It was totally worth it to wake up early to hear Raul Colon, Mike Curato, and Margarita Engle talk about creating books for kids. #alsc18
#act4kids Breakfast for Bill
Month: September 2018
#alsc18 Cincinnati – So Much to See and Learn
The city of Cincinnati offers a lot of cool and educational sites for those who visit. If you weren’t able to come to ALSC Institute there are still lots of reason to come visit and things to experience.
First program worth the sprint down the street! #alsc18
After a crazy morning of travel, I arrived at #alsc18 just in time for the first program–Identity in Children’s Literature. I’m so glad I made it for this one! Authors T.R. Simon and Kelly Yang and author/illustrator Mike Curato were each paired with a children’s librarian for this program. Each artist spoke about their book and then the librarian spoke about a program based around the book. What a great idea! I came away with interesting information about each of the books, along with some new ideas for programming. I was especially intrigued by Librarian Natasha Forrester Campbell’s idea for a game based on Yang’s Front Desk. Now I just have to figure out when to try that one! So many interesting ideas in this program. So inspiring. So worth sprinting down the street to make it there in time! This post addresses the following ALSC Core Competency: VII….
The Day I Made a Room of Librarians Dance at #alsc18
I have always loved presenting. I did forensics in high school and was a theatre kid all my life. Standing in front of a crowd of like minded souls (#act4kids) is thrilling, inspiring, and a little intimidating. My journey to presenting at the 2018 ALSC Institute began about a year ago. Today, it was announced that ALSC 2020 will be in Minneapolis. I highly encourage anyone with the inkling of an idea to start thinking about program proposals. It is so worth it. Last September, I submitted a proposal. You basically fill out a long form to flesh out what your program will be about. You write a description and outline, include your bio, and provide some learning objectives for the possible attendees of your program. The committee reviews all proposals and, if selected, you receive a lovely email to confirm your commitment. I jumped for joy, told my friends,…
Grown-ups Are People Too. #alsc18 #act4kids
Do you work with small children and their caregivers? Then this presentation is for you! Julie Crabb from Anythink Libraries showed off her tricks to engaging caregivers and making them WANT to attend your programs. Step 1: Make slight adjustments to what you are currently doing. Can you add in a pop song or one that caregivers will recognize? An excellent suggestion from the audience was that just about every nursery rhyme can be set to the song We Will Rock You. The Jbrary YouTube channel has a great example of All the Little Babies set to the tune of All the Single Ladies. You may ask why to do something like this. Grown-ups will leave your program with ear worms, which will lead to more grown-ups singing in their homes. Step 2-Research your city and events. What’s hot for parents? Does your community offer a coffee story time? How…
Grace Lin
It’s almost time for Grace Lin! She’s eating her dinner now. #alsc18 #act4kids
Found my **tribe! #alsc18 and #act4kids
ALSC has confirmed my belief that I’ve finally found my **tribe. 400+ children’s librarians in the same place at the same time = (creativity + energy + service) * love. Today, here, among people like me, I’m not a shy wallflower. Please sir, I want some more. **It has been brought to my attention that the word “tribe” is non-inclusive and my use of it may have been hurtful to others. That was certainly not my intent. I was trying to find a single word that conveyed my profound sense of belonging, and words such as “family” and “people” simply do not resonate in that way to me. I’m sorry for hurting anyone’s feelings. In future I will be more careful with my word choices.
Gimme a C (for Collaboration!): Making Connections to Award Winners
A close friendship between two librarians, a school librarian and a teen services librarian, led to the creation of the Jane Addams Book Club, a collaborative program between Southold Free Library and the Southold Junior/Senior High School Library, featured in the Public Library and School Library Collaboration Toolkit. Students in grades 5-7 read the winners of the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, which recognizes children’s literature that encourages young people to think critically about “peace, social justice, global community, and equity for all people.” Through lively discussion, database research, and making connections to their own lives, students learned how social justice and equity can impact their lives and the wider global community. The book club met at the public library and book club members used both the public and school library resources for their research. The subject matter of the books wasn’t the only topic up for discussion. Book club…