4 Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make When Redesigning Your Learning Space
Are you ready to redesign your learning space to better support learners? Before you start, find out the four mistakes you don’t want to make and how to avoid them.
How to Create an Active Learning Environment
Active learning environments promote critical thinking, inclusivity, and higher levels of engagement. Find out how to support this approach through classroom experiences and flexible learning environments.
Why Educators Love Flexible Seating
More motivation, better productivity, and a decrease in behavior issues? Educators say flexible seating is the key. Hear from teachers and librarians how a flexible seating arrangement has had a positive impact on their students’ learning.
Checklist: Designing Engaging Library Spaces for Children
School-age children need learning environments that stimulate their reading, writing, math, and science skills and also offer areas of quiet respite. Find out how you can accomplish these goals in your own children‘s spaces with this checklist.
5 Products That Help You Power Up Your Learning Space
Are you looking for convenient, space-efficient ways to provide power sources for your patrons and students? This can be a difficult task, but there are plenty of options to consider. Learn about five products that can take the headache out of powering up your learning space.
Top 5 Learning Environment Design Trends
Are your learning spaces in need of a refresh? Before starting any makeovers, you may want to consider the latest trends in educational design. Check out the top trends our design team has identified while creating contemporary learning environments in schools and libraries.
Top 5 Library Design Trends
If you’re wondering what the latest and greatest library trends are, you’ve come to the right place. Designer Stephanie Shook discusses the direction modern libraries are going and the top library design trends that will help you better serve your patrons.
5 Tips for Planning Early Literacy Library Spaces
Libraries play a critical role in delivering early literacy services to their communities, both through their programming and through their spaces. Get tips on how to evaluate your space to ensure your littlest patrons are getting the most out of your learning environment.
Library Furniture That Wowed Us
Libraries are continuing to respond to the changing needs of their communities by expanding their services and updating their spaces. Our designers are always looking for ways to help libraries fulfill those needs, and they’ve identified six furniture pieces that hit the mark with more access to power, more space to collaborate and multipurpose flexibility. Keep reading to see what furniture pieces made them say “Wow!”
Top 5 Things to Consider When Choosing Furniture for Your Library
It’s time to refresh your library with new furniture, but how to choose? Get expert advice from interior designers about what you need to think before making any decisions.
Take the Mystery Out of Choosing Colors and Fabrics
Ready to add a fresh new look to your library? Choosing colors and fabrics for your new furnishings can be overwhelming. With these tips from interior design expert Jessica Mahne you’ll be ready to create the welcoming atmosphere you want for your library.
Furniture Safety Tips for an Active Learning Environment
Flexible seating and active learning environments have proven beneficial to student learning, but along with creating a comfortable learning environment comes safety concerns. Get advice from Learning Environment Designer Marci Milius about what you need to think about when choosing furniture for your library or classroom.
Key Features of Collaborative Library Spaces
Your users are looking for a place to collaborate, to share ideas and brainstorm to get projects done. The library is the perfect place for people to gather and work together — but what’s the best way to help facilitate this idea sharing? Learn from seasoned expert Traci Lesneski about what to consider when designing collaborative spaces and the key features your users are looking for.
Fidgeting and Flexible Seating — What’s All the Fuss?
Do you have some fidgeters in your classroom? This type of low-intensity movement is actually healthy for our brains and our bodies. Flexible seating arrangements in your space can help you promote more of this movement and not only promote healthy activity, but improve test scores as well—really! Read what the research says about encouraging healthy movement in schools.
5 Library Updates You Can Make on a Budget
Your library might be crying out for a refresh, but your budget might not match up with your wish list. To help you bring new light to your collection and services, Stephanie Shook serves up some tips for making the old new again.
4 Steps to Evaluating Your Library for Updates
You know your library could use some updates, but the task of deciding what and when seems overwhelming. Interior Designer Stephanie Shook leads you though steps you can take to make the task of identifying and prioritizing updates easier and more meaningful.
Designing for Community: 10 Essential Library Spaces
What does it mean to design a 21st century library? How do you make so many stakeholders happy? Margaret Sullivan, a Principal at Margaret Sullivan Studio, breaks it down for you. Tune in for 10 essential places every public library needs to foster community.
10 Questions to Ask Before You Plan Your Library Makerspace
Every makerspace and every library is different. Learn the questions experts ask when assessing the best way to integrate a makerspace into a new or existing library. Architect Tiffany Nash gives you guidance to get you on your way.
5 Tips for Getting Your Library Renovation Projects Funded
Getting full support for your library renovation project can be difficult. See how one library garnered support from their community and gain tips and ideas for your own advocacy campaign.
6 Schools + 6 Makerspaces = 1 Big Win
When Massapequa school officials got an idea, they made it a reality in a big way. See how they updated 6 of their elementary libraries with modern makerspaces and started seeing positive learning outcomes as a result.
9 Ways to Create a Children’s Area That Keeps Kids Coming Back
Do you want to know the top trends in children’s spaces and how you can integrate them into your library? Get the skinny from Interior Designer Stephanie Shook on the must-have elements for children’s spaces to make them inviting, interactive and hard to resist!
How One Texas School Rebuilt After Catastrophic Flooding
In Spring 2016, Deweyville Elementary School was devastated by catastrophic flooding. See how Demco played a hand in helping the school rebuild and put the focus back on education.
Why Outdoor Spaces Are Essential for the 21st-Century Library
Outdoor spaces are key assets to libraries. From walking paths to programming areas to teaching tools, there are so many ways libraries to can use these spaces to serve their communities.
Take a Virtual Tour of The Mix
From choosing the tech tools to naming the space, teens were involved every step of the way in designing The Mix, San Francisco Public Library’s ultimate teen experience. Take a visual tour of The Mix’s 4,000+ square feet of designated space for teens to invent, create, study and just plain mess around.