Open Teen Lab at the Urbana Free Library
Teen Lab is a safe, friendly place for teens to hang out with friends or make new friends while playing video games or taking advantage of the library’s resources.
Teens with musical interests can use: guitars and music recording with microphones.
Teens with technology interests can spend time on: designing a model for the 3D printer and silhouette vinyl cutters or making films with a green screen.
Artistic interest are met here too, with: graphics tablets, sewing machines, embroidering machines, art supplies, and screen printing.
There’s the great time killer, video games! And even a garden!
Teen Lab is dedicated to creativity for teens. Respected by the volunteers, we are free to have a voice. The suggestions and requests we make are taken to heart by the librarians. Anything we want to try, whatever creativity we might have, they try to make possible at Teen Lab.
Joel Spencer, an adult and teen services librarian, is well known in the Teen Lab circle. The head of the organization, Spencer helps with the set up, clean up, and teaches the teens all they want to learn.
Spencer, and other volunteers, help create a fun atmosphere in the library because they are well rounded and positive towards the teens. They dedicate their time to us.
“The teens tell me what they wanna do and I try to make it happen,” Spencer says. “It’s the library saying ‘why don’t you tell us what you want and we’ll try to make it happen.’”
When I go, I feel welcome and glad to learn because it was something I wanted to do. Like me, other teens ask for help or suggest new activities to have within Teen Lab and most of the time they come true!
All materials are provided to you, so you can create whatever you desire. Let Imagination run wild!
“We like to have this space be a place where people don’t feel compelled to have to have to be a student necessarily or hear the rules of the house. This is a place where creativity can be as open as possible.” Joel says.
Just go downstairs for a room packed with games, crafts and so much more! Teen Lab is open every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 3:00 to 5:30.
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