Published bi-weekly by
Read to Me, a service of the Idaho Commission for Libraries
In this Issue:
Welcome
Season's Greetings from Us to You!
It’s the final edition of The Scoop for 2007! We hope you’ve enjoyed this year’s editions. We welcome any feedback and ideas for 2008.
Peggy and I would also like to extend our best wishes for much happiness this holiday season and a New Year filled with health, prosperity, and time to curl up with a great book!
New York Times names Notable Children’s Books of 2007
Find out if your favorites made the list and plan on reading the ones you missed at www.nytimes.com/2007/12/02/books/review/Kids-Notables-t.html. We'd like to hear from you about what books you discovered in 2007 and loved. Send a quick e-mail to Stephanie with your favorite picks from 2007 and we'll publish them in the January issues of The Scoop.
Applications to participate in the 2008 Jump Start program are due February 8, 2008. The online application is available at http://libraries.idaho.gov/jumpstart-ap . Read more about the program under Tips and Tools, below.
Meet Tamra Hawley-House
[Editor's note: You might think librarians are getting younger every day, but actually this is the photo submitted for this issue's profile. She claims it was the last time she took a good picture. Don't believe it.]
Tamra Hawley-House works in the Youth Services department at Boise Public Library. She recently completed her year as Idaho Library Association president, and we asked her what advice she has for others in youth services who are thinking of becoming active in ILA? Tammy's reply," Just do it! You need not be a library director or hold a library degree to get involved. ILA needs members committed to library service through out the state. It has been my experience, having had the pleasure of meeting youth services library staff in Idaho, that people working with children in Idaho libraries (school, public and elsewhere) have a double dose of commitment to service and triple dose of heart. This is exactly what makes a great state-wide association. Remember....that any organization is as good as the people involved. I would encourage all of you to get involved and help make ILA great!"
Tammy has worked in the library field since 1992, when she was hired to do accounting. After getting her MLS at Portland State University, she became head of Youth Services at Ada Community Library. She returned to Boise Public's youth services department in September of 2005. Tammy told us a little about her library, saying, "It is the only public library with a service population of its size in the U.S. without branches. That distinction is about to change as Boise Public will open two branches by the end of this year and follow with two more in the next two years." Tammy has been working on developing the collections for the branches which she describes as "very exciting!" Her favorite thing about her job is the variety of tasks relating to helping the public.
Tammy works with all ages. She does toddler storytime, collection development, reference service, webpage development, and lots of other stuff. What attracted her to youth serivices was watching a child learn to read! She says, "Each day I help parents/caregivers and children develop cognitive skills necessary for reading. And then, once the kids have aged a bit, I help them find information and great books to practice these skills. And here is the kicker................they pay me to do this!"
When asked to pick her favorite author, Tammy replied, "Who in their right mind could pick just one? I love Karen Hesse, Sharon Creech and Kate DiCamillo for juvenile fiction, Chris Crutcher and Karen Cushman for YA, and Mo Willems and Tony DiTerlizzi for picture books....just to name a few!" As a child Tammy read Judy Blume and Hoban's Frances' books. Recently she read The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness by Yongey Mingyu Rinpoche and Today I Will Fly by Mo Willems.
Her favorite flavor of ice cream is peanut butter. When not working, Tammy likes to walk , listen to good music, garden, read, watch movies, cook, and play Suduko.
Library to Library
We received a few more Family Reading Week stories that we wanted to share with you:
Kellogg Public Library / Debra Gibler, director
Thanks so much for this program. All the kids enjoyed seeing the mouse. Brenda Ludwick, an Osburn librarian, and I took the mouse to three daycares, Osburn Library story hour, the Head Start classroom and two Even Start classes. We acted out the story using props for 120+ kids and passed out at least that many books. The mouse appeared at the Pinehurst library for family reading night and Colleen said that 40+ were in attendance. A photo of the mouse with some Even Start students appeared in our local paper on November 17th and again on November 28th. Everyone loves the costumes--I hope this program will be available next year.
Eastern Owyhee County District Library / Kathy Chick, director
The Eastern Owyhee County District Library sent this photo from their very successful Family Reading Week activities. Left to right in the photo: 
Lois Fisher, Hank the Cowdog (Jasper Knight), Lee Gray, and Porter Simper. These four teens had a ball helping Hank and rotating being Hank! All four have loved reading the series. Lois, I think, has the complete collection of Hank books at home! If her collection is not complete, it is very near so!
