Bits from Barb

SLP Update
Reports from around the state indicate the bug theme has been very popular this year. I have numerous park passes if anyone needs more. I also have tee shirts, 2 banners, 1 teen and 1 children's stand up display unit, and other display items that I have used here at DPI and can now donate to anyone who can use them. If you know someone who can use them, please let me know. We should be receiving order forms for SLP 2009 ("Be Creative" for children and "Express Yourself" for teens) in September. DLTCL will not be co-sponsoring a fall conference this year because the day before the WLA Fall Conference is Election Day. We want everyone to vote so we will not be sponsoring a fall workshop. I will be happy to work with any Systems that might be offering fall or spring workshops. YSS is interested in co-sponsoring in a fall conference next year.

UW-Madison Offers One Day Course on the Adolescent Brain
UW-Madison is offering the course "Human Brain: Demystifying the Adolescent Brain" on Friday, December 12, 2008, at the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon Street, UW-Madison Campus, from 9:00-4:00. The cost is $125 and lunch will be on your own. This workshop will provide the latest research-based information on adolescent brain development as well as discuss other factors that influence adolescent behavior. The presenter will be Kim Price, PhD. For more information go to http://www.dcs.wisc.edu/pda/aoda/. To register contact Kristi Obmascher 608-262-8971, kobmascher@dcs.wisc.edu or go to www.dcs.wisc.edu/register/cereg.htm (Program #8713).


Additions to the DLTCL Adolescent Literacy Web Page
A new section has been added to the DLTCL Adolescent Literacy Web page at www.dpi.wi.gov/pld/adolit.html. This section includes various summaries of research on topics related to videogaming. The additions include:
* The Educational Value of Videogames
* Issues involved in the Development of Educational Videogrames
* Public Libraries and Videogaming
* Social Value of Gaming
* Combined Bibliography on Videogaming
More summaries on additional topics will be added in September.
Librarians working on LSTA grants that focus on teens with special needs, and which include gaming equipment, may find the "Educational Value of Videogames" and "Public Libraries and Videogaming" helpful. There is some good background information in these documents and some data.

Steppingstones of Technology Innovation for Children with Disabilities Grants
A new federal grant program is being started by Grants.gov, which is a U.S. governmental grant resource. Public libraries are eligible applicants for funding to demonstrate technology innovation for use with children who have disabilities. For more information go to www.ed.gov/programs/oserms/applicant.html#84327a


New Report Available on Wisconsin Children in Immigrant Families
The Wisconsin Council on Children and Families released a report in spring 2008 on Wisconsin Children in Immigrant Families. Among the key findings are:
* 76% of children of immigrant families in Wisconsin were born in the U.S., and are thus U.S. citizens
* 82% live with both of their parents and the parents are married
* 80% of the children have at least one parent who have at least completed high school
* 80% of the children speak English well
* 50% of the children of immigrants in the state live in poverty
To view the full report go to www.wccf.org/pdf/wi_children_immigrant_families.pdf


ALSC and Oprah Team Up on a Kids Reading List
ALSC has teamed up with "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to provide a Kids Reading List on the show's Web site at
www.oprah.com/article/oprahsbookclub/kidsreadinglist/pkgkidsreadinglist/20080701_orig_kids_books
The list is divided into five age groups, from infant to two through 12 and up. Each group contains an annotated bibliography of librarian-recommended reading. There is also a separate "Classics" section, grouped by age ranges, giving parents the opportunity to share the books they once loved with their own children. The Web site also
provides a list of ways to make reading fun for kids, and other helpful tips for parents. The Kids Reading List was compiled by the ALSC Quicklists Consulting Committee, which works to promote books and other resources through recommendations, compilations of lists, and related services.
--Shawn Brommer, South Central Library System

Free PBS Ecology Guide
The Greens, a PBS Web site that encourages kids to explore sustainability and take action wherever they can, is offering free Activity Guides to educators working with 9 to 12-year olds. How-to information pairs hands-on activities to deepen kids' understanding of topics like recycling and global warming with campaigns to reduce junk mail and get drivers to stop idling cars. Order the free Activity Guide at http://meetthegreens.pbskids.org/features/
The Greens Activity Guide contains leader notes, handouts, and how-to information for activities that allow kids to first learn about a problem and then engage in a hands-on activity that can help solve it. Activities can be conducted over separate one-hour sessions and address:
* Cutting down on trash: Kids make a garbage dump pizza and then start a BYOB: Bring Your Own Bag campaign.
* Recycling and reducing: Kids make their own recycled paper and then launch a Reduce Junk Mail campaign.
* Global warming and carbon footprints: Kids investigate the greenhouse effect and then they take action to reduce carbon emissions through a no-idling campaign.
--from Rhonda Puntney, Lakeshores/Mid-Wisconsin Library Systems

SYSTEM YOUTH LIAISON POSTING
Barbara Huntington, DLTCL
August 2008