How can we bring positive youth development into our work?
Tag: teens
Tween/Teen Privacy: Inside and Outside the Library
Privacy and intellectual freedom go hand in hand, once you think about it. The ability to explore new ideas and information -without fear of judgement or repercussions- directly supports the growth of intellectual freedom. As tweens and teens seek knowledge to understand themselves and their place in the world, they benefit from protections inside, and knowledge outside, the library. Here are some resources that may be useful in thinking about working with teens and tweens in your library!
Ultimate Summer Reading Programming Guide 2021
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…
Virtual Summer Reading 2021
Summer Reading Virtual Once More So, for most of us, summer reading 2021 will be virtual once more. For some, it meant outsourcing virtual programming, with others flipping coins to see who’d go in front of the green screen. But overall, this is the future of public library programming. Need some help? Read on, fellow green screeners! Best Practices Understand that best practices are still being established, and represents an evolving skillset. We are understanding the platforms and their capabilities as we go along. When it comes to producing content, though, many standard best practices for streaming and broadcast apply. TWITCH DISCORD Appears to be a combo of equipment and broadcast practices broadly applicable to streaming in general: Streamer and moderator best practices Consistency with schedule Marketing and promo Equipment and software It’s a communication tool, not a vault Organization is key Library specific recommendation is to connect with local servers to promote programs Don’t @everyone Keep posting,…
New Year’s Resolution: Inspo 2021
Inspo for 2021 So, we get another shot. The celestial odometer ticks one more trip around the sun. And here goes: some inspo for you to make your 2021 sunny and bright, youth services style! Hygge for Children and Families 30 Phrases That Will Change a Kid’s Day (for the Better) 100+ Indoor Activities to Do with the Kids Re-Arrange! Re-arranging your room is one of the best ways to blow out the cobwebs, literally and metaphorically. Wanna let your fingers do the heavy lifting? Try this free children’s room designer! Create a floor plan with a bird’s-eye view 1. Choose an example from our gallery or create a new design 2. Start with your room’s shape and dimensions, add doors, windows & other features. 3. Browse our furniture and click or drag the icons into your plan. 4. Arrange the pieces to create your perfect set-up You can choose just…
Children, Pornography and Suicide
Children, Pornography and Suicide I know that Children, Pornography and Suicide are terms you never want to hear in tandem. As tough as it is, it is a reality. Most of us work with children who are at-risk. And as Chris Crutcher once said, “When you work with at-risk children, you are going to lose some. I don’t like that answer”. The CDC reported in 2019 that: “the number of young people dying of suicide jumped…56% between 2007 and 2017“ That’s people aged 10-24 years of age, well within our realm of service. While we don’t want to think of any child as being capable of “looking up porn”, the reality is, it is ubiquitous. We know how to lock our doors from strangers, and how to train children to recognize a multitude of dangers. We understand that substance abuse claims over 70,000 children every year in the U.S. But think…
Teens and Tweens: Large Print Makes a Difference!
Vision Thing Smartphones, tablets, laptops, and netbooks have all revolutionized the world for every age group. For tweens and teens, the effects of hours of utilizing these devices has made a real impact on their vision. The impact on literacy levels has also been noted. Dr. Ralph Chu remarks on one condition called dry eye disease (DED), saying that, “you see (DED) commonly in people who are in their 50’s & 60’s, but now with children who are using their smartphones a lot, we’re seeing this more and more.”So, let’s read up on how large print can make all the difference in this vision thing! Large Print and Learning Believe it or not, larger print has some wonderful advantages, not just for staving off myopia. Struggling readers can benefit significantly from larger print materials. Tween and teen reluctant readers may want to read, but may be finding it difficult. For tween/teen…
Joining Forces with Tweens
Communication is Key The foundation of any successful partnership is communication. Partnerships have many forms, from agreements with large institutions, to local organizations, or between individuals. Rather than looking at a partnership from the perspective of two organizations collaborating, I looked at it as an internal relationship between the library and community, specifically the tween community. Before establishing a partnership, most people look into meaning, purpose, and the hopeful outcome of this collaboration. After struggling to connect with teens and multiple unsuccessful program endeavors, I thought about what we could do to ensure that we connected with kids before they became teens. If we focused on strengthening our relationship with the 6-8th graders, then we would have an established partnership and hope that this would carry on into high school, resulting in seeing these teens in our library. Making Your Move We had a group of tweens who would come…