The following article was submitted by MPL Associate, Carrie Pearson.
Game on! Video games are coming to Manitowoc Public Library starting in June!
This small collection of video games was funded through a SILLI Grant—which stands for Supporting Innovative Library Leadership Initiatives. These grants, an inner-MPL grant initiative graciously funded by the MPL Foundation, creates opportunities for MPL staff to transform their original ideas into inventive realities within the Library. This particular grant was submitted by myself, Carrie Pearson, the Teen Associate at the time of the application, and Julia Lee, our Youth Services Manager.
These first 18 games are suited for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox consoles. The games will be available for a 3-week loan period. Holds can also be placed on the video games in case the game you want to borrow is checked-out by another patron. The games will be kept in
locked cases, which staff will have to unlock before patrons can take them home to play. That means that patrons will not be able to check out video games via the self-checkouts at the Library’s entrance. People will need to take their games to a staff member at the Main Service Desk next to the front entrance in order to check them out.
The Library wants to pass along a big “Thank You!” to the community members who submitted responses to our video game survey. Their answers helped us to choose the game titles (so many popular games out there now!) for specific consoles to invest in! If this collection of games circulates well, there’s definitely a chance that more funding will be put towards expanding the collection.
Among our survey-takers, the Nintendo Switch was the most popular console, so we decided to purchase the most games for The Switch. We also had multiple requests for kid-friendly/family-friendly games, which more often than not lean towards being available for the Switch. With this initial collection, we only focused on games rated “E” for Everyone and “T” for Teen.
You may be asking yourself, “What do video games have to do with a library?” Well, did you know video games help improve literacy? A new research study by the UK’s National Literacy Trust linked video games to improved literacy, creativity, positive communication, empathy, and mental well-being in young people, ages 11 to 16. The study also found that 79% of young people who play video games also read material related to the medium. Additionally, players are more likely to write creatively, with over half of young people who play video games reporting they write about them.
The link between video games and literacy was especially strong for boys and “reluctant readers” according to the study. The interactive element of playing a video game helps players understand a narrative, with 73% of young people who do not like to read reporting that playing video games helps them feel “more part of a story” than reading a book. If you want to find out more about this study, check out the page on National Literacy Trust’s site.
Manitowoc Public Library’s video game collection will temporarily be placed up front and center on a display shelf near our main service desk for interested patrons to find. The permanent home for the collection after its promotional period will be near the Young Adult Collection, next to the Young Adult magazines. So, come June, this video game collection becomes available. To find the most current word on this new collection, head to our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/manitowoclibrary.