Highland Township Library’s “Awesome Collection” Promotes Education with More than Just Books
(Terry Lakins, June 22, 2023)
Highland Township, MI- Highland Township Library is offering more than just books, DVDs, and audio CDs with its unique and varied assortment of things. They call it the Awesome Collection.
This vast collection has a little bit of everything: board games, outdoor games, Origami kits, binoculars, Portable CD players, electronic kits for basic learning, a Raspberry Pi for programming, plug in play video game consoles, and an introductory rock collection, just to name a few. From the educational to the unusual this collection of tools, tech, games, toys, and other things of interest provides a unique service for their patrons.
An important goal of this collection, according to Library Director Brenda Dunseth, was to promote learning and provide accessibility through resources sharing. “Our job we feel is to help people save money and share resources as opposed to them purchasing it themselves,” Dunseth said. “We try to focus on things that people could share, and things people don’t need to use every day.”
The Awesome Collection started back in 2016, Dunseth said, when they first started hearing about the idea of collecting unusual items to enhance and inspire people to learn. Their ambitions in the beginning were solely focused on expanding interest in astronomy, which Highland Library provides programs for. Their early efforts went over well with the community.
“We started with telescopes. Very large telescopes.” Dunseth said. “With the help of the Amateur Ford Astronomy Club they fitted them in these huge suitcases and padded them so people can transport it without it being broken. That is where we got started.”
This early success was only beginning as the Awesome Collection would grow to focus on STEM items, including science kits, snap circuits, magnet kits, and a programmable keyboard known as a “Makey Makey Kit”. The collection would evolve as the library’s ambitions for the unusual and interesting would add to it.
There are many favorites of the collection based on what it rented the most though it can vary on age group or season. The Xylophone and the Ukulele, despite being uncommon instruments, are very popular for having a niche appeal. The Hotspot, a mobile Wi-Fi device, is useful for families going on vacation or spots that don’t have easy to access Wi-Fi. The Rasberry Pi and video game consoles are specifically popular with teenagers, and the bug discovery kit is a hit with young children.
“That bug discovery kit is one of the most checked out items,” Dunseth said. “You think about kids, and they see this thing that looks like a bug and can pick it up and turn around on all four sides, in all different directions. That really appeals to children who need to get their hands on something.”
Many of the items came from a specific demand or need of the community. During the height of the pandemic the Highland Township Library doubled down with board games to keep families engaged while indoors and nature packs to encourage going outdoors. With air quality being a concern during the pandemic and the recent forest fires, a carbon monoxide monitor was made available to help check air quality. Tools like the Thermal Leak Detector, which helps find heat and cold leaks, could help patrons deal with an issue that might otherwise be missed.
Not all the items are specifically meant to be useful. Dunseth said another line of thinking they had for the collection was what would be an interesting curiosity, or something “cool” that somebody might want to try once. Certain items like the metal detector and the juggling balls were chosen with this in mind.
Though they would love to add some type of station that can transfer old slides and photos to video, they currently have no specific plans to add anything to the Awesome Collection. “It becomes a question if we think people will check it out, we want to make sure it is used.” Dunseth said. “Sometimes space can be an issue. All these things must be packaged individually so it travels safely.”
The challenge of space limitations is best exemplified with two of their bulkiest items: the outdoor game cornhole and traffic cones. Both are favorites of the collection for different reasons, the former being popular in the summer and the latter, their most recent addition by demand, popular with parents for teaching their kids how to parallel park. Dunseth said they avoid carrying bulky items whenever possible and while they are always taking in suggestions, they try to not add anything more than they need.
The Awesome Collection is still small compared to the books and other physical media of their library. Reading is still the top priority and Dunseth hopes that anything in the collection will ultimately motivate people to want to learn more about it through reading.
“We go back to our same desire to enrich, inspire, and empower and there are a lot of ways to do this. “Dunseth said. “This all connects back to the books and the knowledge that we hope people will pursuit to learn more about things.”
Learn more about Highland Township Library at https://highlandlibrary.info/.
