{"id":14492,"date":"2016-11-25T00:01:24","date_gmt":"2016-11-25T05:01:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/?p=14492"},"modified":"2025-05-27T14:49:11","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T18:49:11","slug":"unboxing-stem-kits-box-chandra-jones-stem-administrator-denver-public-library","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/2016\/11\/unboxing-stem-kits-box-chandra-jones-stem-administrator-denver-public-library\/","title":{"rendered":"Unboxing STEM Kits in a Box with Chandra Jones, STEM Administrator at the Denver Public Library"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For today&#8217;s post, I interviewed Denver Public Library\u2019s (DPL) STEM Administrator, Chandra Jones,\u00a0who creates and maintains the library&#8217;s STEM in a box kits.<\/span><\/em><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">STEM in a box kits are self-contained programs that library staff can use to provide programming to the public. The focus is on bringing the different STEM fields together to allow learners to explore and develop 21st century skills that will help them continue to be successful in their educations and careers. Designed for up to twenty\u00a0participants to use at a time, the kits target ages 8-12. Some kits, like Keva planks, have been used with toddlers, and others, like the Toy Hack, are successful with teens. DPL is focusing on STEM because of nationally and locally identified shortcomings in this area. The kits are designed specifically for children who might not have other out-of-school opportunities to explore STEM and are used throughout the Denver Public Libraries.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The \u201ckit in a box\u201d approach was chosen because it takes the burden of creating the programming and gathering supplies off of busy branch staff. Jones points out that \u201clibraries have been using pre-made programming for a very long time, and STEM isn\u2019t new to libraries either, but we\u2019re leveraging these two concepts to make something incredibly impactful.\u201d Each kit rotates between branches, stopping at Jones\u2019 office to be replenished. A typical box includes a lesson plan for the program leader, participant project cards, program supplies, and basic supplies that the project requires, like scissors and tape. <\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14493\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14493\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14493\" src=\"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Capture-2-300x203.png\" alt=\"Dissecting owl pellets with wooden skewer and tweezers\" width=\"300\" height=\"203\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Capture-2-300x203.png 300w, https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Capture-2-133x90.png 133w, https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Capture-2.png 402w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14493\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image courtesy of Chandra Jones<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s a recap of the contents of the very popular owl pellet kit: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a lesson plan, with suggested room setup, which 21st century skills are being targeted, questions that prompt discussion and exploration, and linked to online resources, including a baby owl spitting out a pellet video<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">project cards with pictures of different rodent skulls and a map of a complete vole skeleton that they can tape bones onto and suggested resources for further exploration, highlighting library materials<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a poster of a complete rodent skeleton<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">laminated printed photos of rodents that might be in the pellets<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">an information booklet about owls and owl pellets<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20 owl pellets<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20 tweezers<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20 long toothpicks<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20 condiment containers to hold the bones they find<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">paper plates to dissect upon<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tape to adhere bones to their charts<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cool, but how much does it cost? Jones told me that there are two types of costs. The first is the initial box creation, which ranges from under $100 for anamorphic art to $2500 for LEGO Wedo. While some kits are self-sustaining, others have consumables and have maintenance costs from no cost per use to $200. This program is funded by the Luff Family Fund and administered by the Denver Foundation, so there\u2019s no budget burden at the branch level. The program is an expansion of the similarly funded After School is Cool program, which provides daily events for children ages 8-12 in five branches, as well as weekly STEM programming. Jones notes, \u201cMy supervisor, Cori Jackamore, proposed STEM in a box as part of an expansion of the program, and was approved for full funding for five years. This is amazing, because it means we can plan further out than most grants allow. During this five-year period, we are seeking other funders, including local museums, corporate sponsors, and non-profits who share our mission.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since the creation of STEM in a box kits, Jones has seen an increase in STEM programming at branches. She attributes this to the friendly, easy to use nature of the kits. She says, \u201cbranch staff who were intimidated by STEM programming are now seeing how easy it can be, and are not only using the kits, but creating new programs as well.\u201d She also learned that it\u2019s important to promote the kits to staff. Jones suggests bringing kit materials to meetings to provide an opportunity for staff to see parts of the kit in action. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The program is running very well, but there are a few challenges. One of the biggest logistic challenges is moving the kits from branch to branch. This often creates a situation where a kit must be sent out a week before it\u2019s needed and then might sit unused for a week after the program before it can be moved. Jones also wishes she had more hands-on time using the kits with kids and teens. She\u2019s hopeful that now that she\u2019s got the first year of her job under her belt she can spend more time observing in branches. She also created a staff survey to gather feedback on kit use. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although Jones is the organizational and creative mastermind, she\u2019s quick to point out that many members of the library staff work to make STEM in a box kits work smoothly in a big system with twenty-six\u00a0locations. She gives a shout out to ideaLAB (makerspace) staff who designed templates for the lesson plans and project cards, the delivery staff who move kits from branch to branch, the supplies staff who gathers kit materials, the administrative assistant who makes sure supplies are replenished and kits get delivered on time, and staff who use the kits. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What\u2019s next? Jones is in the early stages of figuring out how to create STEM kits for public check out. This has been a long time coming, so she\u2019s very excited. She also hopes to create kits for outreach events in the community. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Interested in creating STEM in a box kits for your library? Jones urges library staff to go for it! She says, \u201cSTEM is really about providing new experiences and opportunities for exploration. This is what libraries have been doing since libraries began, and you\u2019re already great at it. You don\u2019t need to be a rocket scientist or an engineer. Heck, I was an English major.\u201d She encourages library staff to reach out to others doing similar work, ask them about their programs, and share ideas because libraries are all working towards the game goals. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What to know more? Check out the <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.google.com\/denverlibrary.org\/steminabox\">STEM in a Box Google site<\/a> or contact Chandra Jones, STEM Coordinator at the Denver Public Library at <\/span><a href=\"mailto:cjones@denverlibrary.org\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">cjones@denverlibrary.org<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This post was written by Amy Seto Forrester\u00a0a member of the\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">School-Age Programs and Services Committee. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Amy is a children\u2019s librarian for<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/denverlibrary.org\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Denver Public Library<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2019s Central Children\u2019s Library. She is a co-host for the new Mock Geisel blog, <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/guessinggeisel.blogspot.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Guessing Geisel<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For today&#8217;s post, I interviewed Denver Public Library\u2019s (DPL) STEM Administrator, Chandra Jones,\u00a0who creates and maintains the library&#8217;s STEM in a box kits.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[287,141,134,38,414,416],"tags":[281],"class_list":["post-14492","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blogger-school-age-programs-and-services-committee","category-children-technology","category-guest-blogger","category-programming-ideas","category-stemsteam","category-tweens-2","tag-stem"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14492","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/176"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14492"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14492\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14492"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14492"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14492"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}