Library Play/Support

If you walked through the library during recess and lunch at Hackham East Primary School looking for a quiet place to gather your thoughts or read quietly, then think again.  Yes, libraries are designed and used as places for independent quiet work, reading and research, as is ours, just not at recess and lunch. 

Two years ago if you came into the library at lunch (it was only open for twenty minutes, and closed at recess) there would be ten students on computers playing games and maybe ten students reading by themselves.  Very little, if any, collaboration.  Meanwhile there were students outside at play who were struggling to develop positive friendships and others who clearly needed to develop the skills to collaborate with their peers and learn how to work through social issues when they arose.

Hence, we opened the library for all of recess and lunch.  We had to give students structured opportunities and support to develop friendships, more structured support to develop the skills to collaborate with their peers and more opportunities for students to build empathy and understanding amongst peers they may have had issues with. 

The Personal and Social Capabilities defined in the Australian Curriculum emphasise students developing empathy for others, understanding relationships, establishing and building positive relationships, making responsible decisions, working effectively in teams and handling challenging situations constructively.

Now the library is a hub of activity with students lining up at the door to get in.  There are regularly over fifty students (1/6 of the student population) in the library.  Some students have to be there due to needing playtime support and needing a structured environment to learn how to collaborate with their peers, most are there because they want to be because it is an environment where students are supported to develop positive relationships.  There are numerous board games, construction opportunities through Lego, ball runs, trains, wooden and magnetic blocks, as well as strategic games such as Jenga, Chess and Dominos.  Most importantly students are in the library collaborating with their peers and working together to solve problems, developing their Personal and Social Capability. 

This is just one of the many ways we support students to develop friendships as well as their collaborative skills at Hackham East Primary School.

Scott Megson, Deputy Principal