My Pittsburgh

by Jason

(Click photos to enlarge)

Community Issue
Social Impact
Plan for Change
Innovation
Sustainability

Community Issue

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s (CLP) My Pittsburgh project is a system-wide series of programs that combine stories and hands-on art activities. The programs are designed to comply with state educations standards in the Arts & Humanities, Civics & Government, Geography, History and Reading. Participating in these programs enables young children to express themselves creatively, provide feedback about their communities, and take pride in seeing and sharing their artwork which will be displayed on CLP’s Kids Page. Necessarily, much of young children’s communication is mediated through the adults in their lives. Designing and offering a program that first informs children about the history of our community and then encourages them to express their own impressions and opinions about the world around them provides an unique opportunity for children to communicate directly through a variety of art media and with the assistance of technology.

Social Impact

The first goal of the project is to offer innovative and enjoyable programs to children throughout the City of Pittsburgh. Involving children in these programs will promote awareness of the city’s history, encourage children to be aware of and use the library’s resources and provide them with an opportunity to exercise their artistic creativity. The second goal of this project is increasing the appeal and relevance of the CLP’s Kids Page. Posting a map of Pittsburgh and creating links to the artwork created by children in various library locations will provide an exciting incentive for children, their families and friends to view the artwork and to hopefully check out the other resources we have available on the Web site (http://www.carnegielibrary.org/kids/). Success will be evaluated in part by children’s participation. Ideally, we will have artwork from seventeen Library locations. CLP will also count the number of hits on the My Pittsburgh page.

Plan for Change

Pilot versions of the My Pittsburgh program have recently been held in several libraries and additional dates are tentatively scheduled for the upcoming weeks. Programs include an introduction of the concept of neighborhood pride and a discussion of local heroes or landmarks. Selected books which may include new vocabulary are then read to the group followed by a discussion of the story and an art activity: drawing, painting or sculpting. Completed artwork will be scanned and submitted to the library IT staff who will then create links to make the artwork available to the public online. Currently a map of the City with library locations is being created. This map will feature links to the artwork created at each location. Art will be identified by first name and age or grade. This information will make it possible for children and their family and friends to easily identify their artwork without compromising their privacy or safety.

Innovation

Children have been listening to stories in libraries for many years. Art programs also have a long history in libraries. Combining the two and adding the opportunity to showcase the children’s artwork using technology adds another dimension, enabling family and friends near and far to share each child’s pride and vision. Ideally this artwork will spark family and community conversations as well as further promote the Library. While the programs will be held in libraries in the City of Pittsburgh, participation is by no means limited to city residents. CLP counts many county residents among its cardholders and residents of nearby counties may also obtain cards through the Access PA program.

Sustainability

The My Pittsburgh program will be offered to the Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) and area child care centers, afterschool programs, parochial and private schools, and youth agencies. At present, programs are being carried out with limited resources due to the Library’s limited budget for programs. By receiving additional funding for the My Pittsburgh project, we hope to add new and fresh ideas to the project while expanding our reach into under-served communities. Funding for this project would enable the Library to provide quality art supplies, promote the programs more vigorously for a larger impact and ensure that more people become aware of the children’s artwork posted on the My Pittsburgh Web page. Depending upon feedback from participants and statistics on the use of the Web site, we may be able to offer similar programs in the future to extend and expand children’s participation in creating content for the Kids Page.

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