Tag: STEM

Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Fall Previews and Programming!

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Autumn is my fav season — hope it is for you, too! Lots of fun, possibilities and traditions. Ubiquitous, proverbial pumpkin, spices and cooler weather are all in the air. Let’s get programming and looking forward to winter! But first! It’s Time to Apply for the Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards For more than 25 years, Penguin Random House has been working to encourage the next generation of writers through their Creative Writing Awards. In 2019, Penguin Random House entered a partnership with national advocacy organization We Need Diverse Books. And they are now accepting applications until February 1, 2022 or until they reach 1,000 applicants. The program awards five U.S. high school seniors with scholarships of up to $10,000. More Crafts than you can shake a cinnamon broom at! The BIGGEST (& Best) List of Fall Crafts, Ever Wednesday is ART day! Have you downloaded our FREE Art Challenge yet? Try these…

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Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Boost Your Summer READing!

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comic image of sun with face and sunglasses, peering around edge of screen

Boost Your Summer READing! Summer READing programs are in full swing, but there’s no rest for the fearless folks of Youth Services! Here to keep those fires burning and your marshmallows roasting is a smorgasbord of HOT news, and cool free stuff. Dive in, enjoy and catch the wave! All Things Comics! Celebrate the Fourth by Watching Batman Punch NazisComics published during WWII sure are full of flag waving and fascist bashing. They’re far from perfect, but Batman punching Nazis is swell. New Ms. Marvel Author Samira Ahmed Discusses Her Plans for Kamala Khan — the first female South Asian writer to tackle the Muslim superhero comic book character Kamala Khan. In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, the author discussed her plans for the character. Ahmed says that Ms. Marvel “looms large in my familial culture.” In fact, in her group chat with her South Asian cousins, they often use the acronym…

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Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Summer READing Gazette – ideas, inspiration and news!

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father and daughter reading a book together at the beach

Summer READing Gazette Issue 1 v.1 Summer READing is nigh! Here’s some great entertainment, book, and programming news and ideas to tantalize and inspire! If not just totally distract you from stress! ; )) All Things Comics A new Black Panther comics series is launching in August. What the WarnerMedia/Discovery merger might mean for DC Comics. Legendary Comics announces a new YA imprint, which will launch with five original comic series. The best new YA graphic novels to read right now. Graphic Novel About Freddie Mercury Coming This Fall — Queen frontman Freddie Mercury is getting a graphic novel this fall. The rock legend will be the subject of Freddie Mercury: Lover of Life, Singer of Songs, a graphic novel written by comic book author Tres Dean. Publisher Z2 Comics says in a press release posted on Queen’s official website: “For the first time in comics format, Freddie Mercury: Lover of Life, Singer of Songs will be a journey through Freddie’s life; from…

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Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Ultimate Summer Reading Programming Guide 2021

| Jonathan Dolce|4 Comments
cartoonish image of a computer keyboard with highlighted options button

Summer Reading 2021 So, it’s the ninth hour. Summer Reading 2021 is just about here. Things are changing rapidly, though. COVID safety guidelines are positively fluid. What’s a children’s librarian to do?! Fear not, fearless reader — you’ve got OPTIONS! A Spectrum of Five Options Five options…well, more like 5.2 Passive programming Hybrid programming Limited seating indoor programming Outdoor programming 100% digital programming Pre-recorded Live streaming Passive Programming I know you know what it is. However! There’s an awesome new reference and even a free webinar about this very topic that I want to direct you to. The webinar is a called “Passive Programming That Pulls Them In: Provocative Passive Programming Ideas”. You can find it on Niche Academy. As a matter of fact, they have an upcoming live webinar. Here’s the 10-4: PASSIVE PROGRAMMING THAT PULLS THEM IN: PROVOCATIVE PASSIVE PROGRAMMING IDEAS Wed May 12 at 2:00 pm US…

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Blogger Jonathan Dolce

You STILL Can’t Beat Free

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You STILL Can’t Beat FREE We live in an age of what economists call “perfect information“. This of course does not mean that the information we get is perfect, Instead, it means no hidden information. Perfect information more precisely means we all have access to instant information, understand its use as well as its plusses and minuses. But we also experience information overload, which is where we come in. And I’m here to help make your lives a wee bit easier, by finding all the free stuff! Ideas, downloads, and a touch of fun. I hope you enjoy and utilize these resources. And of course, I hope you enjoy all the fun stuff, too! Programming Ideas You Can Do! I will come over to your library if you say you can’t do any number of these…well…if you cover my expenses! ; )) When I was an Art major, we were…

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Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Summer Reading 2021 When COVID met Summer Slide

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covid slide projections, reading decreases 32-37%

COVID Slide and Summer Slide Meet There are no definitives in this article. I’m sorry. Some split infinitives assuredly, though. So, 2020 and summer reading was new for us. Most of our library systems are going to continue circling the in-person programming wagons in 2021 in favor of going online. The system I work for, in fact, is purchasing online programming, which was actually pretty well received. But, as in the past, I wanna light a fire under you. You’ve already met summer slide. And we’re pretty sure there’s a COVID Slide. So, what happens when they start dating? What do their children look like? Wallflower No More I understand why you may have sidelined yourself last summer. It was chilly water. We stood back and watched, waited, hoped, and tried to remain optimistic. We waited largely to see what other systems would do. But we didn’t do much else….

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Blogger Jonathan Dolce

Not Another “Best of” Post

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large orange block letters spelling not another

This Is Not Another “Best of” [input year] Post I promise you this is not another Best of [input year] post. In fact, if I were to rename it, it’d be The Most Exciting Stuff in the Youth Services World, like, right now; right now. I like pointing these things out so much I create a biweekly Youth Services newsletter for my colleagues. [mysteriously] Who knows, maybe I’ll unleash it upon the internet in 2021? [strokes goat goatee] It’s loaded with all things frabjous, from live webinars with authors whose work we drool upon to easy crafts, programming ideas, news – [foreign accent] your interest is piqued, no? Oh! And this stuff is all totes free! Sans fees! Gratis! Famous Authors Live! This subheading should read “Not Another Webinar” Probably the most important webinars For the Parents and Caregivers we serve This is not a section about stuff to do…

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Blogger Early & Family Literacy committee

Summer’s Changing and It Should

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For years, public libraries have been offering some form of Summer Reading Program for the youth in their communities. There is an abundance of evidence on the benefits of Summer Reading Programs in reducing the effects of summer slide and reducing the achievement gaps that can exist between students from low and middle income families. (For more resources look at http://www.summermatters.net/summer-learning-loss-increases-the-achievement-gap-diagram/ and https://www.cde.state.co.us/cdelib/summerslide). In the last ten years, many public libraries and youth librarians have been asking the questions “Is a Summer Reading program enough?” and “How can we help reduce our students’ losses in mathematics and other subject areas?”  The evolving solution to those questions is the transformation from Summer Reading Programs to Summer Learning Programs.

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