When we think of technology, children and families, access has been what has been most prevalent at issue for many libraries, especially in the last few years. We have prioritized equity, diversity and inclusion in our guiding principle statements. We’re ensuring that we are serving the most underserved communities: Reviewing and realigning our service areas to focus on the schools, and day cares which have the greatest need populations – that they are the first to receive laptops, wifi access, and technology assistance. All these things are a necessary and wonderful enhancement for families and for closing the digital divide. I would say though, that we can go even deeper in assisting families. This is what I discovered in the past pandemic year as I worked with families from different countries.
Category: Blogger Children and Technology Committee
Technology Planning: One Library’s Story
Moving Our Library into the Technology Age Technology is growing and we need to grow with it. Every household, young child, teen and adult uses technology on a daily basis, whether in their own home or at a public facility, like our library. The Beginning of a New Journey Being a small library we struggled with getting technology to our patrons. It just wasn’t in our budget to support that kind of expense. Up until about two years ago, we only had three access computers for all of our patrons to use. We had to find another way, a way to get technology in the hands of our patrons, especially our students. We were very fortunate to have access and the ability to apply for a grant from the Illinois State Library for that very resource. With acceptance of the grant we were able to order Laptops and IPads for…
Pandemic Takeaways, Part 2
ALSC’s Children and Technology committee has been reflecting on the past year, about our roles and practices in our learning environments. This is the second of two posts we created that share our experiences. Today, we are focusing on some of the public librarians in our group. Rita Christensen is a Children’s Librarian at the Orem Public Library in Utah. Tina Bartholoma is a Community Engagement Senior Librarian/School Liaison at the Salt Lake County Library in Utah.
Pandemic Takeaways, Part 1
ALSC’s Children and Technology committee has been reflecting on the past year, about our roles and practices in our learning environments, especially as they relate to technology. This is the first of two posts we created that share our experiences. Today, we are focusing on the school librarians in our group. Manuela Aronofsky is the Middle School Technology Integrator at the Berkeley Carroll School in Brooklyn, New York, and Julie Williams is the Librarian at Sanford Middle School in Sanford, Maine. What is the top digital tool or strategy you are taking from the pandemic? Manuela: I have come to really appreciate digital tools that allow for asynchronous discussion, and response. The main tools I’m using in the classroom include Flipgrid (for students to record video responses), and Padlet (for students to post short written responses). The nice thing about these tools is that they allow for online “conversation” –…
Promoting library programs, Social media is only part of the answer
I’ve been around long enough to remember when my library system decided to centralize their social media accounts. Some of our branches didn’t care, they weren’t on social media anyway. Some of our branches almost held protests. They had branch social media teams which had slowly built up their followers through years of effort. I was on one of those teams. We had a posting schedule, we had gone to trainings, we followed tips about always including a photo and using variety in our types of posts. Having to give up control was really hard. Sorry for the long intro, I’ll get the point. Last year, during the months that our library branches were completely closed—after we had started offering online programs, but before we were able to start curbside delivery—our librarians (no, it wasn’t just me) wanted our social media guidelines to change to meet our new program promotion…
Listen Up: Let’s Talk About Kids Podcasts
Have you been discovering and listening to kids podcasts more and more this past year? If so, you are not alone! Kids podcasts experienced record-level listening in 2020 and librarians across the country are helping families discover this content. So, if you love listening to kids podcasts, we invite you to come to the table to discuss all aspects of this rising form and its impact on media mentorship and services to children. Kidcasts in 2020: A Milestone Year Kidcasts, also known as podcasts for kids, have grown to where 1 in 4 kids, ages 6 to 17 now listen to podcasts (Ipsos) and weekly Kids & Family podcast listening increased by 24% in 2020 (Podtrac). As podcast listenership rises, librarians have taken note of content that’s available, especially what is free and accessible. For example, ALSC’s Excellence in Early Learning Digital Media 2020 Committee selected Imagine Neighborhood, a podcast…
Child Mental Health and Technology: A Useful Tool for Caregivers and Therapists
In today’s new normal, we as a society are faced with the many challenges brought on by the Pandemic: Parents have adjusted to working from home. They’ve become teachers. Children have gone from learning in a classroom setting to their bedrooms; having physical movement to being stationary. Where they previously had social interactions with peers, they’re now often in silos watching a single screen throughout the day. After nearly a year of Covid-19, data proves that this has been no easy adjustment by any means. An article by Human Rights Watch outlines just how this disease has devastatingly impacted children around the world. Though what is also discussed are beneficial approaches to alleviate suffering. What I’d like to hone in on is how one organization provides help for the mental health of children due to the effects of Covid-19. Through the National Children’s Alliance , a new useful training is…
Bitmojis in the Library
Back in March, when the Pandemic hit and teachers, librarians, and other educators were scrambling to find creative ways to do remote learning, Bitmoji classrooms were born. Bitmoji isn’t new. You can create a Bitmoji using either Snapchat or the Bitmoji app and by adding the Google Chrome extension you can insert Bitmojis almost anywhere. What was new was the use of Bitmojis to create virtual classrooms. Bitmoji Craze for Educators is a Facebook Group that was created by Allatesha Cain in April of 2020 and now has almost 550,000 members. But what exactly is a Bitmoji classroom and why has it become so popular? A Bitmoji classroom is a virtual space that has hyperlinks to educational videos, read alouds, websites, and more. Most are created using Google Slides and then used on an LMS system like Google Classroom, Google Sites, Schoology, and Seesaw. Creators typically create some kind of…