LIBRARY AS MAKERSPACE

What will the public library look like in the near future? As more and more people access information resources online, the role of the public library is growing and morphing into something beyond a collection of resources to be checked out, used and returned by the community. It is becoming a place where people learn new skills, access hard-to-find and/or expensive hardware and software, and meet up with fellow lifelong learners to stay fit, healthy, mentally alert and have fun! The vision of the 21st century library is a place that is open all week long, all year around, and full of exciting activities and resources that the average citizen may be interested in but may not be comfortable investing in right away. Because the library is open 6-7 days a week, it is the perfect place for the community to come together to learn and then practice newly acquired skills or find others with whom to share a passion or interest. How is this different from a school or community cente...

Recently the Children's Room hosted a Tinkering Tuesday that focused on electronic Mother's Day cards using conductive tape, a 3V battery, and a LED. The goal was to make something extra special for mom while learning about simple circuits. Science = Fun! I had practiced on a few cards beforehand experimenting with conductive paint and tape but only 1 LED. I had no problems except when using the paint (which I made myself). It takes a while to dry and it won't light up until it is.  Honestly I'd recommend the already made paint from BARE instead because the graphite I used to mix my own was expensive and unreliable. Due to drying times,  I concluded that the tape would be the easiest option available for our 1 hour program. I had gone into this feeling rather confident that we could tinker around and I would not limit the kids to certain design principles when making the circuit. I was quite surprised by the amount of difficulty and frustration the kids had felt...