Schools around the world, including the Global Indian International School, Kuala Lumpur, are revolutionizing their school libraries in order to support modern learning in a more effective way. Modern school libraries are dynamic learning hubs that enable students to create, collaborate and learn important modern skills. Here are some ideas to help inspire you while designing your own modern school library:
The physical space should match the students’ learning needs.
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When you are designing a modern school library, you should make sure that the physical space of the school library actually matches the learning needs and types of learning that the students are experiencing in the classroom. For example, if you want the students to be able to collaborate and communicate with one another to solve problems, your modern library of international schools in Kuala Lumpur should be designed for a wide range of different student activities, including collaborative learning, working on group projects and independent reading and research.
The space should be conducive to rich, dynamic, 21st century learning and exploration.
More traditional looking school libraries have old blocky tables and no soft seating options. And the library shelves block the students’ lines of sight. But modern school libraries should have distinct areas for multiple kinds of learning, including an instructional space, a maker space and a story time area. The instructional space should be furnished with tables on casters, so that they can easily be configured and move around to support student collaboration, communication and group projects. The space needs to be functional, so that it can support multiple kinds of activities. There should also be plenty of soft seating options throughout the library to encourage students to relax and read.
The library should be a focal point and an interactive space for teachers and students to congregate.
The modern school library should be a large open space rather than a crowded stuffy space. There should be plenty of soft seating with built in electrical outlets for students to comfortably sit and read or simply hang out and talk to one other. Students should be able to either sit and work on digital devices or huddle around cafe tables and work on group projects together. The library should also be a focal point that students pass by on their way to class, so that they are much more likely to drop into the library and take advantage of its many resources. The soft seating options should make the modern school library an interactive inviting space to congregate and share ideas with each other. The library should be a space that students want to visit rather than a place they are forced to visit.
Here are a few top benefits of modern school libraries for children:
- School libraries help children develop their personalities. School libraries help facilitate a number of diverse life skills and enhance personal development in children, promoting innovation, curiosity and critical thinking.
- School libraries offer children an opportunity to socialize. Sitting in front of a laptop screen for hours on end can become boring and even depressing for children. School libraries have an emotional human touch and welcome people connecting readers to their peers. Children are able to interact with each other and brainstorm new and creative ideas.
- School libraries promote reading. Reading books helps children enhance their vocabulary and gain a solid understanding of grammar and a better grasp of the language. School libraries play an important role in developing literacy and the pleasure of reading in kids.
School libraries allow students to check out books, conduct research, study quietly or simply flip through magazines in their free time. They should be designed keeping the heights, interests and different age groups a school caters to. Play areas and comfortable reading areas are a necessity.
