Bits from Barb

DNR Recommendation Against Releasing Purchased Butterflies
As librarians plan their summer, one activity they may be contemplating is a butterfly release. At the October workshop we learned that the DNR recommends that NO purchased butterflies be released into the wild. The reason is that the purchased butterflies come from the same genetic stock. If they are released into the wild they could breed with wild butterflies and dilute the gene pool. If the library wants to release butterflies one approach is to create a small area indoors which contains the butterflies and where they can live out their short lives as adults.

These areas are fairly simple to create. The Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary in Green Bay can help explain how to create an indoor butterfly release area. They routinely release Painted Lady butterflies in their indoor habitat at the Sanctuary.
Part of what we want to share with children is respect for insects and their environment. Avoiding the release of commercially bred butterflies can help maintain strong wild gene pools for insects.

For guidance on creating an indoor release area, contact Kim Diedrich, Sanctuary Naturalist at kimdi@ci.green-bay.wi.us or call 920-391-3677 or your regional DNR
etymologist.

LibraryPalooza Resources
Stephanie Stokes, who lives in California, is working with Mr. Anderson's Company. In the past she shared many great ideas with CSLP members as Chair of the CSLP Marketing and PR Committee. She has created a new library resource web site called LibraryPalooza.

She has a significant section devoted to the 2008 summer reading program themes. She will be adding new things continually. One of her featured items this month is the "Catch the Reading Bug" screen created by Carissa Christner, as part of her display at the SLP Workshop in October. There is a link to the font used by Harry Bliss is his 2009 "Catch the Reading Bug" artwork.

YALSA Book Club Grant
The Great Stories CLUB (Connecting Libraries, Underserved teens, and Books) is a book club grant program organized by the American Library Association Public Programs Office (PPO), in cooperation with the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Major funding for the Great Stories Club has been provided by Oprah's Angel Network.

The Great Stories Club is a reading and discussion program that targets underserved, troubled teen populations. The program reaches teens through books that are relevant to their lives, inviting them to read and keep the books, and encourages them to consider and discuss each title with a group of their peers. It seeks to show that reading can be a source of pleasure, a tool for self-exploration, and a meaningful way to connect to the wider world. Its ultimate goal is to inspire young adults who face difficult situations to take control of their lives by embracing the power
of reading.

The program is built on partnerships between libraries and a variety of organizations that serve troubled teens, including juvenile justice facilities, alternative high schools, drug rehabilitation centers, nonprofits serving teen parents, and other agencies.

All types of libraries (public, school, academic and special), located within or working in partnership with facilities serving troubled teens in the United States and its territories are eligible to apply for a Great Stories Club grant. Libraries that have already received a Great Stories Club grant are eligible to apply again, provided that the required final report has been submitted.

The online application will be available from December 3, 2007-February 1, 2008. All applications must be submitted by February 1. Libraries that are selected to receive a Great Stories Club grant will receive eleven sets of three theme-related books (33 books in all) to provide to members of the book club to keep, along with online resources to plan and implement the program. Some libraries (10-20) will also be selected to receive a small cash grant to support program-related expenses. See the
guidelines for complete details.


BadgerLink Parent Toolkit

The Reference and Loan Library has developed a BadgerLink Parent Toolkit to provide public libraries with materials and support to assist in the promotion of BadgerLink resources. One of the Toolkit components is a set of Resource Hunt cards that are designed to teach users how to use various resources on BadgerLink. The cards have questions on one side and answers on other and provide valuable experiences in learning specific techniques for using BadgerLink resources. There is a set of cards for parents and a set for students.

The BadgerLink Resource Hunt cards were distributed as a boxed set that can be placed next to a public access terminal and used to train users in various aspects of searching BadgerLink resources. The development of the cards was funded through the Gates Foundation as part of DPI's statewide project. Retired school library media center staff, Cindy Turner and Cara Cavins, assisted with the content development. Public library system youth service staff have expressed a willingness to assist library staff in ways to use the cards to promote BadgerLink use.

A template for the cards is available on the BadgerLink Toolkit site and can be used by any Wisconsin library to print additional copies of the BadgerLink Resource Hunt cards. Here is the web address.

There was a misprint on one of the questions from the Parent Set. Therefore, we have included in the mailing a replacement set for this particular question with the appropriate verbiage.

--from WISPUBLIB, Lisa H.
Reale, lisa.reale@dpi.state.wi.us
- System Youth Liaison Posting, December 2007

Handouts from Fall SLP Workshop

Those of you who did not get a chance to attend the Fall SLP Workshop at the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary might want to check out some of the handouts that are posted on the DPI Website.

There are some crafts, chants, songs, recipes and readers' theater scripts.

