Hey all – I hope you had a good break!
Our session at PLA went well! We think we had almost 1000 people in the room. Here’s the blurb:
Finding Joy: Library as Space for Playful Learning and Creativity
We keep returning to the idea of “taking care” as we move into a post-pandemic world. We have been taking care of ourselves, our families and friends, and others in the world. Now we return to tending to the needs of our users: offering a safe space for every person who comes through our doors to learn and grow, designing welcoming spaces for folks to come together to collaborate and exchange ideas, creating thriving digital communities, and providing participatory services to promote learning and well-being. What we want for everyone we serve is Joy.
This participatory session, focused on Library as Space for Playful Learning and Creativity, will be all about finding ways to instill joy in folks as they return to our libraries and cultural institutions. Participants will engage around creating joyful adventures focused on: Learning / Experience / Story
We gathered ideas from the group on sticky notes. Stacie created a document for us and also shared the slides:
These ideas are so wonderful! I personally support the one that said “Read to dogs.” Thanks for sharing, glad it went well!
@lauradowell I loved that one. also — When we asked the crowd “what brought you joy these past two years?” someone yelled “DOGS!”
I’m not sure if Jeffrey thinks he’s a human, or I’m a dog, but he is definitely #1!
I read to my dog! I think he likes it, although it’s not quite at the same level as treats 🙂
I love this centering on joy! Ukulele jams, drive in movies….this is an amazingly creative and broad list of ideas.
@thegmg Yay for Jeffrey!
@lauradowell Such great ideas!
@evaleva We are hoping the list is shared far and wide.
Everyone: I made a video about Buddy https://youtu.be/nhDj_SKFYkU. It has helped me. I miss him so much.
What a sweet boy. Very proud with his hedgehog. Clearly so happy and very much loved. Animals capture our hearts and give us such compassion and love in return. Jeffrey would add they also have the patience of saints in dealing with humans 😉
@thegmg So sweet! Thanks for watching!
@michael I joined my library system’s strategic planning team and as we were kicking around ideas for our mission statement I used the words joy, enjoy, enjoyment. I am like a dog with a bone with this concept and refuse to let it go. I love this presentation! I think it is so necessary. I spend the majority of my waking hours each week in my library and I want to enjoy it. I know that it is not possible to be constantly joyous, but I do believe there are so many ways to tip the scales in your favor as the ideas you gathered show. Truly inspirational! Thank you so much for sharing.
@meganbowyer Thank you! I think it’s great you are on the strategic planning team. That is excellent experience for you to have during the program and also be sure to keep some record of it because I think it would apply very well to your portfolio right before you graduate. Thanks for your kind words again about our session.