Besides having the longest committee name in ALSC, the AASL/ALSC/YALSA Interdivisional Committee on School/Public Library Cooperation has an important task: to foster partnerships between library workers in all types of library agencies. Consisting of members from all three of ALA’s youth-serving divisions (AASL, ALSC, and YALSA), the Interdivisional Committee’s unique make-up is ideal for the collaborative work we do. This year, the Interdivisional Committee has received our charge from the AASL, ALSC and YALSA Presidents-Elect. We are to develop a shared online space for the three divisions to share the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) work done by our members. Ideally, this will be a resource clearinghouse where library staff serving youth in school and public libraries can network and brainstorm together around EDI topics and best practices. While I personally can’t wait to get to work on this project with the members of the Interdivisional Committee, I recognize that…
Month: August 2020
Pivot, and Pivot Again: How Do We Best Serve Patrons in the Constantly Changing Pandemic Landscape?
Preparing for the start of the 2020-2021 school year has been one of the most, shall we say, unusual experiences for libraries in generations. Would schools be opening in person or e-learning or a hybrid version? Would families have options? Would there be an uptick in homeschooling? Many, if not all of us, have had to grapple with this situation. My library serves four school districts as well as several parochial and private schools. We spent much of the late spring and summer trying to plan for each contingency, since there were so many unknowns. As late as the end of July, all of our districts were planning to offer families a choice between attending school in person or e-learning. The parochial schools had already decided to hold school in person. When Covid-19 positivity rates started to climb, one by one, our districts decided to move exclusively to e-learning. With…
Zoom Tips for Libraries II
In June, I shared tips from King County Library System for using Zoom. But we all know that the name of the game is flexibility and iteration, so here’s an update on where we are now.
Bundle Up Books for Young Readers!
As we explore opportunities to serve our communities in this unprecedented time, a path my library has recently taken has been to create a quick access browsing collection. At the Wilsonville Public Library, we opened the building at the end of June with limited services. We are lucky that the configuration of our newly redesigned library allows patron access to the central area of the library. Since we are unable to open the library stacks to the public for browsing, we added this “grab and go” collection on the display shelving that had in the past been used for new adult fiction and adult non-fiction. Library staff pull different catergories of library materials for different age groups and bundle 3-5 items together with stout rubber bands. We call this quick access collection Book Bundles To Go. Our visiting patrons constantly tell library staff that Book Bundles To Go is a…
Camp TV featuring your librarian
During the COVID-19 pandemic, while families and kids remain at home, libraries around the country have turned to virtual programming to help keep kids engaged and entertained, and keep skills sharp, especially over the summer. At The New York Public Library, our virtual Summer Reading programs for children include parent/child book discussions, author visits, cultural programs, virtual summer camp, and an online reading log and activities.
Taking Children Reading to Dogs Virtual
Like so many of us, March rolled around and stay-at-home orders forced us to quickly adapt the way we provide library services. Storytimes and book clubs went virtual, staff created engaging videos, and we hired presenters to film music and fitness videos that we could share online. After a hearing from participants of our popular, Children Reading to Dogs programs; one of our children’s librarians brought the idea to our Engagement and Program services department to see if it was possible in this landscape. What we did We transitioned our in-person Children Reading to Dogs program into a 45-minute virtual program. Children’s Librarian Allie Barton proposed the idea, and with this in mind, our Volunteer Coordinator, Digital Services and Strategy Manager, and Teen Services Manager met to determine a format that might work. Once that was determined, we created best practices, guidelines, and a schedule for the virtual program. The…
Kristy, Mary-Anne, Claudia, Stacey and Dawn
It was a strange Fourth of July. The big party I usually go to was pared down, and with my underlying conditions, I didn’t even attend the smaller gathering. What should I do? Luckily, I fall in the age-range that had something to do this Fourth of July weekend, after watching Hamilton, of course. I’m in that little slice of “Xennials” that screamed very loudly for New Kids on the Block. You know who you are! And a few years before that, we were exactly the right age when Kristy Thomas had her great idea. That’s right. I binge watched Netflix’s new re-imagining of The Baby-Sitters’ Club, and, as a childhood fan, I found it delightful. I was “beyond” the Club when the earlier TV show had come out, but now, as an adult during a pandemic, nostalgia for a simpler time was just what I needed. The first episode…
Should children’s librarians care about defunding the police?
I believe the answer is yes. We teach kids to be kind, to not use violence, and model creativity for the kids in our libraries. And then we call the police on other patrons – even though policing has been shown to be ineffective and violent for solving root issues in our communities. Seems hypocritical to me. Plus, if we really believe in the transformative power of librarianship, maybe we should be demanding some of that budget. There are many dreams and solutions out there. Check out Mariame Kabe‘s work, or Movement for Black Lives, or MPD150, or Critical Resistance. I’m not sure what that looks like yet, and am looking to learn more. What resources do you have? Lisa Nowlain is currently a community college librarian in the California foothills. In the past, she was a youth librarian in Nevada City, CA; Darien, CT; and in the Bay Area.