The sessions all seem to fit together. Now I’m in Storytimes (and More!) for Teen Parents. The big thing – get out of your box, get out to where your customers are! Stats, get those stats, they have a greater outcome when defending what we in Children’s Services do and why we do it. Being Proactive is the better, less costly option than Intervention. Know your value and toot your own horn. More later….
Category: Institute 2012
#ALSC12 Moving Mock Newbery Online
The VERY enthusiastic Angela Nolet of King County Library gave an engrossing presentation about her system’s Mock Newbery program, and how it grew and changed from a small in-person staff development activity just for youth-services librarians into what it is today: an online anual months-long event centered around a blog (with Facebook, too), open to participation by the whole community and integrating students from area schools. It was this partnership with the schools that was most exciting to me: the students become SO PASSIONATE about advocating for their favorite books to win that they spend days and weeks preparing their speeches and arguments, which they present to their fellow participants at voting time. Engagement with text much? Angela shared a lot of inspiration alongside of a lot of practical tips, and she did realistically caution us that this kind of thing takes time and staff. It isn’t something you can…
#ALSC12 Why is the ALSC Institute a Benefit?
2 things stand out to me on how the ALSC Institute is such an excellent conference to attend. 1. The workshops last 1 1/2 hours, instead of just 45 -50 minutes. The learning is more intense. You get a bigger dose of the topic and it has a larger impact on my ability to soak up the knowledge shared. 2. You get more bang for your buck. Yes this conference was expensive, but I was willing to pay my own way because you have excellent speakers, that share their learning experiences and how they gained their knowledge with tips, practical examples, and how they reached their goals. The food is great too!
#ALSC12 Early Literacy Training for the Youth Services Staff
This workshop has a variety of people sharing the information. The Hedberg Public Library shares how the training with Saroj Ghoting and Betsy Diamant-Cohen had an amazing impact on their youth services staff. There are tips on putting together an evaluation for training for your staff. Two days of training outline, with songs and rhymes to share. One big tip for me was when Saroj shared about how early literacy asides to adults in storytime doesn’t mean your storytime won’t be fun anymore. Being set in our ways, as we are sometimes, that has been a concern I’ve heard often. Examples from staff from Hedberg Public Library were very encouraging.
#ALSC12: The Impact of (ANY) Training on Youth Services Staff–Yes, YOUR Staff
I find that when I sit in on all these fantastic Institute sessions with so many great ideas, I need to actively consider how I’ll take my new enthusiasm and ideas back to my library. How will I get my staff on board for something they didn’t see first hand at the conference? I really like two tips gleaned from Saroj Ghoting’s early literacy training format: 1) Make it personal. My first step will be to ask staff to think about what they already do, to bring a program plan to the discussion to see how new ideas fit in with what they already do (showing that a complete overhaul is not the intention does wonders for morale, don’t you think?). 2) Make it interactive. For new ideas that are foreign to what staff currently do, I will demonstrate those new ideas; seeing a new concept or practice in action…
#ALSC12 Speakers at Breakfast for Bill
Librarians who woke up early Friday morning were treated to four great speakers at the Breakfast for Bill event at the 2012 ALSC National Institute. The event, which was a kick-off the 75th Anniversary of the Caldecott Medal, was moderated by long-time member and ALSC supporter, Floyd Dickman. Dickman was joined on stage by four great speakers. Ben Sapp from the Mazza Museum in Findlay, OH teamed with Caldecott awardees Denise Fleming, Kevin Henkes and Eric Rohmann. Each brought a distinct style to the presentation. Sapp gave some great information about the Mazza and was also kind enough to bring along some original artwork from the three illustrators. Fleming is really outgoing and told some very entertaining stories about her life and her work. Kevin Henkes gave great descriptions of his approach to writing and illustrating. Rohmann, who’s an easy person to identify with, talked a lot about his habit…
Early Literacy at #ALSC2012
The 2012 ALSC Institute has been full of great, enlightening sessions so far. Yesterday, Sarah Mackey gave a wonderful presentation about the Ready to Read Corps at Columbus Metropolitan Library. She and her coworkers have been taking early literacy training directly to parents, in the places they frequent, such as beauty salons, nail salons, laundromats, social service agencies, and even their homes! The parents have been especially receptive to these at-home meetings, treating them as early literacy parties. Plus, these parents get fun early literacy kits to use with their children at home. This is just one example of the wonderful innovations fellow librarians have to share at the ALSC Institute 2012. It’s so uplifting to hear how librarians are making a difference in families’ lives.
#ALSC12 Breakfast for Bill with Denise Fleming, Kevin Henkes, Eric Rohmann & Ben Sapp
What an amazing breakfast program! I forgive them for starting at 7am. The panel consisted of: Ben Sapp of the Mazza Museum (“The mission of the Mazza Museum is to promote literacy and enrich the lives of all people through the art of children’s literature.” It’s in Findlay Ohio, and now I need to take a field trip. But I digress.) and Caldecott-winning author/illustrators Denise Fleming, Kevin Henkes, and Eric Rohmann. All 4 of the panelists are delightful and insightful. Denise Fleming is hysterically funny, to boot! They talked about their first reactions to learning they’d won the Caldecott (Eric Rohman: “Why is the Library Association calling me in the early morning? Do I have overdue books or something?!”), the effect the Caldecott has on an illustrator’s career (“It Shines a light on your work.” -Denise Fleming), their artistic processes in making books, and their thoughts on picture books translated into electronic…