Resources to Help Serve the "Whole Child"

Recently Tess Prendergast compiled a host of excellent resources on Whole Child Development (WCD) which "focuses on all aspects of a child's growth and well-being."

She shares information about WCD as well as some excellent online resources.

Click here to access the resources. [Whole Child Development Resources. Prendergast, Tess. ALSC blog. July 15, 2024.]

Tips for Non-Children's Folks Working the Children's Desk

With summer coming up, many youth department staff are reaching out to their co-workers in other departments to give a hand by covering the desk during heavier program times or to help with unexpected illness or other surprises. 

A recent ALSC blog post by Christine Herman gives some great tips to share with this wonderful co-workers to help them feel comfortable working with kids if they don't regularly interact with them. 

Christine writes: "You never signed up to work with kids, you never expected to work with kids… and yet, here you are, covering the Children’s Department. This is a pretty common scenario, and it can be frustrating for people who worry they’re out of their depth or those who just feel rusty or out of place. Even for people who have had children of their own, suddenly dealing with strangers’ children can be an alarming experience!"

Please stop here to find all her practical tips for interacting successfully with kids. [Top Tips for Working with Kids (When You Don't Usually Work with Kids. Herman, Christine. ASLC blog. May 5, 2024.]

Resilient Minds PBS KIDS EdCamp in Eau Claire

 

 

Saturday May 18

9:30 am-1:30 pm

L.E.Phillips Memorial Public Library

Join PBS Wisconsin Education at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library in Eau Claire for a free fun-filled day of sharing, collaborating, and learning. Share and learn about resources that help children work through challenges with resilience and perseverance. Network and collaborate with other PreK-3 educators and providers in participant-driven sessions on SEL and resilience, and explore free PBS KIDS bilingual learning resources. Early childhood providers will receive 3 hours of FREE Wisconsin Registry credit!

To register, please stop here.

ASL for Stortime Webinar

From DPI's Jeni Schomber's weekly Youth Services Weekly Reminders and Resources Updates 4/4/24:

ASL for Storytime: Feelings Signs Webinar 

(CLEL – Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy)– Wednesday April 24^th at 2 p.m.

 Click here to register.

Add some American Sign Language to your storytime toolbox! In this interactive session, we’ll focus on basic ASL vocabulary for emotions and activities to support self-awareness, an important social emotional skill. Learn how to incorporate ASL into storytime songs, rhymes, and stories in a respectful and effective way. 

About the Presenter:
Kathy MacMillan is a nationally certified American Sign Language interpreter, librarian, and storyteller. She is the author of the Little Hands Signing series from Familius Press and Little Hands and Big Hands: Children and Adults Signing Together (Hands Up Press) as well as many other books for children, teens, librarians, and educators. She has worked in school and public libraries for over 25 years and has presented workshops and trainings for thousands of library staff throughout North America. Find her online at StoriesByHand.com.

Picture Books with SEL

Whenever Tess Prendergast writes a post for the ALSC blog, I sit up and take notice. Her well-thought out and well-researched insights on early literacy, preschool literature and services are always fascinating. She worked as a children’s librarian for 23 years and has a PhD in early literacy education and now teaches librarianship and children’s literature courses at The School of Information, University of British Columbia, in Vancouver, Canada. She currently facilitates the ALSC Preschool Discussion group and has served on both the Geisel (2023) and Caldecott (2016) committees.

In her most recent ALSC post, Tess writes: "Most children’s library workers have already heard of the concept called social and emotional learning (SEL). In many ways, its exact definition is self-evident: SEL is learning that seeks to address the social and emotional developmental needs of children.[1]

Among many other benefits to children’s overall literacy growth, I believe that children’s picture books present rich opportunities for practitioners to extend understanding of specific SEL concepts. Although no single picture book can fully demonstrate all the complexities of SEL, here I have selected some of my favourite, recently published picture books and linked them to the 5 dimensions of SEL which are: Self-awareness; Self-management; Responsible decision-making; Relationship skills; and Social Awareness. "

To read Tess's suggestions and resources, please click here [Reading Picture Books through a Social and Emotional Learning Lens. Prendergast, Tess. ALSC blog. January 18, 2024.]

ALL.THE.THINGS. with Jonathan Dolce SLP 2023 Edition

We haven't heard from our favorite link- and info- crazy colleague Johnathan in a while but he popped up on the ALSC blog recently sounding the clarion call of getting ready for SLP 2022 with a zillion ideas to get you revved up and motivated.

He writes: : "But It’s Still Winter…Believe it or not, this is my 20th year working – as a paid employee – in Central Florida libraries. If you include volunteering…well…that’d be most of my life. From all I’ve ever experienced, you can never be fully or overly prepared for a season of summer reading programming. As a matter of fact, I am known for ALWAYS having a backup plan for each program, right down to duplicates of mission critical equipment. Sounds like a military operation, doesn’t it?

So, yes, it’s January and we are talkin’ All Together Now, our 2023 Summer Reading Program!"

To read the full post, please stop here. [All Together Now 2023 SRP. Dolce, Johnathan. ALSC blog. January 19, 2023.]