Pleasant Valley School (PVS) library just got a lot more fun.
In mid-September, a special book vending machine was installed. It is exactly what it sounds like — instead of snacks or drinks, a large vending machine is filled with more than 20 children’s books, and it can only be accessed with special gold tokens.
A student retrieving a book from the vending machine.
The Inchy’s Bookworm Vending Machine, powered by Global Vending Group, is intended to be a new way for students to get excited about reading. It also is designed to encourage students to be well-rounded in and out of the classroom, as they need to be selected by teachers and staff to receive a gold token.
“It’s really like a reward for the students, (and there are) different ways that they can win. We kind of say to them, ‘you can win it or earn it,’” PVS librarian Kathy Lewin said.
“There’s different ways they can (receive them), by just doing something extraordinary, getting caught by a staff member being amazing in some way, or I have reading challenges that I launched,” she continued. “So right now, I just launched two reading challenges for them, and if they meet the reading challenge, which would be like reading a certain amount of books in a specific genre or all different genres (in their free time), they can earn a coin.”
She said sometimes the whole class can be rewarded, too.
“If your whole class is fabulous from beginning to end of library class, we put their names on a spinner, and then whoever it lands on wins (a token for) a book,” she said. This is how some students won during the first day the vending machine was utilized in the fourth through sixth grade school.
When a student uses the vending machine, Lewin said an audio from the machine talks to the student as they select and input the number of the book they want. Then, they retrieve the book from the bottom of the machine, just like they would a bag of chips. The books are for the students to keep; they do not need to return them to the library.
A group of students enthusiastically watching a classmate use the vending machine.
PVS and the Harrison Township School District were able to purchase and supply the book vending machine through fundraising earned at the school’s Scholastic Book Fairs. Since the school staff run the book fairs, the money earned goes towards the school and library program, according to Lewin.
She said they have been working to get a vending machine for a while now. Harrison Elementary School, grades pre-K through third, purchased a vending machine for its library a few years ago, and it has been a hit.
Each of the libraries supply and restock the books for the vending machine. Lewin said they use a combination of discounted books purchased online and from their book fairs through Scholastic. This helps the staff keep costs down while still supplying a variety of engaging reading materials.
And the biggest win from the vending machine? Students’ enthusiasm for reading, even when they are not actively using it.
“There’s a lot of excitement and curiosity. I love watching them go up to it, point at books and have conversations…about books and reading, just in a different light,” Lewin said. “They’ve done that for years in the library, but now they’re looking in that little glass window and saying, ‘Well, which one would you get? Well, I would get this one because…’ It’s a conversation starter.”
The new Inchy’s Bookworm Vending Machine in Pleasant Valley School’s library.
