The Think Tank: A Discovery Room for Young Learners

David Loertscher is working on a new vision for library media programs, which he calls the Learning Commons. He recently attended the ASCD conference and made many connections. One was Jean Knodt (author of the book Nine Thousand Straws with Teacher Ideas Press).

Knodt established a THINK TANK room in a school separate from the library and the computer lab. She is constantly working on understanding inquiry and developing innovative and industrious thinking. "The Think Tank: A Discovery Room for Young Learners" is on Harvard's Active Learning Practices for Schools website (ALPS). David Loertscher is imagining and working with others to redefine the library media program as a Think Tank -- but not just for the younger learners -- for all learners.

If 21st Century Skills include flexibility, creativity, independent thinking, unlearning/relearning, adaptability and the ability to fail, we will need to promote and support learning activities for students in which these skills can be experienced and practiced.