I recently took a 3-month break from hosting story time, due to life, travel, and the fact that my normal Thursday morning slot was being used for another program. It has been three years since I started hosting bilingual family story time (BFST) at my branch. My program is in English and Spanish. Some of our other branches have story time exclusively in other languages (Spanish and Mandarin) that are hosted by contracted story tellers. Here are things that I do that have helped me find success in my story times.
Author: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion committee
When Federal Policy Threatens the Freedom to Read
As a librarian, I have dedicated my career to ensuring that young people have access to books that help them learn, grow, and understand the world around them. But before entering librarianship, I served as anEnglish teacher and a professor of children’s literature, studying how stories shape literacy, empathy, andcritical thinking.
Diversity in Craft-ernoon
While I may not be the craftiest person around, I do love crafts! I started hosting craft-ernoons last spring at our branch for tweens on Wednesday afternoons and for families during the summer. They’ve been well received, so I’ve hosted it during official school breaks, and plan to run another spring series later this year. I like to keep the weekly craft different, as it helps create interest in the program. In the past we’ve done terracotta pot painting, Model Magic® clay sculpting, DIY journals, mini canvas painting,friendship bracelets, watercolor painting, bookmark making, and that’s not even the full list!
Literacy Night in Community
This will be my third year hosting a literacy night with one of our community partners, the Refugee Women’s Alliance (ReWA). ReWA has a few sites located throughout our city and they run one of their preschools a short walk away from my branch. I have the joy of leading a monthly story time to their four multilingual classrooms on site during the school year. When I started in this position back in 2023, ReWA’s hope was to get families excited about reading, as this declined during the pandemic. They invited me to come talk to their families about the library’s services as well as provide any tips on raising lifelong readers. Here is what I have planned for this year’s literacy night. The Presentation Aside from going over the different services our library provides, I also take the time to talk about the Five Activities to Raise a Reader….
Providing Services to Deaf Children
I have been passionate about American Sign Language (ASL) since I was young and went to my local library to take out every book they had which could teach me the language. This motivated me to pursue my Bachelor’s in ASL Interpreting and work at a school for the Deaf, first as a classroom assistant, and then, after getting my MLIS, as the School Librarian. Even now, working as a Children’s Librarian at a public library, I continue to strive towards serving Deaf patrons the best I can.
How Do You Center Equity in Your Current Work?
I’ve recently been applying for temporary managerial positions where I have been asked the question of what my commitment to centering equity looks like in my current position, and how that can evolve in a managerial role. This is a question that has been similarly asked at my past librarian interviews, and I anticipate it being a standard question for future interviews. It really made me reflect on my current practices, as well as what I want to accomplish moving forward. Here is an overview of my current practices.
Native Youth Leadership and Initiatives
As the United Indians of All Tribes Education Coalition (UIATEC) wrapped up our annual retreat to reflect on our 2024–2025 initiatives, I wanted to take a moment to highlight some of our key learnings and findings—especially from our Native Youth Reading Challenge.
Kids Programming: STEAM and EDI Together is important
As a former Children’s Librarian, I worked in a large city system where the population was diverse. It was always necessary to react to what the community needed. As a Patron Services Librarian, I work with all ages. I also outreach and program with my Youth Services Librarians. We also have to work with and react to community. Libraries and librarians play a crucial role as centers for innovation, imagination, curiosity, and community engagement, often serving as accessible hubs for enjoyable and free informal education. Integrating STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) education with Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) principles allows the creation of transformative programs for children. Librarians who design STEAM activities and other programs with an EDI focus can ensure that all children see themselves reflected in the learning materials and activities. This involves highlighting diverse inventors, artists, and scientists as role models and incorporating activities and…