My library has been under renovation since October 2019, which is of course now even more complicated with COVID restrictions. I loved hearing how the Hennepin Library handles their youth spaces in today’s session on creating a welcoming environment. The natural light, organic colors, and flexible play structures are beautiful and well-designed. My youth services department is about to move to another area of our library (upstairs with the adults, so that will be…interesting) while our zone is torn up and remodeled. Right now we have a great opportunity to think about how we want the space to function once it is put back together and I can’t wait to get access to the toolkit from Hennepin Library!
Another favorite moment from this morning’s session was the discussion on creating play areas for older children, not just babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. One piece of feedback my library received during our planning process is that we don’t have enough play opportunities for school-aged children. That is definitely something I hope to improve once the remodel is finished and our COVID restrictions lift.
The presentation concluded with a conversation about outreach and pop-up libraries. This is something I really need to work on myself! My library has been increasing our outreach presence slowly over the past couple of years, but I now have a lot of great ideas for the future.
Hennepin Libraries–thank you for all you shared today!