A quiet space for reading was high on the wishlist for students at Berry Street School in Sebastopol.
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So one of Australia’s biggest book stores stepped in with a generous grant to help make the space a reality.
On Friday students marked the official opening of their library, timed to coincide with Book Week, with an open day to show the library to family, carers and friends.
Readings bookstore donated $17,900 to the school for the new and improved library.
“Reading is a really important element of establishing a great foundation for learning,” said Ballarat campus head Damien McKee.
“Some of our young people have missed out on that foundation or element of learning because of their disengagement. The whole purpose and having a focus on the library is having appropriately interest books for the students to engage with.”
Teacher Samantha Walkerden coordinated the project, surveying the students to find out what was important for them to have in the space and the types of books they were interested in.
There are bright beanbags on the floor, shelves of books, comfortable lounges with cushions, and a round table for small group work.
“We’ve provided a comfortable environment where they feel safe and comfortable to develop that culture for reading,” Mr McKee said.
A street-art inspired mural has been painted on a feature wall to give the library its own identity.
Rachael, 14, said she was excited to have a new school library.
The teen is an avid reader of anime books, especially Attack on Titan Japanese manga series of which there is a set in the new library. Roald Dahl books and the Harry Potter series are also among her favourites and on the bookshelves.
“We can come here and relax and read books and get away from so much of the noise,” she said.
Mr McKee said the library would be a valuable resource for the whole school, and even the work involved in establishing the reading room had been an important process for students to be involved in.
“There’s been a group that’s been really excited about the whole concept right from the outset and they’ve taken on the responsibility to lead, so it’s been a great leadership opportunity for them,” he said.
One of the skills the school teaches its students is stamina.
“At the start of the year some students weren’t able to sit and read for more than a minute or two before getting bored or distracted, so we focus on building stamina and with the motivation of appropriately interest-based materials that has led to increased stamina.”
