Toro Lounge Chair

I very much like this lounge chair from Blu Dot. It would be great in a high school library. It's offered in natural leather with white-stained, solid beech frame or black-tanned leather with black-stained, solid beech frame. It's currently on sale for $799, marked down from $999. As good lounge chairs go, this is a reaonable price.

Just for Fun

This is pretty much off the topic, but it's too interesting to ignore. I've often read stories about libraries looking at bookstores and cafes for ideas. But here is something else--a small Espresso Café located on Madison Avenue, in New York City, that  took ideas from a library! I'll definitely be checking this out the next time I'm in New York City. Looks like a great place for coffee-loving bibliophiles. I'm rather sorry it isn't actually in a library somewhere. Oh well, there's a library nearby.

Five Finger Reading Advice Sign

I'm always on the lookout for interest-
ing, creative library signage, and here's one I especially like in the library at the Papanui Primary School in Christchurch, New Zealand. And what a great looking reading area!

Eames® Elephant Stool

In 1945 Charles and Ray Eames designed a toy elephant made of plywood. It never made it into mass production, but it is now available in a plastic version.

This stool could be a great addition to an elementary school library, as a stool or as a decorative item (with your Jean De Brunhoff Babar books?).

Dimensions: 30" trunk to tail, 14" wide and 16 5/16"tall

Price: $290

Available in five colors from Modernseed.

Design Matters!

Does school design affect students? An overwhelming number of teachers in the UK say yes.

A survey conducted by the British Council for School Environments and the Teacher Support Network found that 95.8% of UK teachers agreed that the school environment had an influence on pupil behavior, students’ well being, and academic achievement.

For a long while now I’ve been convinced that a well-designed, attractive and inviting (in the eyes of children and teens) school library will have a positive effect on usage and student behavior. And I’m also convinced that surveys and research such as this one, with a focus on overall school design, apply to school library design as well.

Here is a link where you can download summaries of five additional studies that support the idea that the design of our learning environments affects the quality of education.

Design does matter. And keep in mind that good design rarely costs more than poor design.