I’m going to be honest – working full-time (from home), with a five year old has not allowed for a typical conference experience. At this point (and conference is “officially” over), I have been able to view three sessions. They were excellent, but THREE! In case you are wondering – you should check out the Opening Session featuring Misty Copeland, Matthew Cordell, and Healing Reading Trauma: Rebuilding a Love of Reading Through Libraries for Liberation – they are all fantastic. This weekend, I look forward to catching up. I am so thankful that sessions have been recorded. Usually, I scroll through Twitter and feel “session envy.” Now, I can go back and attend whatever session I want. And, OF COURSE, I am thrilled for the day long event on Sunday, available at ALA’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/AmLibraryAssociation. Do I wish I were dressing up and attending the banquet live? YES!…
Author: Valerie Byrd Fort
#alavirtual20 Virtual ALA – Here we go!
I should have been in Chicago for about 24 hours by now. Enjoying a #momcation and networking with my library colleagues. But, what am I doing? Sitting in my home. Staring at the computer screen. Watching the clock for when it is time to pick up my five year old. Thinking about what to make for dinner. Not the typical ALA Annual Conference experience. And, yet – I am enjoying it. After I figured out how to access sessions (TIP – write down your Access Key) and got comfortable with the way the website works (it took some time), I finally feel like I’m making this work. I can watch recorded sessions I miss. I have figured out how to check out sessions live. I still need to figure out how to get my ARCs! I’m looking forward to more learning. I do wish I was enjoying drinks with friends…
#ALAmw20 – Day 2
Yesterday was a whirlwind. So many interesting sessions to attend and lots of walking (this place is BIG). Top 2 Takeaways from Day 2 – I started my day learning about Civic Innovation with the Reading Terminal Market manager, Anuj Gupta and Ariel Ben-Amos from StreetBoxPHL. It was very interesting to hear how both are engaging with the community. One idea I keep thinking about from Gupta’s presentation is the Day Stall Merchant program they have at Reading Market. This program allows folks who want to start selling their goods at the market to do so in an inexpensive, low risk way. I can see libraries offering something similar – a craft fair of sorts? I also loved how StreetBoxPHL creates “parklets.” This is something I had never heard of – a kind of “pop up” park in a parking space. So innovative! Many libraries are already doing “pop up” models…
#ALAmw20 – Day 1 Review
Here I am – at another ALA Midwinter conference! I am so excited to be here – confession…Midwinter is one of my favorites. Mostly because of the Youth Media Awards announcement on Monday. I have noticed a pattern for myself on the first day of any national conference, however. At some point (usually during the Exhibit Hall opening), I hit a wall. I cannot really have an intelligent conversation with anyone and I find myself just sort of wandering around, usually stuck in some sort of librarian book-frenzy traffic. Do you feel this way too? The first day of anything is hard, so if you are a first time attendee of this conference, make sure you take time to recharge and get away from the hoards of people and vendors. Self-care, especially during cold and flu season, is very important. Go to your room. Take a nap. Eat an orange….
#ALAac19 – Take a Moment to Reflect
I am currently sitting in the airport, waiting to go home. As I sit here, I am planning for time tomorrow to really reflect on the sessions I attended and even on some of the authors I heard speak. I encourage you to do the same this week. If you are anything like me (and I know you are because I saw so many of you doing the same thing), I wrote down a number of websites and other resources/quotes that I want to go back to and explore. During my years of attending conferences and other professional development opportunities, I have found that If I do not schedule time in my calendar this week to reflect, those notes are just going to sit there. So, get home, take a nap, and then really look through your notes and see what you can implement into your practice. Safe travels!
#ALAac19 – Tips to Avoid Conference Burnout
I LOVE a good conference. It’s an excellent time to reconnect with friends from the past, to learn about new products to take back home and share with others, to network, and to make yourself a better librarian. Now that we are in the middle of ALA Annual, you might find yourself feeling a little (or a lot) tired. The excitement of getting here is over. You have spent at least one full day learning, meeting people, possibly attending social events and walking the Exhibit Hall while hefting around heavy bags of books. Today, you might start to feel conference burnout and you might be tempted to hide out in your hotel room for the rest of conference. DON’T DO IT! There is still so much to enjoy. But, if you find yourself feeling less than excited for another full day – here are some tips to get you through…
#ALAac19 – So many things to do!
Washington, DC is the BEST and WORST place for a conference. The BEST because (for me), it’s a quick flight and there is so much to do – conference things, history things, museum things. I feel like you can spend 3 months in DC and not do everything. It is the WORST place for a conference, because all I want to do is the DC tourist stuff and not attend conference events! Good thing ALA makes it easy to choose. I arrived yesterday and spent most of the day lost (because I am very directionally challenged…even with a GPS). When I was able to find my way, I attended one session, Jason Reynolds, and a social event. So, a productive day! I attended Updating and Adapting Mother Goose on the Loose: A Hands-on Presentation with Betsy Diamant-Cohen. If you are in a public library setting, chances are you are very…
#alamw19 Youth Media Awards
Currently waiting to get in the room where it will happen. The passion and enthusiasm in this waiting area is awesome! If you are ever able to see the announcements LIVE, you must! But, streaming them for your students (or yourself) is fun too. Pro tip – get coffee before you get here!