I\u2019m lucky. In the midst of a pandemic, when almost all of the local schools are remote, and with all of the programs that I run for my urban public library system online, I have developed extra-strong partnerships with classroom teachers and school librarians. Some ask me to recommend resources for students. Some invite me to visit classes over Zoom. All eagerly share information about my numerous Zoom book clubs, maker programs, and author visits. As a children\u2019s librarian in a public library, I have always worked closely with my school-based counterparts. But now that everything has moved online, I find my school-based colleagues\u2019 seal of approval more crucial than ever. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Think about it: in the old days, families would wander into the library off the street. They would meet the librarians, see the environment, judge for themselves that the library was a safe space. They would pop in and out, get a feel for the library, eventually try a program and register for a library card. Library acclimation could happen slowly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the online world, you\u2019re either in or you\u2019re out. Want to meet other library families? Great! Send me your email so I can give you the Zoom link. Wondering what kinds of materials we have? I can give you a list of resources, but you\u2019ll need to register for a library card before you can open our eBooks or arrange pickup for print materials! To longtime library users, these seem like innocent enough requests. But for families who are new to libraryland, families who have been told to be careful about giving out information over the Internet and to protect their kids\u2019 anonymity online at all costs, these requests can be major deterrents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I recently visited a middle-school class via Zoom. I was there at the invitation of an enrichment teacher. Although I had worked with the teacher before, he now had a new group of students. He was still forging relationships with these kids, so I was an additional new face. I started the session by asking students if they had a library card. Almost none of them did. Their teacher put an eCard link in the Zoom chat, and we encouraged them to sign up (with caregivers\u2019 permission, of course). The students hesitated. \u201cI never put information in random links,\u201d one girl said. Her classmates agreed. It was a great teaching opportunity\u2014we chatted about how they evaluate what links to trust or to question and we celebrated the students\u2019 inquiry. For me, though, it was also a major learning moment. In this online world, devoid of the physical library space, I was a stranger asking students I\u2019d met just a moment before to subscribe to something they didn\u2019t feel they understood. I needed their teacher to actively vouch for me, to back up the library that these students didn\u2019t yet know or trust. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
When school librarians and classroom teachers share information about public library programs with their students\u2019 families, they\u2019re affirming the not-yet-familiar public librarians and the virtual public library spaces we now occupy. I\u2019m so grateful for all of my wonderful school-based partners who tell new students and families to trust me and to trust the public library. Each time I see a new face in my Zoom room, I silently thank the educator who sent a new family my way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n