Registration is now open for the NFLS Annual Grassroots Meeting for children's librarians!
This year's meeting will be held from 9:30 am - 12 pm on Tuesday, Sept. 22, at NFLS.
Before we do our round-robin swap, Jeanne Heuer and Rachel Strehlow of BCL will give a presentation on anime and manga!
This meeting is a great opportunity to network with other children's librarians, exchange ideas and provide feedback on system services.
This meeting is worth 2.5 CE credits.
Contact Denise at NFLS to register, or call 920-448-4410.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
It's Never too Early...
...to start thinking about next year's theme!
The SLP themes for 2010 are as follows:
Children's Theme -- "Make a Splash -- READ"
Teen Theme -- "Make Waves @ Your Library"
Adult theme -- "Water Your Mind"
Pam Ellingson mentioned she found some great deals on beach balls, sand pails and other "water" themed-things at area stores already. Now is when a lot of summer items are on clearance, so if you're out and about, grab them while at a low price!
The SLP themes for 2010 are as follows:
Children's Theme -- "Make a Splash -- READ"
Teen Theme -- "Make Waves @ Your Library"
Adult theme -- "Water Your Mind"
Pam Ellingson mentioned she found some great deals on beach balls, sand pails and other "water" themed-things at area stores already. Now is when a lot of summer items are on clearance, so if you're out and about, grab them while at a low price!
Books R Us Meets Next Tuesday!
The next Books R Us meeting will be held in the NFLS Meeting Room on Tuesday, August 11, from 11 am - 12:30 pm.
For anyone who has not attended a meeting or is curious about it, please join us! The meetings are held bi-monthly, and a different genre is discussed. This month's genre is "memoirs." It's a great way to meet other librarians and discuss great books!
The MADreads blog can give you an idea of some books to read.
No need to register - just show up, bring your lunch and be ready to listen and discuss!
For anyone who has not attended a meeting or is curious about it, please join us! The meetings are held bi-monthly, and a different genre is discussed. This month's genre is "memoirs." It's a great way to meet other librarians and discuss great books!
The MADreads blog can give you an idea of some books to read.
No need to register - just show up, bring your lunch and be ready to listen and discuss!
Bits from Barb
Ordering Reading Certificates in Braille
Roxie Novak at the Endeavor Public Library contacted me regarding having a certificate Brailled for a child in her summer reading program. She wondered if a library can order a single certificate. It is actually a very typical situation that a library might have a single child who is blind or just a few participating in their summer programs. So yes, single certificates can be ordered. It may not seem like it is worth the time it takes to order one, but to that single child and his or her family, it is a big deal to treat the child like every one child in the program. The form to request Brailled certificates, or any other items you need in Braille are on the DLTCL SLP web page.
Yard Signs for Summer Readers
The Calcasieu Parish Public Library in Lousianna gave out yard signs to children who completed their summer library program. The signs said, "A Library Champion Lives Here." Parents could also email a picture of their child with the sign and the library posted the pictures on their web site.
--from American Libraries Direct electronic posting for July 1, 2009
Milwaukee Public Library partnered with an early childhood organization in the past that also gave out yard signs for summer readers. The early childhood organization encouraged families to send in pictures of themselves with their signs and the pictures were posted on the agency's web page.
Gaming in Libraries Online Course through Syracuse University
ALA has partnered with the Syracuse University School of Information Studies in an experiment to teach a course that is open to both students and the public via YouTube. Throughout June, iSchool Professor Scott Nicholson will teach the IST 600 Gaming in Libraries course in three online spaces: the Syracuse University website, ALA Connect and the iSchool's online learning management system. Nicholson decided to offer the course to reach public librarians who are interested in incorporating gaming into their libraries.
YALSA's Downloadable Bookmarks for Teens
YALSA is offering downloadable bookmarks featuring the 2009 Teens' Top Ten nominees for librarians to distribute to teens at their libraries. The bookmarks feature the 25 titles nominated for this year's list of favorite books. The bookmarks can be downloaded from this site www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/teenreading/teenstopten/forallbookmark.pdf.
Teen readers are encouraged to read the nominees throughout the summer, then vote for their favorite titles starting August 24. The online poll closes on September 18. Winners will be announced in a webcast during Teen Read Week, October 18-24, 2009.
YALSA's Ultimate Teen Bookshelf
YALSA has created the "Ultimate Teen Bookshelf," a new web site that highlights must-have teen materials. Developed in conjunction with the United We Serve initiative, the bookshelf is a list that includes 50 books, five magazines, and five audiobooks. While the featured materials have been selected for ages 12-18, the titles on this list span a broad range of reading and maturity levels. View the site!
System Youth Services Liaison Posting, Barbara Huntington, DLTCL, July 2009
Karla's Reviews
Hate That Cat: A Novelby Sharon Creech
Jack is back for another year in Miss Stretchberry's class, and he is writing more poetry - this time about cats. As usual, Jack reveals something from his life in his poetry, this time something about his mother. I didn't like this book as well as Love That Dog, but I love Jack's voice, the gentle guidance from his teacher, and the use of favorite classic poems as a basis for the writing. A good read for kids that like poetry ~ and even those that don't!(children's)
Messed Up by Janet Nichols Lynch
R.D.'s mom is in jail, he doesn't know his dad, and now his grandma left him with her ex-boyfriend, Earl, to go off with her new boyfriend. R.D. is just trying to get by in his third year of eighth grade until he turns 16 and they have to move him up to high school. Then Earl dies and R.D. is alone. He doesn't even know how to cook. He has to learn how to survive , mature and make it on his own. I really liked R.D. and want to know more about him. Although his dad was mentioned, I'd love a sequel where we learn more about his dad and mom. Maybe when mom gets out of jail? and how that impacts his new self-sufficiency??? I want more! A good read! (YA)
~ Karla Giraldéz, BCL - East Branch
"Creative Sandwich" Contest at Kewaunee
Our final event of the summer was a "Creative Sandwich" Contest.The rules were that everything in the sandwich had to be edible, the child had to make the sandwich (parents could "help"), and they had to have it to the library by 1:00 on August 5th.
