Collecting the Dust Collectors: Reimagining and putting to use materials your school is not using.

 

Cullinane, A. (2018, January 11). School library incorporates reading with exercise. 10 WJAR. 

https://turnto10.com/news/local/school-library-incorporates-reading-with-exercise

           

Summary: This article was interesting in this work because it talked about the often forgotten task of simply rummaging through your school storage areas and putting to use what is not being used. Then, simply putting clip boards over the handlebars, the students are now able to use equipment the school paid for and read at the same time, effectively building a life skill of associating reading with physical and mental health. The librarian in this story also works at the high school in the district, so this is a habit she could potentially build on going forward for students. This was free!

 

Evaluation: You never know what you can find in the depths of your school’s, and even district’s, storage areas. I once found old LeapPads-with the cartridges-in the library of a highly disadvantaged, 100% free reduced lunch school and they weren’t being used. They should have been in classrooms and in the library but they were in storage. I was so mad. The school was build in 1921 so my classroom legit had five outlets with two plugs and a few plugs didn’t work. Another outlet was our SmartBoard and another the class phone. So, with what was left, I plugged in four LeapPads for the kids. They loved them. They were bulky enough to survive being on the floor incase of accidental kicking. What I enjoyed with this article was the implementation of the bikes and ellipticals in the library. This allows rambunctious students to burn some energy in a calm atmosphere. To begin connecting exercise and reading with physical and mental health. I would love to see public libraries do this for all ages but specifically school libraries as obesity rates rise and literacy rates lower. Let’s fight both battles at once!

Loud Hands in the Library Neurodiversity in LIS Theory & Practice

 Lawrence, E. (2013). Loud Hands in the Library Neurodiversity in LIS Theory & Practice. Progressive Library Guild. http://www.progressivelibrariansguild.org/Braverman/Braverman2013.pdf

Lawrence asks how might we approach neurological difference in a library setting’s physical layout. Something I haven't thought about before. 

Lawrence introduces numerous approaches to neurodiversity including the Medical Approach, the Social Approach and the Neurodiversity-Based Approach. Some differentiation on these approaches help clear up common questions librarians have about disability and neurodiversity. The medical approach is more qualitative and less sensitive to people’s humanity. Doctors speak of Autism as an epidemic and see the spectrum as only "high to low functioning".  The social approach is the most common approach in society and the “social model depicts disability as a socially constructed phenomenon, the product of systematic discrimination” (Lawrence 3). The Neurodiversity-Based Approach is a more contemporary approach.   “Neurodiversity advocates seek “better social support mechanisms, greater understanding from those around them or those who treat them, and a recognition that, though they are neurologically, cognitively and behaviorally different, they do not necessarily suffer from being neuro-diverse nor do they need to be cured” (Fenton & Krahn, 2007; Lawrence, 4). 

Lawrence does justice to this topic by highlighting the lack of publications on these issues including only 3 articles on Assistive Technology is shocking. This brings this issue to the information professionals so in the future there may be more publications on these issues. 

Lawrence asks how might we do better? Getting away from referring to autistics in a clinical medical approach is one way to do better. Lawrence  suggests asking persons with autism directly and collaborating with  Autistic-run Organizations as a means for taking Autistics seriously as a user group and as a community. Creating meaningful connections and seeing persons with autism as individual users with specific needs.