It’s been over a year since I first learned and blogged about the Playaway. For those of you who haven’t yet heard, the Playaway is a self contained mp3 player that comes with a preloaded digital audio book. Playaways started out being made exclusively for adults that desired a portable audiobook that utilized the mp3 format on an mp3 player.
When I first learned about the Playaway, I was fascinated with its versatility and potential popularity in a school library setting. I knew that I had to purchase at least a few for my library. So, when my budget line reset this past June, I purchase two titles, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”, and “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.”
When the Playaway’s arrived I planned on tearing into the package, inserting the battery and getting them out into the hands of students as soon as possible. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I needed a better game plan to educate students on more than just the operating instructions.
If your in a school library setting like me, use the following five steps to implement the Playaway successfully in your setting.
1. Purchase small, snap-tight bags that can house the Playway, the headphones, and a set of portable directions. You’ll also want to slap a barcode on the front of the bag so you can use your circulation system to easily check the item in and out.
2. Take the directions that come with the Playaway and make multiple photocopies of them in case they get lost or misplaced. Take the photocopies and laminate them so they’ll lost longer, and be more resistant to rips and tears from younger paws.
3. Create a permission slip to be signed by parents and students. The permission slip should explain what the Playaway is, the procedure for checking it in and out of the library and the replacement costs should the item become damaged or lost. (If you use Mandarin 3 as your circulation software, you can insert the 991j field into the patron record in cataloging and easily track who has turned in their permission slip.)
4. Talk to your school nurse and discuss the health ramifications of students sharing headphones. Possibly include a nurses note in your bag thats informs students to either use their own headphones or sanitize the ones that came with the Playaway.
5. Talk to your principal. Let him/her know your plans for implementing the Playaway in the library. Collectively decide which grade levels will be allowed to loan them out. Share your permission slip with him/her and ask for suggestions or revisions.
Playaways are a fantastic resource for school libraries. They present themselves with the ability to uniquely promote reading and expose students to cutting edge technology. So for 2007, put a few Playaways on your order list and have a game plan to implement them when they arrive.
I’ve come across a few gadgets at conferences and workshops, but the one that takes the cake for me is the 