Our library did have a great time during Family Reading Week. Hank the Cowdog was a great hit! Hank visitied Grand View Elementary School on Monday, Nov. 12. He made the rounds to the classrooms just before the students were dismissed for the day. During the visits flyers for the Family Night activity at the library were distributed and Hank did a few little performances! He had his picture taken with the Special Ed. teacher, Penny Hines, who said while she was a classroom teacher she witnessed Hank getting more kids reading than any other book character. Hank also had his picture taken with the school secretary. She loves Hank!
On Tuesday evening before the Family Night activity, which was 6 to 7:30, Hank walked across the city park to the Senior Center and visited with the members there as they were preparing for their dinner. Hank would have liked to have dinner with them, but they told us there was a Health code that would be violated if a dog ate in their building!!
We had 60 children (10 of those were teens!) and 25 adults attend the Family Night activity at our library. It was wonderful to have so many there. (I had planned on 40 children so we had to really scramble to have enough items for our activities!) Hank had his picture taken with anyone who wanted a photo -- that was almost everyone! The children drew brands (like ranchers use on livestock) on bandanas that they wore during the activity. They also designed and wore paper bag vests.
There was "barrel racing" in the meeting room and "steer roping" in the library room. We made a Hank Memory (match) game that the children had fun playing. Hank the Cowdog books were featured and the adults and teens had the opportunity to read about the author of the Hank stories, John Erickson. We had color pages they could take home. Puppy Chow was served for a treat. At the end of the activity, we had drawings for the Hank books that we recieved from ICFL and other books that our library had purchased or had donated, plus stuffed dogs and other prizes. Four teens helped with the Hank costume that evening -- Lois Fisher, Lee Gray, Jasper Knight, and Porter Simper. Jeremy Poland was Hank during the school visit on Monday. On Thursday, Kathy Chick took Hank to the Mountain Home Air Force Base library so he could visit with the children there during their after school story time. There were only about 10 children in attendance, but Lori Uhr from the base library said they had a great time with Hank and really appreciated him coming to their library. On Friday of that week, Kathy took Hank to the Air Base Youth Center where he was a hit with the children. A Hank the Cowdog book was donated to the Youth Center library by Eastern Owyhee County Library. Hank passed out flyers reminding the children and their parents to read together as a family. Many parents were at the youth center while Hank was there. Most were as excited as the children to see him! There were a few fathers that read about Hank when they were younger!
Kathy thanks the base library and youth center staff members for helping with Hank's appearance on the Air Base. He had a busy week in this part of Idaho. Many parents at Grand View have said how much they appreciated getting to take their children to the library to see Hank and for the fun evening that was presented. Children are still talking about Hank's visit to this very day! Thank you, ICFL, for this opportunity to our small community and giving us the opportunity to share with the Air Force community.
The Smartest Card Rocks the J Town Library!
On December 1, Boise band Building a Better You rocked the Jerome Public Library with a two hour show. Digital Native Services Coordinator Tina Cherry reports over 98 people came and had a great time. "It was a great way to wrap up our library card promotion. We've seen lots of new faces at the library and it was well worth the effot." Tina and the staff at Jerome Public signed up a record 264 teens with new library cards in November! Teens needed to show their library cards to get into the concert. A promotion with a library video on a thumb drive and fun contests also got teens over the hurdle of signing up.
What's next for the library? Teens are invited to enter the J Town Library Video Contest! Here's the simple rules:
- Open to people between 12-19 years old
- Make a video between 2-5 minutes in length
- Bring it to the library by January 13th in a form we can upload to our YouTube page
- Follow YouTube's fair use rules
- Make it at/about the library - be creative
- Videos will be judged by library staff and the YAC
- 1st place video wins $50 cash. The rest get to hang out @ our YouTube page.
Young Adult Corner
Do Teens Read For Fun Anymore?
According to the latest National Endowment for the Arts report on reading, they read less than they used to. The study, "To Read or Not to Read," was released this month as a follow-up to a 2004 NEA survey, "Reading at Risk," that found an increasing number of adult Americans were not even reading one book a year.
