A MAKERSPACE - STORYTELLING THROUGH JEWELLERY MAKING
This website is a presentation of our teamwork and its outcome, a makerspace project that is called Storytelling through jewellery making and it is developed as a proposition for a makerspace in Public Libraries across Ireland. For the purpose of this presentation, it supports DLR Libraries’ overall mission and goals, but it can be easily applied to any other library or community organisation with similar values, where:
“…the library is viewed as a cultural space, a meeting place for both people and ideas, creating opportunities to enhance community life. Creating new ways for the public to engage with libraries and explore experimental learning opportunities is critical…” (dlr Libraries, 2016).
The workshop plans to use a space in the local Library as a community hub, where people may interact with each other and be encouraged to explore library services. More storytime, more book clubs and evening events (dlr Libraries, 2016) were seen as one of the main community requests in a public survey. Moreover, there is no need to take much space and due to the mobility of the service, it is possible to use one of the meeting rooms that are already existing in the Blackrock, Deansgrange and Dun Laoghaire library, only for the duration of the workshop and free it for other uses after it is over. This will support users request for reducing noise levels and assure respect and safety for all users.
The learning aspect of this workshop is achieved in many ways with the following major outcomes. The use of numerous books from the jewellery making topic to explain some basic techniques that can be learned during this meeting encourages patrons to use books to develop new skills and promotes self-learning in other fields that can be supported by library resources. The workshop also promotes storytelling and has educational value especially for people, who are beginners and need objects as guides that will help them to lead their stories. Finally, the creating aspect of this workshop has an educational value for adults that could not be taught creativity and innovative thinking in their formal education (Loertscher & Woolls, 2014) and now they may feel free to unleash it, which may contribute to the overall support of the adult education goal. There is also a possibility to invite local writers and storytellers to the workshops to share their storytelling skills with other participants, which would support another goal that requires engagement with writers in the area. This service may also be offered as part of some events and celebrations that are appropriate to the workshop topic and library’s goals.
Bibliography:
dlr Libraries. (2016). dlr Libraries Development Plan 2016 - 2020. Retrieved from Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Library Service: Policies and Publications website: http://libraries.dlrcoco.ie/using-your-library/policies-and-publications
Loertscher, D. V., & Woolls, B. (2014). Transmedia Storytelling as an Education Tool. Paper presented at the IFLA WLIC 2014 - Lyon - Libraries, Citizens, Societies: Confluence for Knowledge, Lyon, France. http://library.ifla.org/881/
