Posts

Why Weeding Matters

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  Yes, yes, I love books, but I also really love weeding. I like to think that books have a life cycle, some longer than others, and that's okay. Our library is not an archive, and especially for youth things, the trends swing so quickly that it's important to make sure our collection is relevant. WHY? Weeding lets me make more space for not only new items, but also for displays. My goal for most shelves is to have an item on display on each shelf. If possible, I also like to have a few completely empty shelves for full shelf displays, especially handy for graphic novels and chapter books.  HOW? When I'm weeding a section I generally go through 2 times: first with a circulation report and again for condition. I prefer to use a patron count for circulation, rather than a checkout circ (which can include renewals) because it gives me a better picture of how many different people checked out an item. For the circ report, I'm looking for things that have significantly lower...
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Crafting and Creating As a Group

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One of the most powerful things is watching a group of strangers be creative in the same space. As I've expanded programming to include all ages, I've noticed a few group parameters help regardless of the age. Yes, grownups need reminders too. Here's my tips for a successful craft program. Sharing Is Caring  The first time I offered rock painting for grownups I was stunned that the first people through the "shopping" area took almost all the paint markers. I used my most cheerful voice to remind everyone that since you can "only paint with one marker at a time, please share with your neighbors." They looked around and started laughing. Now I start by letting people know that they can always come back to the shopping table and we have plenty for everyone. Keep It Simple Our library offers some amazing craft programs by professionals, but we also added in more flexible, process-based crafts for different age groups. These are more like art buffets, with a ...
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A Case for Keeping Summer Reading Simple: the Program Part

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I feel like this post might need several conditional statements. For the record, I appreciate our amazing kid-focused performer community. I value the work that they do. And also, I've moved away from offering a performer-focused summer reading program schedule. That's not to say I don't have any performers, just that now our programming is heavy on drop in events with little to no prep and clean up, inexpensive supplies and capacity for large crowds. Sound too good to be true?! It's not, I promise. Move Outdoors  Having something outdoors lets you not worry about capacity, gives a more relaxed atmosphere, and invites families to come and go as they need. Think beyond your library and scout out area parks, especially in underserved areas that could use more direct service. Aim for early morning (10-12) or late evening (6-8) when temps are cooler. Having a play structure nearby is plus, since it allows families to stay longer and kids can move their bodies between activi...
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Teen Volunteering Is a Program

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Over the last year, our library had more than 130 teens volunteer over 1,000 hours! Our teen volunteer program is also 10 years strong and, like most of our other programming, now operates at its simplest form ever.  Why?  When I first started at my current library, I was the only youth librarian. Our family programs were very popular and I couldn't do it by myself. I also had teens asking for volunteer options, usually for a class or club requirement, but also just a few motivated teens that loved spending time at the library. I also noticed that during the school year teens didn't attend programs for themselves, but when I asked for help they'd all show up.  I also saw teens develop skills over time: learning how to communicate with adults and each other, taking initiative in creating projects, and problem solving tasks. I also can't discount the effect it has on non-teens. Kids get to see a bigger kid helping, parents see a teen caring, and library staff see a teen n...
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A Case for Keeping Summer Reading Simple: the Reading Part

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I'd like to argue that the best Summer Reading programs are the ones with the least - little or no sign ups, less steps for finishing, and few prizes. In a time of more and more, I think it pays to do less with more intention and purpose.   We* used to do a program with prizes for every 4 hours of reading, special dates for turning in logs for more prizes, and other bells and whistles. Now the Summer Reading program is almost as simple as it can get. Some happened over time, but the final push to its current form came from closures during the pandemic. Here's the steps we've taken and why. No Sign Ups Patrons can find reading logs at all of our service points (circulation, reference, youth desks). Not only that, any of our library staff can explain how Summer Reading works. We used to have a physical sign up area to collect school data, mostly when we were new to outreach and wanted to track it's effectiveness. Now that our outreach is established, there is no benefit t...
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Defining Programs

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In the library world at least, we tend to define programs as advertised offerings for the public, with a set time and date to participate. And we're good at programs; we plan for them, market them, and staff them.  One of my goals is to push people's understanding of what, why and how we're offering programs. Let's unpack this a bit. WHAT?   Traditional programs might include storytimes for families, STEM workshops for kids, and book groups or lectures for grownups. They are concrete and expected.  This is often the starting point for library programming. Let's look at the calendar, what haven't we offered lately, what worked well. But I'll ask that we table this one and come back to it as our last step. This might feel awkward, but trust me. WHY? What's your goal for offering programming? Are you hoping to build community? Reach an underserved population? Keep your space relevant? This requires some reflection. Your gut probably already knows the answer...
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Slow Storytime

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Mention "storytime" and people have a pretty distinct idea about what it looks like - 30 minutes of sitting still, listening to story after story, with a few songs mixed in, maybe a flannelboard story too.  Regardless of whether this resembles your storytime style or not, it's a stereotype of the genre. Breaking that requires very intentional choices on your part and a narrative-shift on the part of your families. Start by asking yourself: What is my goal for storytime? What do I want families to walk away feeling? thinking sharing? What are needs I'm noticing? Concerns families share? If you're part of a team offering storytimes, discuss these questions as a group. Do you have different opinions? Where are you on the same page? While there are no wrong answers, if you said your main goal was for families to have a love of books and reading, I'd ask you to push yourself a little. If you've always read at least 3 books for storytime, I'd ask you to thin...
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