Re-inventing the Learning Commons
When Cranston School opened in 2010 we focused on getting books for the beautiful, bright library space. In 2011 we began to transition to a Learning Commons, a process documented and shared with many others. Now, four short years later, we are in the process of what can only be described as ‘re-inventing’ the Learning Commons!
It is not a re-imagining – our vision of a Learning Commons where students can come together to dream, share, investigate, explore and create is as strong as ever. Yet last year we noticed the student use of our Learning Commons had begun to diminish and we wondered why. The response - because we’ve grown so much (more than doubled our population) that the congested traffic getting to the gym, music room, and Learning Commons, including the movement of four technology carts, was inhibiting use of the LC - led to this ‘re-inventing’.
Our original LC is now home to the Kindergarten Triad. In mid-October we’ll open two new Learning Commons spaces, one in each of two wings of the school, and an auxiliary LC space in a hallway that links to the third. We are in the process of moving, ‘genrifying’ and re-tagging our book collection, moving furniture and deploying all technology to the new LC spaces for students to access as needed. An ‘on-demand’ model for students to access resources, support and peer connections - and an ambitious plan embraced by visionary teachers exemplifying responsive teaching and learning!
It is not a re-imagining – our vision of a Learning Commons where students can come together to dream, share, investigate, explore and create is as strong as ever. Yet last year we noticed the student use of our Learning Commons had begun to diminish and we wondered why. The response - because we’ve grown so much (more than doubled our population) that the congested traffic getting to the gym, music room, and Learning Commons, including the movement of four technology carts, was inhibiting use of the LC - led to this ‘re-inventing’.
Our original LC is now home to the Kindergarten Triad. In mid-October we’ll open two new Learning Commons spaces, one in each of two wings of the school, and an auxiliary LC space in a hallway that links to the third. We are in the process of moving, ‘genrifying’ and re-tagging our book collection, moving furniture and deploying all technology to the new LC spaces for students to access as needed. An ‘on-demand’ model for students to access resources, support and peer connections - and an ambitious plan embraced by visionary teachers exemplifying responsive teaching and learning!
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Lorraine Kinsman =Principal of Cranston School, a lifelong learner who loves nothing better than a new idea to pursue! @CranstonSchool
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