Outreach is a vital component of summer reading programs, but sometimes it can be a challenge for libraries to connect to busy day care groups in our communities. One way we have strengthened our partnership with local agencies serving youth is through our public library participation in the Summertime Kids program. Cumberland County Public Library & Information Center has received a $5000.00 grant from the Cumberland Community Foundation to participate in Summertime Kids. What is Summertime Kids? Summertime Kids supports youth from low-income and underserved communities and provides opportunities for them to experience unique life lessons through enriched summer experiences. Summertime Kids also supports children with various developmental and physical abilities. Summertime Kids partners with the Autism Society of Cumberland County-Camp Sunshine Summer Developmental Day Program to provide resources and support to young people living on the autism spectrum. Vision Resource Center – Out of Sight Camp supports children with…
Category: Blogger Meg Smith
Your Passport to the World
Which programs are you most excited about presenting this year? At our Cumberland County Public Library & Information Center, we’ve just applied for grant funding to host our 9th Annual Storytelling Festival. Your Passport to the World, a month-long storytelling festival presented by the Cumberland County Public Library & Information Center, will integrate international folktales, oral storytelling, and puppetry through a dynamic celebration of world cultures. Aligned with the library’s mission as a window to the world, this festival supports library goals three and six as identified in our long range plan; “the library will provide customers with opportunities and experiences that explore and support diversity in the community,” and “the library will provide resources that support and encourage lifelong literacy and creative expression.” Youth services staff will present free programs to meet current and future needs and interests of the community. Reflected through summer reading programming and downtown 4th…
Library Learning Leads to School Success
What youth services ideas do you hope to turn into reality this year? At our Cumberland County Public Library & Information Center, we have seen a need to increase the resources and support students receive so they may excel academically. Our School Success initiative developed into a formal project after assessment with our local public and charter schools, a staff-led focus group, and research to determine the needs of our student populations. We’ve applied for a grant to add technology and educational kits to our services and plan to add some new programming to encourage family engagement. Here are some highlights from our proposal: Cumberland County Public Library & Information Center will address the need for elementary and secondary student support through the development of our School Success initiative. This initiative features a 100 Days of School Celebration and the implementation of Learning Lab programming featuring laptops to provide homework…
Ring in the New Year with Youth Services Goals
This season can be a time for reflection and planning. It’s hard for me to imagine that in just a few days we will ring in a New Year! My professional goals for 2017 focus on training, teamwork, and creating enhanced early literacy spaces for our youngest patrons. What plans do you have on the horizon during this next year?
Interview with Mary Cronk Farrell
Author Mary Cronk Farrell shares how libraries impacted her research process in her latest book, Fannie Never Flinched: One Woman’s Courage in the Struggle for American Labor Union Rights. I received a complimentary copy of this book in preparation for this interview.
Interview with Author Sharon Mentyka
Author Sharon Mentyka discusses writing, the role of libraries, and her latest book Chasing at the Surface. I received a complimentary ARC of this book in preparation for this blog interview.
Interview with Author Deborah Hopkinson
Author Deborah Hopkinson describes her research process in her latest book for young readers, DIVE! World War II Stories of Sailors & Submarines in the Pacific. She shares the tremendous impact librarians and libraries played in shaping her childhood experiences. I received a complimentary ARC of DIVE! in preparation for this blog interview.
Interview with Joan Trumpauer Mulholland
Legendary civil rights activist Joan Trumpauer Mulholland is the subject of two new juvenile nonfiction selections. There is a picture book version, She Stood for Freedom: The Untold Story of a Civil Rights Hero, Joan Trumpauer Mulholland, written by her son Loki Mulholland and Angela Fairwell and illustrated by Charlotta Janssen, and a middle grade version of the same title, also written by Loki Mulholland with artwork by Charlotta Janssen. In this interview, Joan Trumpauer Mulholland reflects on her experiences and the impact of encouraging young people in their struggle for equal rights.