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In 1960 Mira Loma High School had its grand opening with the new amazing architect and design, giving each and every student a chance to achieve and surpass their goals and move on with life.

Over 50 years has passed and the school has been used and torn with about 1500 students passing through every year. The school has aged and is in need of remodeling immediately. Future Design observed the small, worn out and crowded library and chose to reconstruct and expand the library, so that students can research, learn and feel welcomed in it.

The librarian, teachers, and students all have a dream library where students aren't crammed in a small space, have enough computers, technology and books to do their research, with enough space where the librarian can use as storage for books and utilities.

Future design will put the most hours possible to make the library a better place for each student to achieve and surpass their goals.

Comments

Looking back on your initial thoughts, you have definitely already achieved your goals. Keep up the great work for a strong finish.

Well done, Future Design.

Collect Instructions

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Gather more information about your existing school library by taking photos, sketching, conducting interviews, and doing additional research.

Think About:

  • What are all the different functions / activities that currently take place in your school's library?
  • Do you enjoy working and reading in this room now?  Why or why not?
  • How is the library different than a typical classroom?
  • When you study at home, where and how do you read? (On the couch, on the floor, on your bed, outside, at the kitchen table, at a desk in your bedroom?)  Could similar comfortable places be designed for your new school library?
  • Will you redesign the interior of your existing school library or will you build a new addition for these spaces?
  • How do students collaborate around technoloyg with other students?  Where do you do this now?
  • In what ways could your school building become a small community center for residents after school hours?

Try This:

  • Take photos of your school's library, the media center, the study hall, or any other space where students are hanging out.
  • Measure the overall size of your school's existing library.  Is it crowded now or does it have empty space?
  • Measure the number of linear feet of book shelves in your school library.  Ask the librarian if they feel your library should contain more or less space for bound books?
  • Take photos of where students are studying at school - either independently or in a small group - throughout the school day.
  • Ask your school's administrator about any types of community groups that may already use your school building in the evening.
  • Interview your school librarian and several classmates.  What do they think about the existing library?  What changes would they make if they had a choice?
  • Make a list of all the different functions / activities that currently take place in your school's library.
  • Make a list of all the things you like about your library.  Ask several friends and your teachers their opinions.
  • Several new public libraries have opened recently around the world.  What can you learn from these?  Investigate... (links to come)
  • Some of the most impressive historic libraries provide an awe-einspiring place to learn.  What can you learn from these?  Check out...(links to come)

futuredesign's work for the Collect Information step:

Summary
Future Design wants the best for students who use the school library the most, so we sent a team to get feedback for the students and the teachers to understand what a dream library would be lik
You already don't have a lot of room to walk in even with a couple of people standing by the...
Random boxes in the way taking up room.
Not a lot of room to work on projects or just read a book.
Unorganized books and limited space to walk around.
Little space for the computer room
Space that could be used to expand the library.

Brainstorm Instructions

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Develop preliminary sketches to help you puzzle through new ideas and solutions.

Think About:

  • Many libraries just have rows of book shelves and a few tables and chairs for students.  But is this the best way for students to access, learn, and share information today?
  • How does collaborative learning occur in a library?
  • How can you provide both quiet and noisy learning spaces in a library?
  • Does the library have a separate entrance so community groups can enter/exit in the evening without having to walk through the entire school building?

The library will need to include four big types of spaces and furnishings:

  • a reading room / study loungue (tables with computers, chairs, couches, etc)
  • book storage and a circulation book check-out counter (shelves, work counters)
  • librarian's office and workspace
  • meeting rooms (tables, chairs, technology options)

Try This:

  • You'll need to decide where will this new library be located in your school.  Are you redesigning the exsiting space or building a new addition?
  • Walk around the exterior of your school building and take photos of your existing library and / or a possible location for a new library addition.
  • Use Google Maps to view and print out an aerial photo of your school.  Identify a location for the library.
  • Contact your school's building or maintenance department.  They may already have a floor plan of your school to use as a reference.
  • Sketch bubble diagrams to figure out the spatial relationships between the various rooms and spaces in your new or redesigned library.  Which spaces will be next to each other?  Which spaces should not be next to each other?
  • Make lots of sketches to get your early ideas down on paper.  Learn from each different idea.

Your design or redesign of a new library might include the following types of sizes of spaces.  These are just suggestions.  Feel free to revise this and incorporate other spaces you think may be needed.

Library space planning rules of thumb:

space 800
students in your school
1200
students in your school
1600
students in your school
2400
students in your school
Reading Room / Study Lounge with computers
1,400
square feet
2,100
square feet
2,800
square feet
4,200
square feet
Book storage and book check-out counter
1,400
square feet
2,100
square feet
2,800
square feet
4,200
square feet
Librarian's office / workroom 120
square feet
120
square feet
240
square feet
240
square feet
Meeting rooms 1 room at
250 square feet
2 rooms at
250 square foot each
3 rooms at 250 square foot each 4 rooms at 250 square foot each
TOTAL 3,170
square feet
4,820
square feet
6,590
square feet
9,640
square feet

futuredesign's work for the Brainstorm Ideas step:

Summary
We are used to having our libraries packed with bookshelves and tables, but is that the best way of for students to learn.
A Google Image of the current location of the library. The red outline is where we want to put the...
An inspiration of how we want our front of the library to look like. We choose this because it...
We really liked this design and were thinking of doing a mixture of this one and the first design
We want to make a dome as the third floor of our library. The idea was inspired by this photo.
A quick sketch of what the interior would look like, where the rooms are located.
Inspiration of the interior design.

Develop Instructions

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Now's the time to take what you've learned from the steps above and develop your own solution for a new or redesigned library.

Try This:

  • If possible, build a rough physical study model of your library.  You can't really understand the building's shape until you make a quick study model.  Don't worry about making a fancy finished model at this time.  Instead, use cardstock, scissors, and tape to quickly create a large 3D form.  See how it looks.  Break off different sections, add new pieces, and try out new ideas.
  • Take a photo of your model and upload it to your student user account here.
  • Sketch or use software such as Google SketchUp, AutoCAD, or Revit to get your ideas out of your head to share with others.

futuredesign's work for the Develop Solutions step:

Summary
The library that we imaged and planned out in our imagination was finally put test in Google sketch up then in a Cardboard rough model.
This is what we are going for.
An inside view of the aquarium and the main room when you just inter the library.
This is what we are thinking of doing on the second floor, just a rough sketch.
Cardboard library in the process of building.

Final Instructions

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futuredesign's work for the Final Design step:

Summary
Our project was purposely made for students and the community, so they can come and learn individually or come as a group too interact with each other.
First floor of our library
Second floor.
Third floor, the garden.