"To Read or Not to Read" gathers an array of government, academic and foundation data on everything from how many 9-year-olds read every day for "fun" (54 percent) to the percentage of high school graduates deemed by employers as "deficient" in writing in English (72 percent).
Among the findings:
- In 2002, only 52 percent of Americans ages 18 to 24, the college years, read a book voluntarily, down from 59 percent in 1992.
- Money spent on books, adjusted for inflation, dropped 14 percent from 1985 to 2005 and has fallen dramatically since the mid-1990s.
- The number of adults with bachelor's degrees and "proficient in reading prose" dropped from 40 percent in 1992 to 31 percent in 2003.
Some news is good, notably among nine-year-olds, whose reading comprehension scores have soared since the early 1990s. But at the same time, the number of 17-year-olds who "never or hardly ever" read for pleasure has doubled, to 19 percent, and their comprehension scores have fallen.
"I think there's been an enormous investment in teaching kids to read in elementary school," NEA chairman Dana Gioia said in an interview with the Associated Press. "Kids are doing better at 9, and at 11. At 13, they're doing no worse, but then you see this catastrophic falloff. ... If kids are put into this electronic culture without any counterbalancing efforts, they will stop reading."
Publishers and booksellers have noted that teen fiction is a rapidly expanding category in an otherwise flat market, but the NEA's director of research, Sunil Iyengar, wondered how much of that growth has been caused by the "Harry Potter" books, the last of which came out in July. "It's great that millions of kids are reading these long, intricate novels, but reading one such book every 18 months doesn't make up for daily reading," Gioia said.
The head of Simon & Schuster's children's publishing division, Rick Richter, saw another reason why sales could rise even as scores go down: A growing gap between those who read and those who don't. Richter considers it "very possible" that the market is driven by a relatively small number of young people who buy large numbers of books. Test scores, meanwhile, are lowered by the larger population of teens who don't read. "A divide like that is really a cause for concern," Richter said.
The report emphasizes the social benefits of reading: "Literary readers" are more likely to exercise, visit art museums, keep up with current events, vote in presidential elections and perform volunteer work.
"This should explode the notion that reading is somehow a passive activity," Gioia said. "Reading creates people who are more active by any measure. ... People who don't read, who spend more of their time watching TV or on the Internet, playing video games, seem to be significantly more passive." Gioia called the decline in reading "perhaps the most important socio-economic issue in the United States," and called for changes "in the way we're educating kids, especially in high school and college. We need to reconnect reading with pleasure and enlightenment."
The web site for the NEA's news release and links to the executive summary and full 200 page report is at www.nea.gov/news/news07/TRNR.html. The quotes and information reprinted above are from an article in the IdahoStatesman, www.idahostatesman.com/apentertainment/story/214886.html written by Hillel Italie, AP National Writer.
Talk Back: Take a look at the report and tell us what you think! Just e-mail Peggy or Stephanie and we'll print your comments in The Scoop.
Book Look
Book reviews courtesy of Nancy VanDinter, Bishop Kelly High School librarian, Boise
Bloodline by Kate Cary. Gr. 8-12
Told through journal entries, this is a terrifying vampire tale set in Europe during World War I. Lieutenant John Shaw is horrified to discover that his commanding officer, Quincey Harker, is using the battle field to satisfy his blood lust. His terror builds when he realizes that the man is courting his sister, Lily. When Lily runs off with Harker to his castle in Transylvannia, Shaw and his fiancé set out to rescue her. A fast-moving plot with lots of blood and gore makes this book hard to put down.
Dragon's Keep by Janet Lee Carey. Gr. 8-12
Rosalind is a princess on remote Wilde Island. A 600-year-old prophecy predicts that she will restore her
family to the throne. But she was born with a dragon claw, and her mother will allow no one to know the terrible secret. Rosalind suffers through the charms and potions of numerous healers and wizards. Then she is carried off by the dragon who has been terrorizing her people. While she is forced to care for his motherless young, she discovers the truth about her own dragon blood. This is a good fantasy with non-stop action and an unpredictable plot.
