We've Moved!

We've enjoyed using blogger as our blog platform for "Little Nic Bits" the past few years.

But, with our new website going live in August 2015, we have moved the blog!

Thanks for following us!

Illinois Professional Development for Serving People with Disabilities

In recognition of the anniversary of ADA25, the RAILS (Illinois) library system has partnered with ADA25Chicago to offer professional development and learning opportunities to librarians and library staff about serving people with disabilities. 

Click here for the post on the SNAILS blog. 

Children's Performer Directory to End

Announced in 2014, the Wisconsin Children's Performer Directory is closed. The DPI Public Library Development team no longer has budget or staff resources to support the Directory, which has also come to pose some liability issues for the agency.

The last day to access the Directory will be Monday, August 31, 2015. To capture a personal copy of the Directory before it is deleted, users might consider printing some or all of the webpages, or copying and pasting the webpage content into a document.

To see how to save or capture the pages, see the blog post on WI Libraries for Everyone. 

In the future, NFLS will be maintaining a regional listing of performers only. 

Supercharged Storytimes

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Division for Libraries and Technology is one of five state library agencies recently selected by OCLC to participate in a second pilot program called Supercharged Storytimes in the fall of 2015. 

Check out the blog post on WI Libraries for Everyone to learn more. 

Grassroots Meeting Set for September 17

Grassroots Meeting
Thursday, September 17; 12 pm-4 pm
Kress Family Branch Library
3.5 CE Credits
Our annual meeting will feature Marge Loch-Wouters, children's librarian extraordinaire (now retired!), who will share ideas and resources from her six years of creating fun, simple, developmentally-appropriate storytimes. 

 Come prepared to learn, share and participate in an interactive presentation.

Pizza and soda for lunch will be included. 

Register today! 

July Youth Services Showcase

Note: Marinette County's Lara Lakari submitted the 3 Little Pigs idea.  

Check out this month's edition of the Showcase to find examples of:

·         A "1000 Books" anniversary celebration

·         A visit from the chamber orchestra

·         Summer library program YouTube videos, and

·         Engineering with the 3 Little Pigs (+1).

View this month's Showcase here: http://pld.dpi.wi.gov/pld_showcase.

Anyone is welcome to submit content and ideas for the Showcase; e.g., librarians, library directors, proud parents, supportive colleagues, etc. Only contributions featuring Wisconsin youth services and Wisconsin public libraries will be featured on the Showcase. Collaborative projects can be submitted; however, the Showcase will focus on the public library connection; e.g., a photo of a library book talk at a 4-H meeting will emphasize public library outreach.

Tessa Michaelson Schmidt

Public Library Youth and Special Services Consultant

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

LSTA Guidelines for 2016

The 2016 LSTA Information and Guidelines document is now available online.  What might this mean for you?

LSTA grants are available to Wisconsin public libraries and systems for one-year projects in specific categories.  Your library system might apply for a grant on behalf of multiple libraries in your system, two or more libraries might apply for a grant that benefits both libraries, or a multiple systems might apply for a joint project.  Libraries and/or systems can apply to do projects independently or collaboratively, although one institution must serve as the grant administrator/fiscal agent.

Grant categories that might especially interest youth services staff include Digital Creations, Literacy, and Accessibility.  The Digital Creations category encourages creative projects related to the maker movement.  Literacy projects are designed to expand literacy opportunities for a specific population, such as adolescent literacy for at-risk teens or financial literacy for all ages. The accessibility category is intended to help libraries and communities look at who might have difficult, limited, or minimized use of the library, such as families with limited transportation options  or English Language Learners.

Lastly, the LSTA calendar has been amended from previous years.  Projects will be scheduled to run from April 1, 2016 through March 31, 2017.  The online application will open later this month.  See below for more details, including an upcoming informational webinar.

Please be in touch if I can offer any assistance.

Thank you for your consideration,

Tessa Michaelson Schmidt

Public Library Youth and Special Services Consultant

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction