|
|
Profiling Your Community
Instructions for Worksheets 3A and B
Gathering impressions about your community.
Worksheet 3A:
The Walkabout is collecting data by walking (or driving) around the community and closely observing the environment, the people, the activity, etc. The walkabout can be accomplished by individuals or groups. Following are some tips for getting the most out of your walkabout:
- The Walkabout is intended to get your planning group out of your seeing and thinking
routine. Use this activity to experience your community from a different perspective and to see patterns you may not have noticed before.
- Select neighborhoods and routes that you are not familiar to you.
- Take plenty of time to explore your community. You don't have to do it all at once.
- Note the traffic patterns, bus stops, gathering places, crossroads, railroad tracks, rivers, etc.
- Follow the same routes at different times of the day and note the differences in activity and traffic.
- Pay attention and take note of as many details as you can.
Worksheet 3B:
When you return from your Walkabout, use Worksheet 3B as a guide for writing a narrative about what you saw, heard, smelled, etc.
Now meet with the rest of the planning group and consider the following questions for discussion:
- Are neighborhoods changing? How are they changing?
- Is there new building going on? Where is that happening?
- Did you see groups of children or adults? Where were they gathered? What time of day did you note this?
- Did you see evidence of any particular ethnic or other cultural groups?
- What did you see that you never noticed before? Is it significant in some way?
- How do these findings impact the library's services and collections? How will they impact the library plan?
- What perceptions do you have about your community that you might want change or reconsider?
- What differences did you note between your Walkabout findings and your original drawing or paragraph from the first section?
|
