Genius Files: The Launchpad

Kate Davis, YSS Board Member and Programming Consultant for the Prairie Lakes Library System has introduced a new new email blast for her library system called The Genius Files. Here's the newest edition:

Greetings!

Today's genius idea comes from me (Kate Davis). It's a passion project I've been working on for months and I'm finally ready to release it to the big wide world... The Launchpad: Lift-off Ready Programs

Screengrab from The Launchpad blog

This all-ages programming blog comes filled with not just ideas, but marketing templates, supply lists, accessibility/inclusion suggestions, book lists, reusability ideas, and so much more. I want this to be a one-stop shop to make your program planning time more effective and less stressful.

I'm constantly adding new programs and would love to add your ideas as well! Here's a link to send those ideas to me. It's also located on the homepage of the blog.

Please share this with your colleagues and cohorts. And, as always, let me know of any suggestions or ideas!

Interactive Movie: The Princess Bride

 

Photo from Middleton Public Library

If you're looking for a big dose of nostalgia, look no further than an interactive movie showing of an old classic. Earlier today our library hosted a family-friendly interactive showing of The Princess Bride. An interactive movie can be as elaborate as you'd like, and is a simple way to step up your regular library movie viewing experience. There were three keys to the success of our movie showing.

1. A fun and active script. Ours included things like "booing" anytime Prince Humperdinck was on screen, "oohing" at the kissing scenes, slapping your forehead anytime Vizzini says, "inconceivable," bowing anytime someone said "As you wish" and so much more. 

Photo from Middleton Public Library

2. Themed props. We did this in two ways. First was a table full of themed snacks. Gummy worms to represent shrieking eels, peanut butter cups for Princess Buttercup, ring pops and peanuts. We also gave out bags of props to be used during the movie. Ours included blow up swords, pixie sticks to act as iocane powder, slide whistles, glow sticks and more. 

3. A group of librarians and patrons who are not afraid to make a bit of a fool of themselves and who want to have a good time! Our group was a mix of people who loved the movie and those who had never seen it before, and everyone had an equally amazing time. 

We got a lot of our inspiration from this blog post from 2014. [The Princess Bride Backyard Movie Night. Purple Patch Parties. September 4, 2014.]  https://purplepatchparties.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-princess-bride-backyard-movie-night.html

Chicks in the Library!

 Chicks in the Library!

One of the best parts of spring at the Middleton Public Library is chick week. It's just like Shark Week, but cuter. For two years now, baby chicks have spent their first week of life at the library, and people love it. Chicks make a wonderful temporary library pet with their sweet chirps and funny antics!

The week includes chicken themed storytimes, chick meet and greets, chicken crafts and more. Before the chicks arrive, patrons vote on literary themed names for the chicks picked out by library staff. It isn't all about the cuteness though. Information is provided about the breeds of chickens, rules and regulations for keeping chickens, and a video all about raising chickens plays on a loop near the brooder. 

To see pictures from the chick photo shoot take a look at Middleton Public Library's Facebook Page.

Let us know what cool things your library is doing these days!

Neon Art Show Program Collaboration

Nick Andrews, director in Elmwood  (population 810) recently shared the following message to the Youth Services listserv in IFLS and Leah Langby shared it with us.  What a great collaboration and fun program!

Nick shares:

I just wanted to share an art collaboration with my local elementary art teacher. They had five classroom's worth of glow-in-the-dark artwork, and a handful of black lights. I had a place to show it all off, the time to help put it all up, and the willingness to spend $60 on LED light strips and glow in the dark balloons. Between the two of us, we planned out where it would go, talked it up to all our school families, and placed all the art and lights. Additional props to the art teacher's kids, who helped me get all the balloons inflated.

Then we had the regular lights off for two hours this evening, and nearly 100 people came through to see the show! (those are excellent numbers for us, I'm really excited )

Partly I'm bragging because I had so much fun with so many of my student artists, but I also wanted to mention how far this went with just a handful of conversations with my local art teacher and a willingness (and capacity) to help turn the library into a gallery.

Squishmallow Fun in Minoqua

Today's guest blogger is Jennifer Davis, the YA Coordinator at Minocqua Public Library. Welcome Jennifer!

