The Power of Stories Reflection Blog: Listening Labs

Photo by Enzo Tommasi on Unsplash

As a hobbyist writer (of fiction and television) and avid audiobook listener, I understand that words have power. The creativity shown through storytelling is a way to form bonds with people who may have never connected and is important for building community. Patrons can express themselves with narrative inquiries and choose emojis to garner feedback for the library instead of asking regular survey questions. Another unconventional way to incorporate storytelling into the library is through listening labs.

My library regularly gets donations of older media like CDs, VHS tapes, and DVDs. Our Friends of the Library group has trouble selling these items and has opted to give them away or discard them altogether. A listening lab is a beautiful way to reuse this older media for enjoyment. It can even be turned into an intergenerational library program where media from past to present can be explored by all ages. Mairn and Terrana (2022) had the idea of creating a listening lab as an homage to music stores that were popular in the past. Mairn transformed unidentifiable hard to reach CDs into a listening lab where patrons can listen to CDs, records, watch VHS tapes, and more. Listening to records, in particular, helps the patrons slow down and enjoy the music because “[t]he listener must take the time to place the record on the turntable, choose the time to listen, and turn it over when the album reaches the end of a side” (Mairn & Terrana, 2022, p. 9). Many of these items can be checked out and explored further at home. Mairn included a QR code to link instructions on using a record player. Listening labs exemplify the importance of embracing new technologies and appreciating old technologies.

References:

Mairn, C & Terrana, J. (2022). A Library’s Listening Lab.