Storytime is a learning environment and we all have lessons learned — including librarians. While I am a better storytime librarian than when I started, I am still far from perfect. And I’ve learned a lot about what kinds of books and materials work best for me in storytime. But in order to do that, I had to make some mistakes.
Five Storytime Lessons Learned
Never Repeating Themes
At my first library, I never repeated storytime themes. I figured I had to get five years worth of themes since I was primarily doing an all-ages storytime and my youngest patrons would age out in five years. That led to some great creative themes, but it also meant shelving dinosaurs storytime for FIVE YEARS. And besides, repetition is great for kids.
Lack of Inclusive Books
Whoa, have I made this mistake more than once! I used to do holiday storytimes because that was what had always been done. And I stopped doing that in 2012 after realizing that I was excluding patrons from storytime. I used to love using Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox until I had a storytime friend who did not have ten fingers and ten toes. I didn’t double-check to make sure that I had non-traditional families represented until Mommy and Mama brought their child to storytime. Inclusive storytimes make everyone feel welcome.
No Recorded Music
I didn’t use recorded music in my storytimes until 2014. I have a decent singing voice and mostly sang a capella. I knew who Jim Gill was, but couldn’t sing any songs by him. Until a grandmother said to me that her grandchild really missed the music that Miss J used. Also: using recorded music frees me up to dance crazily with the kids and model that behavior for caregivers.
Using a Floor Easel in Toddler Storytime
At my current library, I used a floor easel flannelboard since that’s what I was familiar with. Big mistake. The toddlers wound up all around the board petting it and ignoring me. I switched to tabletop easel the next week to avoid the toddler swarm. Make adjustments week to week; don’t wait until the problem becomes familiar to patrons.
Not Knowing When to Stop
There are days when it’s better to just close the book. I knew that. I just couldn’t always come to terms with it. Now I am an absolute pro at saying, “Grown-ups, it seems like our little ones want to get up and move. We can do an activity now and we can read another time.” Having those speeches memorized is really helpful and makes storytime flow naturally.
I could go on (not laying down expectations, reading a book that I didn’t love, not knowing how to get caregivers involved, doing difficult product crafts, no early literacy tips, forgetting to double-check that my book is in good condition) but I feel like I’ve already laid out enough mistakes for one day.
I don’t beat myself up over any of these, by the way. It’s all part of learning. But I do constantly and continuously try to improve. Part of that is realizing that it might be time for a change for the betterment of storytime and a better user experience for my patrons.
How about you? Have you made any changes to storytime? Do you have lessons learned?
– Katie Salo
Early Literacy Librarian
Indian Prairie Public Library
http://storytimekatie.com
Monica
My biggest lesson has been that it’s ok to have a script. It’s ok to read a rhyme off paper. I have a TERRIBLE memory that has always been a thorn in my side, so it has taken some time to convince myself of this — and it’s really helped. I’m a lot more secure and therefore more willing to add more songs and rhymes to my storytimes.