A Hatred for Tulips by Richard Lourie. Gr. 8-12
This is a chilling story of privation and desperation in World War II Amsterdam. When Joop is reunited with his American brother 50 years later, he reveals a dreadful secret. He was the one who betrayed Anne Frank. As a boy, he was responsible for helping to keep his starving family alive. By the end of the war, there was only one way to earn money-sell out the Jews in hiding. This is a very powerful and poignant story of the Holocaust.
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. Gr. 6-12
This is an innovative book that is fun to read. Pictures continue the story when the words stop. Hugo is a
young orphan who lives in a Paris train station and minds the clocks. His obsession is fixing a mechanical man that his father was working on before he died. Hugo befriends an old man who owns a toy booth in the station. The man turns out to be a famous film maker who has been living incognito for years.
Upcoming Events
Happy Anniversary to the Grinch!
Did you know that 2007 is the 50th anniversary of the publication of How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr. Seuss? The children's Christmas picture book has become a classic. In honor of the anniversary, Random House has published How the Grinch Stole Christmas!: A 50th-Anniversary Retrospective, with 32 pages of information and commentary by Seuss collector and scholar Charles D. Cohen.
January Events and Author Birthdays
National Hobby Month - Beat the winter blahs with a new hobby or family activity. Whether its learning a new game to play with your child, picking up that project that has been waiting for a rainy (or snowy) day. For more hobby ideas check out www.associatedcontent.com/article/18675/january_is_national_hobby_month.html
January 7 - Idaho State of the State address will be presented by Governor Otter.
January 21 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a U.S. holiday marking the birth date of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., observed on the third Monday of January each year, around the time of King's birthday, January 15, 1929. It is one of four U.S. federal holidays to commemorate an individual person. For more on Dr. King go to www.infoplease.com/spot/mlkjrday1.html.
Other miscellaneous events to considering observing are: Book Blitz Month, National Get Organized Month, National Clean Off Your Desk Day and Organize You Home Day (January 14th), Customer Service Day (January 17th), National Compliment Day (January 24th – for fun activities see www.complimentday.com/ActivitiesPage_Workplace.htm), and Fun at Work Day (January 25th).
Author Birthdays:
January 4 – Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (born in 1933). “When I was growing up, I hadn't the slightest curiosity about the authors of books I read; it was the story that was important,” says Phyllis. She is the author of Shiloh and The Fear Place. You can read more about the author at www.ipl.org/div/kidspace/askauthor/Naylor.html.
January 5 - Lynne Cherry. Cherry is the author and/or illustrator of over 30 award-winning books for children. Her books such as The Great Kapok Tree and A River Ran Wild teach children to respect the earth. She hopes to get children excited about the prospect of exploring nature so that they will go outside and explore the natural world. For more go to www.lynnecherry.com/
January 11 – Mary Rodgers (born in 1931). She is an American composer of musicals, an author of children's books, and the daughter of Broadway composer Richard Rodgers. Rodgers' children's books include Freaky Friday, Summer Switch, A Billion for Boris (later republished under the title ESP TV), and The Rotten Book, and she contributed songs to the landmark children's album Free to Be… You and Me. For more go to www.charlottezolotow.com/mary_rodgers.htm
January 13 – Michael Bond (born in 1926). This English children's author is the creator of Paddington Bear and has written about the adventures of a guinea pig named Olga da Polga. Bond also writes culinary mystery stories for adults featuring Monsieur Pamplemousse and his faithful bloodhound, Pommes Frites. For more go to www.paddingtonbear.co.uk/en/1/fachismbo.mxs
January 17 - Robert Cormier (1925-2000). Cormier was an American author for young adults. He began writing when he was in the first grade and was praised at school for his poetry. His talent for writing was discovered by a teacher in the 7th grade. Cormier became a full-time writer after the success of his first novel for teenagers, The Chocolate War, followed by others such as I Am the Cheese and After the First Death. For more on Cormier see www.teenreads.com/authors/au-cormier-robert.asp .
January 18 - Alan Alexander Milne (1882 – 1956), also known as A. A. Milne, was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. For more of Milne’s works see: www.winniethepooh.co.uk/author.html
January 22 – Brain Wildsmith (born in 1930). He is the author and illustrator of award-winning books for infants and young children. In 1962, he published his first children's book, ABC. Some of his works include: Farm Animals, Zoo Animals, Jungle Party and more. See http://brianwildsmith.com/ for more on Wildsmith.