Our library has a twice a month club called Club Connect that anyone (kids-teens) can attend, with no registration required. Each one is a different theme. One is run by our children's librarian and the other by our teen librarian (myself). We've had a few that have been more successful than others - this one being one of those more successful ones! 

Prep for this program consisted of putting out plastic tablecloths, canvases, paint, water dishes, and brushes as well as some printed images of some of the more popular Squishmallows. I set the Squishmallow images (in frames) on a table for kids to choose to bring to their spots for inspiration. I had one of our staff members create several cardstock templates for me of the basic shape of a Squishmallow (like a large gum drop) for kids to use to trace in pencil on to their canvas. Once the basic form was traced, they then could design their own Squishmallow or draw one using one of the sample images of an existing Squishmallow. Once they had completed their sketched designs, they went to town painting! 

Music was playing and I set out some basic snacks consisting of Rice Krispie bars, and it was a super fun and easy program where everyone left with a smile on their face! 

If you have any questions, I can be reached at jdavis@minocqualibrary.org. Happy programming! 

Library Hosts "Card Crawl"

As seen in the WVLS (Wisconsin Valley Library Service November 2023 Newsletter

We know that pubs host “pub crawls,” but what about Card Crawls?

In this guest edition of the WVLS Newsletter, Mike Paulus, Digital Services & Marketing Specialist at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library in Eau Claire, talks about “Card Crawl 2023” held in September. 
 

How did you get the idea to host this event?
A lot of things came together for our Card Crawl event. We’ve had cardholder appreciation days during Library Card Sign-Up Month in the past, but this was the first one we’ve held post pandemic. In past years, the library used to have a prize drawing and offer patrons free candy if they showed their library card. This year, we went way bigger.

Our building recently underwent an $18.5M renovation, and we’d just moved back in and reopened the doors in October of 2022. One thing the renovation added was all these new outdoor spaces—a plaza, a makerspace courtyard, a third floor terrace, etc. Since people really hadn’t had time to explore the new spaces, this spring we had an “Outdoor Open House” with free ice cream (donated) and special activities in all the outdoor areas. 

This fall, we decided to upgrade the cardholder appreciation day using the Outdoor Open House’s basic concept of having activities and giveaways all over the library. It was great for us because many locals still hadn’t seen everything the new building had to offer. The idea of showing your library card to get free stuff (and have fun) was a no-brainer, and it led to the “Card Crawl” name. The event was held on Saturday, September 30 from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Patrons were encouraged to bring in their library cards, or get a new one, and explore the building to unlock loads of library fun. There were fun freebies all over the building, a big book sale, free frozen custard from Culver’s, cool craft activities, a grand prize drawing, and more. 

Why did you think it was important to do this event? 
Showing appreciation for current cardholders and making new ones was the most important part, and we wanted people to be proud of having a library card. We also wanted people to explore the new building more fully, so the freebie stations people had to “crawl” to were by all these newer and often overlooked amenities.

 The Card Crawl brought all library   departments together. Our planning   committee was made up of people   from most departments, each   handling the tasks that highlighted   their areas. We worked very closely   with our amazing Friends of the   Library. They’re normally a more   independent entity, but we relied on   each other’s strengths to make it all   work. Everyone was working   together and excited about the same thing. 

Furthermore, we strengthened some community partnerships that day. Our city’s transit organization lobbied to their board to get free bus rides all over the city with a library card. City Transit was pleased with the results and attention they received.  Culver’s got a bunch of love from our customers, and our local nature conservatory had a huge turnout for its activities.

What was the turn out? 
Turnout was great, with approximately 1,800 people, which is three times our normal Saturday attendance. 

How many new library cards were given out? 
We signed up 77 new cardholders and renewed, updated, or replaced about 134 cards. That’s normally what we do in a whole week.

What was the most popular part of the crawl? 
It’s hard to beat free ice cream! Culver’s served 630 scoops of frozen custard over four hours. Also, I and a fantastic staffer from our Youth Services Department (who I happen to be married to) got to be “Card Crawlers.” Kids LOVED spotting us and showing us their library cards for additional prizes.

