A library is a place to learn and do things, and throughout the Parkland Library region that can mean playing with tiny robots, making things out of Lego, and accessing a 3D printer.
They are all part of what Regional Librarian Helen McCutcheon called the “Maker Space Collection.”
The wide-ranging collection, which is being expanded as interest grows and funding is found, is designed for the most part “to rotate throughout the region to all 54 branches,” explained McCutcheon.
The branches can book the items “to use in programming,” she said.
For example the collection has a considerable amount of Lego, which has allowed the Yorkton location to host a regular Lego Club Wednesday from 6-7 p.m. It is open to anyone, the only restriction is that under nine must be accompanied by an adult.
The collection also saw a major set sent to the Esterhazy branch where it spent a few weeks as the 4000-piece play set was completed.
Some items in the collection, in particular the 3D printer does not move well. Initially, housed at the Regional Library itself, McCutcheon said it wasn’t getting the usage they had hoped for. So it has been installed at the Yorkton Public
Library which should make it more accessible.
“We want more people to see how cool it is,” she said, adding that in addition to a higher profile in the Yorkton library a time-lapse video of the printing process is planned for their website.
McCutcheon said the 3D printer can be used by the public with the cost of printing “on a cost recovery basis.” People can bring in a 3D printer file and can have items printed. Specific requirements are available through the library, and there are some restrictions based on the size of the printer.
McCutcheon said while the idea of a 3D printer may seem somewhat complicated, she assured it is pretty straight forward.
“We want people to know how accessible it is. You don’t need an engineering degree to use it,” she said.
As for addition of robots, McCutcheon said its part of STEM learning, science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
STEM is typically curriculum based on the idea of educating students in four specific disciplines in an interdisciplinary and applied approach, but works in a library setting as well. Rather than teach the four disciplines as separate and discrete subjects, STEM integrates them into a cohesive learning paradigm based on real-world applications.
So you can now find people at the libraries within the region exploring with tiny Ozobots.
An Ozobot is a little toy robot that blends the physical and digital worlds, and teaches kids programming. The Ozobot can identify lines, colours, and codes on both digital surfaces, such as an iPad, and physical surfaces, such as paper.
Or, they can be building with small robotic Cubelets. Cubelets are magnetic blocks that can be snapped together to make an endless variety of robots with no programming and no wires. You can build robots that drive around on a tabletop, respond to light, sound, and temperature, and have surprisingly lifelike behavior.
More will come, assured McCutcheon.
“We’ll just keep adding to the collection,” she said.
The additions through the Maker Space Collection are simply part of the ongoing evolution of local libraries to meet changing demands, said McCutcheon. She said people have always attended libraries to learn, but not all leaning is through books.
“Libraries are always looking to provide new services,” she said.
As another example of the evolving services McCutcheon said people increasingly access libraries online. When the Parkland Regional Library first launched its electronic resources they saw about 90,000 downloads annually.
In 2017 they reached the milestone of a half million downloads in a single year.
The resource is not just for downloading electronic versions of books, but movies, television series, music, and magazines.
In addition, the site allows access to services such as the International English Language Testing System, and a collection of recipes highlighting foods from around the world.
