Written by Diksha Chodankar
A pop-up library is a collection of resources and books taken outside the physical library space to the public. The objective of doing a pop library in a public area is to spread the joy of reading to children. Additionally we also hope to engage and interact with the children and their parents to raise awareness about our library.
One Saturday in May, along with my mentors, Geeta and Melcom, I went to set up a pop up library in Taleigao village. The theme of our pop up was Wild Animals and according to that we had planned and decorated the set up and selected the books. We conducted a Treasure hunt, Animal Scavenger hunt and we also did a Read aloud on the book Walking Through the jungle.
The pre- planning of the set up really worked well. Melcom was an LEC participant and he had done a project on pop up libraries, so he had shared his ideas on how to set up a pop up library. Earlier this year, I had also done a pop library set up in Miya Bhatkan village which is situated in Bihar state, as part of the Libraries, Purpose and Practice workshop.. So, with our ideas andexperience, we first did a trial display in the Bookworm library. We took feedback from team members and took photos of the display. So over there we set up the display very fast and got ready. Adding soft toys of wild animals as an element and also adding pop up books was a great idea as it attracted many children to the pop up. Children were amazed to see pop up books. Touching them, feeling them, reading them sure seemed like a treat.
All 3 activities, Treasure hunt, Animal Scavenger and Read Aloud were enjoyed by Children. The place where we had a pop up library set up was a playground and in the evening many children came along with their parents to play and to spend their evening time over there.
Children who were playing on the playground were observing us but they were not coming towards the display. When I went to call them, one of the children among them said, “Kya Aap book dekhne ka paisa lenge?” I assured them that it was free and they should come and look at the books. Then that child and his friends gathered around the display and started browsing the books. When we were playing the treasure hunt they loved those games so much that they were asking again and again for the clues. Not only children but some villagers also visited our display and watched how children were browsing and enjoying the company of books. It was a lovely evening spent with the children. At last all the children promised that they will visit our library with their parents.
It was a lovely and learning experience to set up a pop library in a new place and interact with the children whom we had never met before. Children were curious about the books .The children had gone completely into the dreamland of books. That smile which came on children after browsing and while reading the books was a real treasure for me.