What would the library do differently if you did this again? 
Next year, we’ll need to plan on some extra staff. Most of our freebie stations were staffed by volunteers (teen and Friends of the Library), but some staff pulled double duty as prize people on top of their normal duties. That is too much when there are that many people in the building, plus events to set up.  Also, we’re located downtown, and we’d started talking to our downtown organizations about having nearby businesses offer deals and discounts to cardholders that day, but we didn’t have time to get that up and running. We’d really like the Card Crawl to expand beyond the library so the public can see people busting out their library cards and having fun.

One cool thing is that we’re lucky enough to have a great Library Board and some big supporters on our City Council. We invited those people to come volunteer at the Card Crawl and to just be a part of the day. 
 

For more information, contact Mike Paulus at mikep@eauclaire.lib.wi.us.

All -Ages Programming Idea

Image by Ennelise Napoleoni-Bianco from Pixabay

In youth services work, some contend that teen programs must be open only to teens and not younger kids. The concern is that teens won't come to a program that isn't theirs alone.

A recent Teen Services Underground blog post shared a very popular program they developed (evolved) that serves K-12 kids. [All Ages Adventure Hour! Ingham, Jenna. Teen Services Underground blog. September 19, 2022]

What do you think?

ICYMI: National Pollinator Month programs & content for Wisconsin Public Libraries to use in June 2022!

June is National Pollinators Month. In an effort to raise awareness of the importance of pollinators and how everyone can help them, American Transmission Co. is teaming up with gardening expert and author Melinda Myers. Together, they will produce and provide educational programming and content to Wisconsin Public Libraries statewide for National Pollinators Month (June 2022). The content and programming will be made available to the libraries at no cost and the libraries may offer the programs and content to their patrons throughout the month of June.  Everything will be delivered to the libraries by mid-May.  Attached is a program factsheet with exactly what you’ll be able to offer your patrons and ideas on how you can work the content and materials into your June educational programming, including 3 live webinars, 3 videos, several Do-it-Yourself projects and more!

We hope you can utilize the content and materials to help get the word out about the importance of pollinators and how we can all do our part to help them.

If you have any questions, please email diana@melindamyers.com.

Hit Me With Your Best (Snap)Shot

Inspired by a post on the Programming Librarian Interest Group on Facebook, I decided to hold my first ever Family Portrait Studio program.  

The premise is simple: families sign up for a 15-minute time slot where we'll take as many pictures as they like and, afterward, we'll compile the best shots and send the digital copies for them to utilize as they like.

To allow for some flexibility, we set up a few different stations - - some with backdrops (purchased off Amazon and/or via Nasco. OR! Make use of backdrops you already have from virtual programming!- - and others utilizing the library furniture and features, including the shelves, the fireplace, and the Christmas tree our Friends group puts up annually.  (While many of the families wanted to use the shots for holiday cards, we had a few who didn't celebrate and/or just wanted the chance for a nice family picture.) 

As for the camera, you could use a DSLR if you have one or, if you and your participants are comfortable with it, you could use your phone! (My library's camera is rather old, so the quality of the photos was much better using my phone, to be honest.  And, once they were sent into Google Drive, I was able to erase everything without having to worry about space issues or limitations.)

The public response was fantastic!  We had initially planned on playing photographer for 2 hours, but--due to demand--had to extend it to 4!  (Note to self and everyone else, make sure to factor in break/snack times!  The hanger was real towards the end of it all. ha) 

I asked a coworker to help out and am so very glad I did.  Not only was she able to greet folks and keep track of attendees, but I was also able to upload each session right away for her to create individualized folders and fill them with the best shots of the group.  She also had a brilliant idea of taking some of the favorites and making a "best of" compilation, using the pre-made photo card templates on Canva. *chef's kiss* 

                                                 

One of my favorite parts about this program--aside from how cost-efficient and easy it was to put together--was the variety of participants!  We had families with kids, couples, folks and their pets, and even some solo portraits!  Many of our participants had never gotten photos done, either due to budget limitations or the worry that their littles wouldn't be able to handle a dedicated session with a professional photographer.

Long story short, this will definitely become a regular offering at our library.  Everyone was so appreciative and it was a fun, pandemic-conscious way to celebrate family togetherness.

