On one September afternoon in particular, kindergarten students had the chance to read “The Apple Pie Tree” by Zoe Hall and then had the chance to learn about apples and seeds through hands-on stations throughout the library.

“Children learn best when they are having fun,” Lyon said. “Moving our bodies and putting our hands on things is a great way to do that. We started the school year by working on a study of fruits and seeds. Apples were the first fruits because we actually have an apple tree in the front yard of the school. Studying something that has real meaning, and that kids can make connections to, is important.”

The stations helped to reinforce the understanding of what happens when you make an apple pie. The science station had students put their hands on real fruit, study it, and notice the seeds. The baking station gave students the chance to play and “bake” their own apple pie. The Lego and Brainflakes station allowed kids to design or create an apple or a tree. Meanwhile, working at her interactive smart board, Lyon had the chance to work with students on vocabulary and vocab.

“Units like these allow kids to read books using the pictures to start understanding that we can find information in a lot of different ways,” she said. “We can always be learning! Encouraging kids to use their imaginations and their problem solving skills is so crucial to loving to read and to learn.”

Fletcher library media specialist Carrie Lyon works on an interactive board with kindergarten students James Kuzmunich Jr & Mahalia Maisonet during a lesson on examining apples.

Lyon’s entering her sixth school year at Fletcher, returning to the area after living and teaching in North Carolina for 21 years.

“I enjoy the kids,” Lyon said about teaching in the district. “Their excitement when they see something new or when they are really interested in learning a new topic inspires me.”

In her time teaching, library education has continuously evolved while still holding strong to helping students fall in love with reading and learning.

“It’s really making a push towards STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math),” Lyons aid. “School librarians are still trying to entice kiddos to read and find new things that they are interested in and want to know more about. However, we are also helping to teach kids how to code, how to problem solve, how to create and analyze and design and how to use those steps to solve real world problems.”

The library now, she notes, is “the hub of the school with many different people using it for many different things.”

“It’s a space that should appeal to the masses,” she said. “There is so much for children to learn and librarians are lucky enough to be able to put these materials in kids hands and light the fire of excitement in learning.”

Like other public libraries across the country, Lyon has helped to create makerspaces in her library for students to build with blocks, Legos, and Brainflakes. Students have the chance to perform science experiments related to content areas, use cardboard to design and create projects, and also have the chance to work with coding robots.

But they also are still able to learn how to love reading.

“Libraries support literacy in that they provide opportunities for children to pick books that they are interested in,” Lyon said. “The library is a special place that affords kids the opportunity to be in control of their learning. They get to choose. They get to read and learn. They are empowered! This means that the librarian has to know who she’s working with and what they are interested in.”

Lyon also works to ensure that students have access to entertaining and enjoyable books.

“Kids are enamored right now with Graphic Novels which are basically a hard-covered comic book,” she added. “If this gets them reading — Yes! We get them in and in the hands of kids.”

Most of all, she wants students to continue coming back to the space.

“Honestly, I want them to walk away thinking ‘I can’t wait to go back and hear another story!’ or ‘Reading is so fun!’ or What new voices will Ms. Lyon use?!'” Lyon said. “I want them to thirst for more and to feel empowered to use a place that can always help them find out what they want to know more about!”