January 28 - Vera Williams (born in 1927). Hooray for Me!, was Williams first published work as a professional illustrator. She later went on to write A Chair for My Mother, Something Special for Me, Amber was Brave, Essie was Smart and others. See
www.bookwire.com/bookwire/MeettheAuthor/Interview_Vera_Williams.htm .
January 29 - Rosemary Wells (born in 1943). She was born in New York City and grew up on the New Jersey Shore. Her career as an author and illustrator spans more than 30 years and 60 books. She is the author of Timothy Goes to School, Yoko, Bunny Cakes and more. See http://www.rosemarywells.com/
January 30 - Lloyd Chudley Alexander (1924 – 2007). He was the author of more than 40 books, mostly fantasy novels for children and adolescents, as well as several adult books. His most famous contribution to the field of children’s literature is the fantasy series The Chronicles of Prydain. He is also the author of The Cat Who Wished to be a Man, The Book of Three, The Black Cauldron, Border Hawk and more. For more go to http://friend.ly.net/users/jorban/biographies/alexanderlloyd/index.html
Summer Reading News
Get Ready for the Bug Invasion
Are you having trouble getting inspired about next year's summer reading theme "Catch the Reading Bug?" Do bugs just bug you? Here are a few ideas from the summer reading manual (page 227) that may inspire you. Sponsor a knitting club during the summer. Share the book Sophie's Masterpiece by Eileen Spinelli, which has a great tie in to knitting as there is a knitter in the story and Sophie the spider "knits" a wonderful blanket. Find someone with a spinning wheel to bring in to give a demonstration on how to spin yarn. You could also invite a storyteller to "spin some yarns."
Another idea is to plan a weaving program. Your project could be as simple as weaving paper strips to make checkerboard note cards. Kids Weaving by Sarah Swett has instructions for these and other weaving project for children. Your summer reading manual is a treasure trove of ideas. When you have a little spare time, pull it off the shelf and start planning so you will be ready for the bug invasion next summer!
School Zone
AASL releases report on first longitudinal survey
The American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), has just released the results of its first longitudinal survey, School Libraries Count!
The survey, conducted January-March 2007, gathered data in a number of areas, including library staff, collections, technology, class visits and budgets. AASL will be using the data to develop tools to help library media specialists advocate at the local, state and national level.
"In a time of budget cuts and confusion about the role of library media specialists," said AASL president Sara Kelly Johns, "it is more critical than ever that both the profession and educational decision-makers understand the state of the nation's school library media programs."
The survey will be conducted annually and will result in a longitudinal series that will provide data on the health of the nation's school library media programs. The second survey is scheduled to open at the 2008 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia.
Nancy Everhart, chair of the AASL Research and Statistics Committee, said, "The data from this survey will be valuable to researchers and practitioners alike. Researchers can use it to support further studies, and practitioners can use it to compare their programs to national benchmarks."
To see the survey and the report, visit www.ala.org/ala/aasl/slcsurvey.cfm.
Know the Numbers
Children's Attendance, Circulation Up
Circulation of children's materials in public libraries increased 44 percent and the attendance in children's programs jumped 42 percent from 1994 to 2004, according to a report by the American Library Association. Overall library visits have risen by 61 percent over the last 10 years and circulation is up by 28 percent, according to data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
The same can be said for school libraries -- where the number of students served increased more than five percent from 1999 to 2004, despite deep fiscal constraints experienced by school districts nationwide, says NCES.
For a copy of the report, visit www.ala.org/2007State.
A Closer Look at Early Literacy Programming
Libraries serve an important role in promoting early literacy skills in babies, toddlers, and preschool children. Already, libraries promote these skills through access to books, storytimes, parenting information, knowledgeable staff, and much more. The Oregon State Library has formulated “A Framework for Action” of several concrete ways public libraries can encourage children, parents, and caregivers to develop reading and language proficiency in four different areas:
- Early Literacy materials/collections
- Atmosphere/children’s environments
- Programming
- Training and staff development
Last issue we highlighted information about early literacy collections. This issue we’re including their ideas on programming (and adapting some to fit with Idaho). Below are several concrete ways you can encourage children, parents, and caregivers to develop reading and language proficiency by looking at your library’s programming. Some libraries may have more defined early literacy programs than others. You may be starting a program (First Steps) or be improving an already great program (Giant Steps). Take a look at the following list and check off the activities that you’re already doing. Even if you don’t have an early literacy program, you may be surprised by how much you’re already doing to prepare children to read in all three areas. And even if you’ve been working with early literacy for a long time, you may find ideas in First, Next, or Giant Steps that may help you enhance your activities. Regardless as to where you’re at in your program, we hope this inspires you to further help the children in your communities.
