplyDeleteThat sounds wonderful! I hope this new library is as great as the one from your childhood.
ReplyDeleteWe love our library. The children's section is always hopping. It possesses many of the qualities you list. We are so lucky. (Now if only we could get the other sections of the library to be as great!)
ReplyDeleteYou made me miss my childhood library :-( It was in the lower level and I can almost smell it! I used to love looking up books in the card catalog - it was like a treasure hunt! My sisters and I used to play library at home - we'd stamp the card, slide it back in the pocket and say, "Thank you, come again!"
ReplyDeleteThanks for the memories!!
Lori- sounds like you and your sister were very polite librarians :) I used to love it when the librarian for the children's department would let me stamp my own book.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post Sandi. The few times that I remember going to the library as a young teen were always wonderful experiences. It was a place of quiet solitude for me. Tucked away with a good book.
ReplyDeleteIt kind of amazes me when I look around our house and realize that my kids have a library at HOME. I grew up in a small town in Northern Michigan, and our little library was the only place I could get books (except every once in a while the Scholastic Book club, which was always such a thrill!).
ReplyDeleteI remember researching my first paper in high school using card catalogs. Heck, even in college I made endless photocopies of pages out of books I needed for citations.
On the one hand, it's nice that a lot of paper (trees) will be saved. On the other hand, I hope our kids don't grow up thinking Wikipedia is the answer to everything and don't learn to dig deeper.
I'm heartened by the fact that despite the large number of books we have in our house, my kids still LOVE to go to the library.
I am a big fan of libraries too. I hope your new one has everything on your list.
ReplyDeleteI love your wish list. A new library just opened by my house, and it has all those things. Libraries are one of my favorite places to be.
ReplyDeleteJulie-I always loved the Scholastic Book club too! Even now, when my kids bring it home I think that I read it in more detail than they do.
ReplyDeleteThank you all so much for your commentary on this post. I am glad that there are other people who still love libraries!
We are enthusiastic supporters of our wonderful local library, which has a cozy kids section and even a card catalog. I confess I've never looked to see if the cards are up-to-date -- that kind of organization seems ideal for computers to do. We still use serendipity to find books, but instead of yanking open a random drawer we type in strange words to the keyword option online.
ReplyDeleteAnd we do have the helpful librarians in great quantity.
Our local library is my favorite place in town. They just did an expansion and the whole downstairs is dedicated to children's books.
ReplyDeleteHave you listened to this wonderful song about libraries: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDi5JtS1H-g I'm gradually teaching myself to play it on my accordion!
ReplyDeleteAs a librarian, I find this to be such a heartwarming post! Thanks for sharing your love of libraries. I'm always bemused when people stroll into my library and announce "Wow, you still carry books?"
ReplyDeleteThe answer, of course, is "yes" - both paper and e-books.
Hopefully, in future we'll be able to continue to have both. There's something really magical about browsing the shelves and find a great book, "by accident" and I wouldn't ever want to go away. Yes, a big part of my job is "just" making sure the internet stays up - which is more complex than it sounds, believe me.
Madigan, I am so glad that you enjoyed this post. I certainly didn't' mean to minimize your job at all by saying 'just' making sure that the internet is working. I just meant that I hope that you get to do other things too, like actually help people with their books--the real purpose of the library.
ReplyDeleteYou've brought back another memory, Sandi. When I was 10, our family spent a week or so vacationing in Vancouver, British Columbia. Our motel was right next to a library, and of course, I headed straight for it. Somehow, my mother was able to persuade the librarian to give me a library card for the time I was there, and I used it well. One of the books I read for the first time from that library was "Understood Betsy." Being able to use that library was a highlight of that vacation! (That was 45 years ago.)
ReplyDeleteUm (blush) I'm barely old enough to remember card catalogs. They started digitizing everything when I was in grade school.
ReplyDeleteBut I love a good library- you can just *discover* so much there!
As a retired librarian, I'm glad to see so many fans of libraries!! Remember to speak up and speak loudly when your local public or school libraries are faced with cutbacks. Politicians and school boards will respond faster to public outrage over loss of services than concerns voiced by the staff.
ReplyDeleteA current petition at WhiteHouse.gov calls for every school to have a certified librarian and library - please consider signing it at http://wh.gov/Wgd - your kids and grandkids will thank you!
(found you through MotherReader & Lee Wind's Comment Challenge)
Katy, thank you so much for your information on the petition. I am happy to share this comment!
ReplyDelete