Just inside the front door at Alice Gustafson and Louise White schools are little red schoolhouses filled with books for all ages. But these aren’t regular bookshelves.
They are “little free libraries,” and they are the culmination of months of work by a group of determined fourth-graders at the two Batavia schools.
They were inspired to add their own little free libraries to the thousands around the world since the idea began in Wisconsin in 2009. The concept is simple: a “steward” builds a structure either inside a building or outside that holds 20 to 100 books. Passers-by are free to take a book, with no due dates or fines, but are encouraged to “take a book, leave a book.” A website, littlefreelibrary.org has a map of every location around the world. Little free libraries exist in front yards throughout Illinois, including dozens in the Chicago suburbs.
In Batavia, a group of nine fourth-graders are the stewards of two little free libraries in each of their schools’ lobbies, just like ones that exist in Colombia, Ghana or Ukraine. The little library is filled with children’s books, and anyone can stop in and take a book, they said.
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“When the student takes a book, they return a book,” student Matthew Rempert said. “There’s no library card.”
“People can just come in for a book,” his classmate Audrey Jensen said. “They don’t have to worry about it.”
This week, they excitedly recounted the process that began last year. That’s when Pamela Ciway, a district gifted specialist, shared a newspaper article with the accelerated group about the movement. The students really responded to the freedom and the unrestricted nature of the libraries, Ciway said, and she saw a learning opportunity.
The students went to their principals with a proposal. Administrators said they were impressed with their efforts.
“It was easy to say ‘yes,’ because they had answers to every question I had,” said Kevin Skomer, principal at Louise White.
During the next few months, the students brainstormed ideas for what their libraries should look like, then worked with their art teachers to paint the exterior of the structures, which had been built by Ciway’s husband. Ribbon cuttings at each of the schools provided the opportunity to get the word out about the school’s new addition.
Students also wrote scripts for a private Youtube video they created to help publicize the new libraries. The group aims to keep it stocked with about 100 books, and so far, have been replenishing the shelves with a steady stream of donations. They also check on it often to make sure no regular library books have been mixed in and to group age-appropriate books together.
The students spoke with pride about the notion that the library will long outlast their time at their schools and that future students will be in charge of keeping the library operational.
“It feels really good, they’ll always remember we built and designed this,” said Ariana Venecia, from Louise White School.
She also was hopeful that their efforts might inspire future students to come up with their own initiative.
“I’m glad we actually made a difference,” Bridget Kosky said. “We read things about kids making a difference, and I never thought I could actually be one of those kids.”
For more information about the little free library movement, go to littlefreelibrary.org. In addition to Matthew, Bridget, Audrey and Ariana, students Liam Kelly, Kim Adams, Tyler Vermaat, Kevin Huang and Sameer Komoravolu worked on the project.
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