Kassandra Munoz

MEDT 6461
Dr. Johnston
July 24, 2016
Facilities Plan

Original Floor Plan

Renovated Floor Plan

 Kassandra Munoz
MEDT 6461
Dr. Johnston
July 24, 2016
C.A. Roberts Elementary school has a total enrollment of 654 students in grades pre-
kindergarten through grade five with approximately 42 full-time teachers. This school is located
in northwestern Paulding County and first opened in August of 1998. The media center at C.A.
Roberts Elementary is a warm and inviting library. Murals of exciting lands line the walls, and
student painted ceiling tiles greet readers of all ages as they enter. The changes listed in this floor
plan serves to further create an engaging, inviting, and innovative learning environment for all
students.

In the original plan there is a great deal of meeting space for students and teachers,
however none of the spaces are movable. Three large rectangle tables, five round tables, and a
four-chaired reading nook are used as working and reading areas. In the renovated model the
large rectangle tables will remain as a stationary meeting place for teachers, students, and media
center lessons. The round tables will be replaced with three lightweight tables and chairs to
encourage flexibility and movement. In addition, the stationary chairs in the reading nook will be
replaced with movable seating cubes and beanbags. This design supports Woolls’, Weeks’ and
Coatney’s idea that “when students come to the library, they should be able to choose the seating
option in which they are most comfortable” (Woolls et all., 2014, p.146). Students will be able to
use these in this nook area or have the freedom to move them around the library. This will give
students the freedom to work and read individually or in a group setting. The reading nook rug
area will continue to be a class storytelling area. The purpose of these changes are to create a
more flexible, positive, and interactive learning environment for students.

Technology in the original plan consists of four computers for student access and the
Rocket News Station. The Rocket News Station will not change, as this is a very popular, student
run program. This will continue to be an area for students to explore news, weather, media, and
the world around them. There is a small number of computers in the library because two
computer labs in the school are the students’ primary resource for computers and laptops. In the
renovated plan, these library computers will stay as a resource for students. A tablet station will
be added in the reading nook as an additional resource. Tablets and headphones will be stored
here close to an outlet to charge, but students may use these throughout the library. Proper library
 Kassandra Munoz
MEDT 6461
Dr. Johnston
July 24, 2016
technology use and digital citizenship will be taught to each class by the media specialist before
students begin using these.

Shelving will change between plans in an effort to allow students more freedom in their
choice of literature. In the original plan, books are color coded and leveled based on grade level
equivalent. Students know they can get a book on their color, one above, or one below. While
this does allow students freedom to choose within a range helpful and known to them, books will
be reorganized according to genre. This decision was made to further promote the ALA’s
position on labeling books. The ALA states that libraries should “promote free access for
students and not to aid in restricting their library materials” (ALA, AASL 2011). Genrefication
will allow students to learn the many different genres that exist in literature, while discovering
which books fit their interests and reading needs. This will be done for non-fiction and fiction
books. Biographies and autobiographies will have their own section within non-fiction. Fiction
picture books and beginning chapter books will have their own section, as will fiction chapter
books. This will help students and faculty better find a specific book that fits their literary needs
and wants. Shelving of reference materials, magazines, and periodicals will not change. The
school media specialist will educate each teacher and class on Genrefication at the beginning of
the year to help make this transition easier.

The largest change will be the introduction of Makerspaces into this library. Makerspaces
will replace the area of the other two stationary round tables. There will be three stations to
begin, a creation station, an engineering station, and an artistic station. These will connect with
the ideals of STEM/STEAM in providing a safe and engaging place for students to collaborate
and advance their computational and imaginative thinking. The media specialist and faculty will
collaborate on ideas for makerspaces that would best benefit the students. Students will also be
invited to share their thoughts and ideas for makerspaces. The stations will change monthly in
relation to these discussions and prevent stagnate learning growth.

These design decisions have been made to continue and enhance C.A. Roberts library’s
legacy as an inviting, positive, interactive, and engaging center for student learning and growth.
 Kassandra Munoz
MEDT 6461
Dr. Johnston
July 24, 2016
References

ALA, AASL. (2011). Position Statement on Labeling Books with Reading Levels. ALA.
Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/advocacy/resources/statements/labeling

Floor Planner. (2012). http://www.smallblueprinter.com/floorplan/floorplan.html

Woolls, B., Weeks, A. C., & Coatney, S. (2014). The school library manager (5th ed.). Santa
Barbara, CA: Libraries Unlimited.