To ensure that all libraries have high quality early literacy programs …
FIRST STEPS:
- Offer storytimes for preschoolers
- Offer the Statewide Summer Reading Program with “Read To Me” component
- Add a preschooler’s component to your Summer Reading Program
NEXT STEPS:
Storytimes
- Offer baby storytimes
- Offer toddler storytimes
- Offer storytimes in the library for visiting groups from early education sites and child care facilities
Other Children’s Programs
- Integrate a book giveaway component into a program
- Offer the Teen Version of the Statewide Summer Reading Program in conjunction with the “Read To Me” component for teen parents and their children
- Explore the use of trained volunteers in order to expand your children’s programming
Literacy Training
- Offer early literacy programs for parents and caregivers
Community Outreach
- Offer storytimes at early education sites and child care facilities
GIANT STEPS:
Storytimes
- Offer developmentally appropriate storytimes for:
- Babies 0-12 months
- Tiny Tots 12-24 months
- Toddlers 24-36 months
- Preschoolers 36-60 months
- Family Time for children of all ages
- Bilingual Spanish
- Offer storytimes in the library in languages other than English
- Offer StoryStop – spontaneous opportunities to read aloud to children anytime during library’s open hours
- Offer storytimes at social service agencies, early education sites and child care facilities
- Offer programming (storytimes) at summer lunch sites
Other Children’s Programs
- Offer sign language for babies workshops (Baby Sign)
- Offer music workshops
- Offer physical movement sessions (sessions that integrate language, literacy and movement)
- Add a “Read to Me” component to your Summer Reading Program
- Create a school readiness program or fair for parents of incoming kindergarteners
- Train Foster Grandparents, teens or other volunteers to expand your children’s programs
- Create a Read to the Dogs program: reading encouragement for the reluctant reader
- Evaluate all of your programs to prove their effectiveness
Literacy Training
- Offer teen parent programs
- Offer early literacy workshops for parents and caregivers
- Offer a Book Group for parents to read and discuss parenting books
- Offer workshops for parents in the library or in social service and community agencies to reach highest need families
- Partner with elementary schools to offer parent workshops in early literacy for families with kindergarten and first grade children and their younger siblings
- Work with the Idaho Stars program to get your workshops approved for educational credit hours to satisfy the state requirements
Community Outreach
- Explore outreach to more partners (like heath care)
- Convene a meeting of early childhood partners to discuss a collaborative project
- Host an early childhood fair at your library or, if there is one in existence, set up a booth for the library
- Propose a session at your local AEYC conference or other early childhood professional group to discuss early literacy partnerships with child care providers in your community
- Offer newborn gift packets to all first births, including a free book and Baby’s First Library Card
- Outreach through food banks – provide books in bags of food
- Outreach programs to Head Start
- Outreach for library card recruitment to low income housing developments and migrant worker camps
- Partner with health care providers to provide books to children birth to 5 years and prescriptions for their parents to read with them 20 minutes a day
- Work with all high schools to talk to teen parents about the importance of reading aloud with their children
- Advocate for an early literacy component to the core curriculum of the Department of Education (to enhance Teen Parent programs)
- Arrange for a speaker about early literacy research or the economic benefit of investing in early childhood programs
Tips & Tools
Idaho libraries encouraged to participate in 2008 Jump Start program
Applications to participate in the 2008 Jump Start program are due February 8, 2008. The online application is available at http://libraries.idaho.gov/jumpstart-ap .
Participating libraries host a library table at kindergarten registration and partner with the school librarian when possible. Librarians will hand out prepared packets of early literacy and library information to families and a free copies of Look Out Kindergarten, Here I Come! by Nancy Carlson to give one to each child registering for Kindergarten. Libraries are encouraged to customize the folders and displays with local library and summer reading program information.
