Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Serving Children in Crisis

Proactive Response In a recent NPR article, Vicky Smith of Kirkus Reviews pointed out that in the face of the global immigrant and refugee crisis, “It is a real desire on the part of authors, illustrators and publishers to respond to the crisis in a way that is proactive and helpful.”  In reality, the aim of youth services librarians is precisely the same. Our occupation combats and seeks to ameliorate illiteracy, and act as a social equalizer.  What is more, we seek to provide a proactive response to social issues in the only way we know how. If you find yourself confronted with the question of “why”, here’s your response, put best by Flying Eye Books (of Nobrow Press): “In the wake of the cruelties happening to immigrant children all over the globe, but most recently in the US with children coming across the Mexican border, many of us are shocked. The…

Blogger Library Service to Underserved Children and Their Caregivers committee

Top Ten Things You Should Know: Kids with an Incarcerated Parent

A lot of us will serve youth who have a parent who is or has been incarcerated. Sometimes we know, and sometimes we don’t. This list of tips from the Avary Project can help guide us toward being more appropriately responsive to these kids. With their permission, the entire post is copied here: The circumstances of a parent’s arrest are irrelevant – don’t EVER ask. Asking about why a parent is serving time in jail can make the child feel uncomfortable or judged and can even damage trust, even if this is not your intention.  When discussing family oriented situations, be respectful by letting the child lead the interaction. If a conversation does develop, focus as much as possible on the child’s emotional experience of not having mom or dad around, not the details of what happened. All kids need one-on-one attention. When a family is dealing with turmoil at home, regular one-on-one…

Guest Blogger

How Juvenile Books Portray the Prison Experience

In 2013 Rebecca Hickman wrote an ALSC blog post about Serving Children Whose Parents Are Incarcerated.   She included tips for making the library a welcoming, non-judgmental environment.  She also identified some book titles that addressed this topic.  Most people are understandably reluctant to discuss the experience of incarceration.  As I considered ways that children could learn about what happens in prison, I began reading books for children and teens.  The result of this exploration is a new online course that I will be offering with the sponsorship of ASCLA, the ALA division that represents librarians providing service to the incarcerated and detained. Going to Jail:  How Juvenile Books Portray the Prison Experience, is a four week online course, taught in the ALA Moodle site, which will begin February 24, 2014 and run through March 23, 2014.  The course will provide an opportunity for librarians to read and discuss several books…