We had 3 local judges - the Kewaunee County Sheriff, a local restaurant owner, and a woman from the school cafeteria. We had 60 people show up with 29 sandwiches (no duplicates appeared!) The kids mulled ab
out the library and did a hidden pictures sheet titled "The Sandwich" while the judges debated for 8 categories of: Most Unusual, Smallest, Biggest, Gross, Most Colorful, Best Non-lunch, Healthiest, & Most Creative.Small trophies were given for these categories. The top "prize" was the Judges Choice/Feature Sandwich which will be featured at the local restaurant owner's place as one of their specials (date to be determined yet). It was a lot of fun, the sandwiches were great and since the kids had to list a title and the ingredients, I'm going to put together a recipe booklet with all of the entries.
- Bonnie Joski, Kewaunee
Storytellers to Gather in Ripon
The Wisconsin Storytellers' Get Together will take place on Saturday, Sept. 26 in Ripon. It's a great place for storytellers or librarians who use stories. At this informal gathering, you can listen to and share stories and ideas, as well as meet and network with others. Click on the link below to get access to the brochure, as well as more information!
Wisconsin Storytellers Brochure
Websites of Interest
100 Places to Connect with Other Bibliophiles Online
Reading is no longer an individual activity. Thanks to online book clubs, book trading networks, social media sites, kids' networds and more, connecting with your fellow bibliophiles and gnashing about favorite books is easier than ever. From the Online Education Database (OEDb), a website that lists accredited online colleges. (Copyright 2009 by Librarians' Internet Index, 7/16/09)
Getting Boys to Read
For many adults, helping a boy find the right book can be a very hard task. This website offers motivation tips, reading suggestions, and ways to offer digital storytelling to engage boys with the love of reading. (American Libraries Direct, June 24, 2009)
Reading is no longer an individual activity. Thanks to online book clubs, book trading networks, social media sites, kids' networds and more, connecting with your fellow bibliophiles and gnashing about favorite books is easier than ever. From the Online Education Database (OEDb), a website that lists accredited online colleges. (Copyright 2009 by Librarians' Internet Index, 7/16/09)
Information from this San Francisco museum dedicated to the art of bookbinding in the U.S. Its site features images and information about printing presses and other printing equipment (such as stampers, a glue machine, and a stapler), information about dozens of historical bookbinders, examples of endpapers, and descriptions of selected publications in the museum collection. (Copyright 2009 by Librarians' Internet Index, 6/17/09)
Take your students on a world tour as they learn about Appalachian black bears, red wolves of
When the Scout Report last reviewed the Red Hot Jazz Archive in the spring of 1997, the site was pretty hot, and it has continued to heat up over the past decade or so. The Archive is primarily concerned with documenting the world of early jazzmen, so visitors will find ample information on Louis Armstrong, King Oliver, Kid Ory, Bunk Johnson, and many others. Visitors can start their journey through the site by clicking on the "Bands" area. Here they will find an extensive list of the bands from the "hot" era organized alphabetically. When visitors click on a band's name, they will be presented with a short summary of the band's accomplishments, and in many cases, some sample recordings. Moving on, the "Films" section is a real treat, as it contains information about some short films made about jazz bands in the late 1920s and early 1930s. What's even better is that four of the films are available in this section, including a version of "St. Louis Blues", as sung by Bessie Smith. Also, the site contains a series of essays by experts like Scott Alexander and George Avakian on the early days of jazz. (From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009, http://scout.wisc.edu/, 7/17/09)
Understanding Records and Archives: Principles and Practices
Why do people create records? What are they good for? How can organizations use record-keeping to further their aims and goals? These are but a few of the questions explored by the course "Understanding Records and Archives: Principles and Practices". This site is part of the OpenCourseWare initiative at the
Getting Boys to Read
For many adults, helping a boy find the right book can be a very hard task. This website offers motivation tips, reading suggestions, and ways to offer digital storytelling to engage boys with the love of reading. (American Libraries Direct, June 24, 2009)
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Girl Zone
Do you know any teen girls who like to write? The relaunched 'Girl Zone' website is looking for teen girls to submit their creative writing and contribute in other ways to the website.
Girl Zone is a hip and healthy website which provides girls with a chance to voice their opinions. While most traditional media for teen girls only offer up features on beauty, boys and fashion, Girl Zone offers content related to all aspects of a girl’s life. Girl Zone relaunched in April with a fresh, fun website with new features such “Mind-Spirit-Me” and “Girls Get Green” as well as a collection of seven regularly updated blogs.
One of these blogs is “Expresso,” which is looking for submissions of creative writing from teenage girls. Send your poem, essay or short story and it might be featured on the “Expresso” blog! Girl Zone is also currently looking for Movie and Music reviewers and girls to talk up the site on the web and in their communities. There also will be more opportunities for writers in the future.
Visit the Girl Zone website to get involved!
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