From a quiet to an active space

Madhuri Anand
Silent libraries are slowing fading away and their place is being taken up by new-age libraries that are active learning spaces. See how a library educator transformed the library in her school by including games in the library to promote reading.

Complicating the Library

Sujata Noronha
The word library stands for quiet contemplation, serene environs and ideas in texts that belong to the romantic period of literature. Why does it, even today, not conjure up a space of noisy reverberations, play, pondering, disquiet, provocations, and tension?

Library, children, reading, and art

Jennifer Thomas
Is there a connection between reading and art? Can one benefit from the other? See how this library educator enhanced her students’ reading experience by getting them to engage with art.

Critical literacy on the shelves

Darpana Baria
This month we look at critical literacy. The article raises a series of questions. Do we see stories of those lesser privileged than us only from our lens? Do we question the stories enough? Do we question the adversity in a story and whether we as citizens have played a role in the existence of the adversity?

Nurturing readers through reading aloud

Pooja Sagar
A library in today’s time is less about a physical space and more about the librarian’s connect with children and with her ability to connect children with books. It is about the librarian’s reflecting on her actions, being flexible, about her helping children connect books to their real-life experiences and a lot more.

The library as playground

Alia Sinha
Adults and play? Imagine a group of adults indulging in silly games. A funny sight indeed. But play helps you loosen up, awaken your senses, and opens you up for fresh new possibilities — all qualities that are necessary when you teach and learn.

A 10-year-old romance: libraries in schools

A group of people with a passion, a goal of setting up and transforming libraries into active learning spaces, and schools and children who learnt to celebrate libraries. Looking back on a decade of Libraries in Schools programme.

Thematic displays changed my practice

Jangchup Nyingpo
How can librarians help children to get familiar with all parts of a library collection? Or help them develop their book selection skills? Here is where displays are important. Choosing a book for a young reader is a skill in itself and not an easy task. If the books are displayed according to a theme then children get to know different genres of books and are able to identify their preferences in reading.

Becoming a library practitioner

Sajitha
After attending a library educator’s course, the author realized that despite working for 10 years in the education sector in various roles, she had never understood the true meaning of a children’s library. It is now her mission to establish libraries for children, strengthen existing libraries and make them more accessible, and introduce more schools to the benefits of libraries.

Searching for meaning in a school library

Geetanjali Mehra
How can a school library be more welcoming of its participants/readers? Is there a way that a school librarian/teacher can be more effective in her engagements with children? For instance, teaching-learning tools can make a big difference in library sessions. Using story-telling methods that resonate with children can bring about a deeper understanding of the books. A teacher-librarian reflects on her journey.