Check them out!

SRP Theme Input Needed

Barb Huntington asked for feedback on the 2010 and 2011 Themes.  As a system, we will submit our top 5 ideas that will be collaborated with the other systems. The top choices are voted on at the CSLP meeting that Barb attends in April.     

The general theme for the 2010 CSLP summer reading program is: Water(lakes, rivers, oceans,conservation, etc.) With this in mind, please submit up to five slogan suggestions for the CHILDREN'S THEME and TEEN THEME.
Remember the public should associate the slogan with LIBRARY and READING.


Please submit up to five broad-based themes for the CSLP 2011 summer reading program. Keep in mind at this time we are only looking for general themes and not specific slogans for 2011.

Please get me these by the end of January, 2008!  I will send another reminder as we get closer.

Teen "Brown Bags" Coming Soon!

Stay tuned for more information on Teen Brown Bag Meetings for 2008! Linda Jerome of the La Crosse Public Library will be speaking at our Teen Summer Swap on March 12th, and more opportunities for swapping and sharing for teens will be coming along!

Catch the Reading Bug Sites

The Virtual Insectary
The Virtual Insectary not only provides images of some common insects, but includes information on the foods which they eat as well as the habitats where they can be found. Excellent photographs and close ups of insects.

Young Entomologists Society
Organization kids can join to share their interest in bugs with other kids.

Origami Butterfly
Decorate your library with these cute butterflies!

Journey North: A Global Study of Wildlife Migration and Seasonal Change

Journey North engages students in a global study of wildlife migration and seasonal change. K-12 students share their own field observations with classmates across North America. They track the coming of spring through the migration patterns of Monarch butterflies, robins, hummingbirds, whooping cranes, gray whales, bald eagles — and other birds and mammals; the budding of plants, changing sunlight; and other natural events. Find migration maps, pictures, standards-based lesson plans, activities and information to help students make local observations and fit them into a global context. Widely considered a best-practices model for education, Journey North is the nation's premiere "citizen science" project for children. The general public is welcome to participate.

~ from Rhonda Puntney, CEO, Youth Services Update, Issue 296, Nov. 7, 2007

Chi

Do Teens Refuse To Read?

Katy Neville, youth services librarian with North Carolina's Wake County Public Libraries, does a "Q and A" with the Kansas City Star on teen reading. Some of the questions asked of her include:

What proof do you have that teens read?
What can schools do to encourage reading?
Who is the most popular teen author?

Click here to read the article.

Bits from Barb

State Park Passes for 2007
 The Wisconsin State Parks Department has agreed to offer daily park passes in the summer of 2008 in conjunction with the Summer Reading Program. They are using their own variation of the national theme for state parks in 2008, "No Child Left Inside." It should be a wonderful collaboration. If we work with county fairs in 2008, I anticipate assisting libraries at the county level to work out agreements with their own county fairs. The
arrangements are likely to be more effective than what I am able to negotiate with individual fairs. Libraries in many counties already do this.

Beginning in 2008 Children's Book Week Will Move to May
 While Children's Book Week has traditionally been celebrated in November, next year the celebration will move to May 12-18, 2008. This decision was made by the Children's Book Council, Inc. (CBC), after much discussion with teachers, librarians, and booksellers from around the country. While the CBC recognized that moving the dates might inconvenience those people who have celebrated CBW in November for years, they had also received complaints about the November dates for many years, with teachers and librarians finding the timing impossible due to Thanksgiving and other holiday interruptions.
 According to Michelle F. Bayuk, Marketing Director of the CBC, there really was no perfect time when looking for alternative dates, and early May provided the best opportunities for promotion and activities within all constituencies. Also, many of the teachers and librarians contacted by the CBC noted that this will be a great way to culminate the school year and to link Children's Book Week to local summer reading programs, perhaps even making Children's Book Week the launch of summer reading. The 2007 Children's Book Week will be celebrated November 12-18, 2007. Visit http://www.cbcbooks.org for more information.

Free Nursery Rhyme Mini-Coloring Book from Louisiana
 The State Library of Louisiana has produced a series of 24 one-page printable nursery rhyme mini books for children to color and keep. Each mini book requires one sheet of 8.5 x 11 paper and just 2 folds. Librarians are encouraged to print them out and give them to children, parents, and teachers after programs, tours, presentations, as part of preschool outreach book delivery services, etc. All 24 mini books can be found as a PDF on the State Library's web site at:
www.state.lib.la.us/empowerlibrary/ALL%2024%20NRNS%20Mini%20Books.pdf

From the SYSTEM YOUTH LIAISON POSTING, Barbara Huntington, DLTCL
October/November 2007