Last year 40 Idaho public libraries worked with 72 elementary schools to distribute books and information to over 5,500 families. We hope to increase that number this year. If an elementary school wants to take part in the program and their public library is not able to participate, please complete the application and we’ll send you the materials. We encourage you to contact your public library to get local information about summer reading programs, etc.
Library staff who participated last year reported great results. Here’s a few of their comments:
“The school administration appreciated our effort, the kids were excited, and the parents loved it.” – Mary Nate, Bear Lake County District Library
We had a good response from the parents who seemed to appreciate the information in the packet about the learning skills needed to prepare their children for school. The next day a father told me that he read "Look out Kindergarten..." to his son at least 50 times. We would like to do it again. The kindergarten teacher appreciated it and it was a great opportunity to meet the children and to tell about the library. - Nezperce Branch Library
Great program, kids loved the books, parents appreciated the info!! And a local kindergarten teacher who listened to my presentation asked if I would come in the fall and present to her parents!! WOW!! – Lewiston City Library
For more information about the program, see http://libraries.idaho.gov/jumpstart or contact Stephanie anytime.
New Books!
The Idaho Commission for Libraries Professional Development Service (PDS) provides access to numerous titles in the field of library and information sciences. Free shipping to and from your library is provided! See http://libraries.idaho.gov/pds for more information. The following are a few of the recent additions.
Teaching Teachers to Use Technology, edited by LaMont Johnson, Haworth Press, 2006 [ICFL 027.8 TEACHIN].
Though teachers may have access to the latest technology, they often avoid it because they don’t understand it or how to use it to their best advantage. This book provides numerous strategies for effectively infusing technology into teacher education and includes models for professional and staff development, inquiry learning, network-based assessment, and collaborating through online learning and publications to increase the quality and quantity of educators entering the workforce as classroom teachers.
Information Literacy: What Does It Look Like in the School Library Media Center?, by Ann Marlow Riedling, Libraries Unlimited, 2004, [ICFL 027.8 RIEDLIN].
This helpful instructional manual is designed to teach school library media specialists what information literacy “looks like”—in general, in the school, in the classroom, in your mind, in life, and in motion. An all-inclusive practical guidebook, it discusses information literacy, research, independent learning, ethics, and more.
The Thriving Library: Successful Strategies for Challenging Times, by Marylaine Block, Information Today, 2007, [ICFL 025.1 BLOCK].
Here is a highly readable guide to strategies and projects that have helped more than 100 libraries gain community support and funding during challenging times. The result of the author’s survey, research, analysis, and extended interviews with innovative librarians is a rich source of ideas and encouragement for those who want their libraries to thrive, not merely survive.
The New Rules of Marketing and PR, by David Meerman Scott, John Wiley, 2007, [658.8 SCOTT 2007].
The Internet has profoundly changed the way people communicate and interact with each other as well as the way businesses communicate with current and potential customers. This book shows you how to establish a personal link with those who make your business work.
News Beyond Idaho
Pittsburgh library fundraises with Create a Craft Parties
The Avalon Public Library, a small library in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has established Create a Craft birthday parties as a fund-raising method for the library. Parents first select a party theme, such as Angelina Ballerina, Bob the Builder, Cinderella, Dora the Explorer, Hello Kitty, Little Mermaid, Pricess or Prince, Max and Ruby, Wonder Pets, and so forth. The parents then select a craft. Library director Susan McClellan can assist with the selection when parents need help; crafts can be anything from fun foam crafts, jewelry making, puppet making, purse decoration, sand art, sun catcher crafts, t-shirt decoration, or flip-flop decoration, depending on the party theme. Final party preparations are discussed with the director. Parents provide the paper products, birthday supplies, and the food.
The library staff read stories to the children, provide entertainment such as games and themed activities, and help the partygoers with their take-home crafts for only $5 per child. Parents say this is a nice alternative to Chuck E. Cheese or having a party in a restaurant and it's much less expensive. The birthday parties have been well-liked. The most popular is the princess theme with fun foam crown and castle decorating. (Reprinted from the May/June 2007 issue of Public Libraries)
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Last updated: March 17, 2008 - 7:24am by stephanie.baile...
