{"id":36766,"date":"2026-09-11T00:01:32","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T04:01:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/?p=36766"},"modified":"2026-08-29T17:23:23","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T21:23:23","slug":"5-things-library-school-didnt-teach-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/2026\/09\/5-things-library-school-didnt-teach-me\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Things Library School Didn\u2019t Teach Me"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Do not misconstrue this \u2013 I loved my time in the University at Buffalo\u2019s M.S. Information & Library Science program. My professors and academic advisor were a wealth of knowledge, my classmates were equally as passionate about the field as I am, and the remote format of the program allowed me to have the flexibility to continue working in the public library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

But, like in most professions, there are some things you can\u2019t be taught as a Children\u2019s Librarian until you\u2019re out in the \u201creal world\u201d–or, in this case, the Children\u2019s Department of the public library. Here are five things I\u2019ve learned in my hands-on experience in the field of Children\u2019s Librarianship that I didn\u2019t learn in my virtual classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Stickers and stamps are the ultimate form of currency!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Kids love to leave the library with a little \u201cprize\u201d. In both public libraries I\u2019ve worked in, stickers and stamps have been mostly used as rewards for monthly scavenger hunts in the Children\u2019s Department. At my current library, we use \u201cgoodbye stamps\u201d when kids are ready to leave the library for the day. Older kids genuinely get excited about picking out what stamp they\u2019d like on their hand that day, while for younger children, the ritual can help them transition from the library to whatever comes next in their day. When doing outreach I almost always end classroom visits by letting each child pick a sticker, and sometimes I will even do this at the end of programs too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Photo by Isabella Ragona, Guest Contributor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

2. You will become a crafting expert<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are some days when you will have paint all over your hands, glue and glitter everywhere, and a million paper scraps from all the things you\u2019ve needed to cut out. Even if crafting isn\u2019t your niche, there are countless free online resources for everything from Cricut tutorials to age-appropriate craft inspiration. Kids really do love to create, and whenever I give them freedom to do so I\u2019m always amazed to see where their imaginations take them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. It\u2019s imperative to stay up to date on youth pop culture.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This won\u2019t just make you the \u201chip\u201d or \u201ccool\u201d Children\u2019s Librarian. Youth pop-culture seems to find its
way into nearly every aspect of your job\u2013from reader\u2019s advisory, programming, to even smaller details
like the coloring pages you print for the room or the prizes you choose for Summer Reading Club.
Knowing what\u2019s popular in media, entertainment, and everyday trends helps you better understand the
population you serve. And when working with youth in this digital-age, there is always something new to
keep you on your toes!<\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo by Isabella Ragona, Guest Contributor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

4. Finding your own rhythm for storytime is like riding a bicycle\u2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Much like learning to ride a bicycle without training wheels, finding your rhythm for storytime is a
process of trial and error. But once you get the hang of it, it starts to feel almost like muscle memory.
Eventually you develop your own formula: your favorite read-alouds, the order you like to do your finger
plays, or whether you prefer using egg shakers, colored scarves, or bubble machine for an added flair.
Before you even realize it, storytime becomes second nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Some successes can be measured in smiles.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This isn\u2019t to say numbers and data aren\u2019t important. Metrics are a necessary and useful tool, especially in
public libraries. But there are some successes in a Children\u2019s Department that can\u2019t be measured by
circulation statistics, a door counter, or in monthly program attendance. Sometimes success is the child
who is so eager to show you the art project they\u2019re made or the LEGO creation they\u2019ve built. Sometimes
it\u2019s a grown-up telling you that their child lines up all their stuffed animals and dolls at home and tries to
imitate your storytime. Sometimes it\u2019s the excitement on students’ faces during a classroom visit because
they recognize you from their previous library visits. It looks a little different for every Children\u2019s
Librarian, but it\u2019s in these moments that you truly recognize the reach and impact of your worth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These lessons may not be ones that always make their way into the classroom during library school\u2013but they become some of the most rewarding parts of being a Children\u2019s Librarian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are some unexpected lessons you\u2019ve learned on the job that were never covered in library school?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Our guest contributor today is Isabella Ragona<\/strong> (she\/her\/hers). Isabella is a Children\u2019s Librarian at the South Country Library in Bellport, NY. She is a graduate of Stony Brook University and the University at Buffalo. Her professional interests include children\u2019s programming, early literacy, diverse and inclusive collections, and intellectual freedom. Outside of the library, Isabella can usually be found reading, crafting, attending a rock concert, or taking a dance class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Please note that as a guest post, the views expressed here do not represent the official position of ALA or ALS<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are interested in submitting a guest post, please read and fill out our Guest Blogging Interest Form<\/a>. We would love to hear from you<\/em>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Do not misconstrue this \u2013 I loved my time in the University at Buffalo\u2019s M.S. Information & Library Science program. My professors and academic advisor were a wealth of knowledge, my classmates were equally as passionate about the field as I am, and the remote format of the program allowed me to have the flexibility to continue working in the public library.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[134,36,89],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36766","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-guest-blogger","category-slice-of-life","category-what-i-wasnt-taught-in-library-school"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36766"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36766\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}