Building Inclusive Learning Commons
by Deidre-Ann Gardener
This paper presentation shares the explorations of Innovation Resource Teacher, Deidre-Ann K. Gardener as she works to find ways to enhance the school library learning commons to be more welcoming and accessible for students with exceptionalities. Deidre filters her research using critical foundations for school library learning commons – Physical and Virtual LLC Space, Accessibility and LLC Management.
Deidre-Ann holds a Master of Teaching with a focus in curriculum and instruction. She uses this as a foundation for developing programs for multimodal experiences and integration of technology to develop innovative learning experiences. She continues to focus on fostering opportunities for inquiry, prioritizes sharing joy and, building spaces that are reflective and supportive of the diverse needs of all learners and communities she serves.
Deirdre-Ann - I love what you've created to help ensure that your LLC is an inclusive space for all learners in your school community. This is a beautiful implementation of what it looks like when the principals of the Universal Design for Learning are applied in the LLC! It sounds to me like you have a very supportive admin team who have given you a schedule with enough flexibility to ensure that you were able to align the Sensory Space periods with the schedules of the support staff. That's amazing!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on an incredible initiative. You saw a need, advocated for change, and have improved access to the LLC for your school community! Looking forward to discussing this more at TMC8.
Deirdre, your paper weaves so well with many of the others here in TMC8, from Jenn Brown's reflection on her space to Alanna's paper related to students with exceptionalities. I hope you get a chance to read these other papers and connect with them. How will you collect data on the impact of these changes and the introduction of the Sensory Period into the schedule? Can anyone borrow the tactile books? Can anyone attend the sensory period, whether or not they have a recognized disability? It's hard to believe it's only been a year since our paths crossed in the TL AQ at York! Congratulations on continuing to be a lifelong learner.
ReplyDeleteDiana Maliszewski
Thank you for sharing the thoughtful and intentional changes you made to your LLC space and programming. Your summary format makes the entire approach very accessible for other educators (TLs or otherwise) to reflect on changes we can make to learning spaces in order to better serve all sensory needs. We added an accessible basket of noise reducing headphones available to all students a few years ago at my previous LLC and the response was far beyond what I had anticipated. I assumed it was a small addition that would have minimal impact but the feedback from students was very positive. It also helped to de-stigmatize the use of this sensory tool throughout the school. It’s now a standard addition to any LLC or classroom I am in. I am intrigued by the addition of sensory-based board books to our collection in the future.
ReplyDeleteThe intersection of programming between school and public libraries has been an interesting space of exploration for me recently. I've noticed the increase in things like sensory reading times starting at public libraries, and now I'm seeing things like that coming into schools, particularly elementaries. You laid out a plan that made it clear for other teachers how they can start doing something like this and increase accessibility into the SLLC.
ReplyDeleteI remember the first time I bought in board books to my school library and having other teachers ask me why. The UDL principles for older students with younger siblings, as well as for those students who needed them, and our on-site daycare just seemed like a no-brainer. When I moved to high school it's what informed me decision to bring in picture books. Turns out high school students love them, and they're a good teaching tool for reintroducing a concept like metaphors or similes quickly before launching into Shakespeare or some other harder texts.