   

Here We Grow! Mystery Seed Kits

Looking for a program that's easy, low-cost, and sure to please?  Why not try a Mystery Seed program?

While perusing the Storytime Underground Facebook group, I came across a post from a Melissa A. who wanted to share her idea for a "Mystery Seed Event" where her patrons would participate in a storywalk and would then be given "biodegradable pots ready with soil, growth charts, and a packet of seeds with nothing but basic instructions."  

image credit: Melissa Appley

I LOVED the idea!  Not only was it a fun way to get the kiddos interested in the joy of gardening, but it also tied in perfectly with my library's new Seed Library!  So, I decided to rework the program to best suit my needs.

Aram will be revisiting socially distanced, in-person programming for the summer, but we're not at that stage yet...so I decided to create a passive event instead--sort of a growing make-and-take, if you will--and tied it into the school district's spring break.

For marketing, we promoted the kits on our various social media channels, our website, and with posters in the library itself and the response has been quite positive!  

I did encourage the kids to let me know how things were growing (#sorrynotsorry #punsfordays) so here's hoping I have some excited folks showing me their wee sprouts soon!

"Creating Community Fun" Programs - Summer Storyteller Series

Engaging your community is a common--and important!--goal of every library.  But how can you do that when COVID-19 limits your opportunities to interact with one another?

One solution that we came up with at Aram Public Library in Delavan, WI was to create a Summer Storyteller Series: each week, we'd feature a guest reader--or readers!--in a video series on the library's Facebook page.

Now, the first thing to do was to secure our arsenal of readers.  I put out feelers to a multitude of local entities, including some of the more expected sources, such as the local schools and/or city departments. It was important, however, that a wide variety of our community was represented.  To ensure that this was the case, I also reached out to local businesses and different clubs, including some of the local restaurants, the nearby UW-Extension office...even a local motorcycle club!

Once I had my list of interested folks, I provided them with some basic information and offered to either: a) contact the publisher of their preferred read or b) send a suggested list of possible titles, if they didn't have a specific title or author in mind.  Additionally, I let folks know that, if they needed assistance filming, that could be arranged.

As the submissions began arriving, I scheduled out the posts for the summer.  While my extraordinarily talented coworker created some opening and closing credits to use for each installment of the series--ensuring that our patrons would recognize it as part of the Storyteller offering--I set to work alerting the publishers of our intent to read their titles online.

In order to allow viewers to participate as though it were live, I'm scheduling the videos using the Premiere function on Facebook.  I also made a point to announce our guest readers, the author, the illustrator, and the publisher, tagging their social media account whenever possible.

Our Summer Storyteller Series officially kicked off today, with our guest readers, the members of the Rustic Road Riders!  

Creating Community Fun YSS blog COVID-19 series

• Mini-Golf Reader’s Cup  9/25/21
• Beep! Beep! Honk if you have Bingo!    9/1/21
• Letters to Guinea Pigs  8/18/21
• Stuffed Animal Fun for Everyone  7/13/21
• Pet Show and Tell  4/17/21
• Campfire Storywalk 3/10/21
• Outdoor Storytimes 1/17/20
• Family Trivia Night  10/7/20
• Flipgard, Fanfare and Friends: River Falls Celebrity Storytime  9/21/20
• Tie Dye Masks  8/24/20
• Summer Book Picnics  7/13/20
• Engaging Kids Outdoors  7/10/20
• Downtown Story Stroll    6/5/20
• Book nCover Double  6/8/20
• Going the Extra Mile 6/15/20 
• Summer Storyteller     6/16/20

Wisconsin Youth Services Program Palooza Webinar - Register Today!

Wisconsin Youth Services Program Palooza Webinar

Wednesday, June 3, 1-2 pm   

Register here. The webinar will be recorded; please register to get the link.

Spring 2020 has been a series of pivots and pauses for public library youth services...and perhaps uncovered a wealth of new and unexpected creative and problem-solving skills for you!  Join us and continue to plan confidently for Summer and Fall with an abundance of ideas, programs and attitudes in this free one hour webinar. System youth services consultants (Shawn Brommer, Angela Meyers & Marge Loch-Wouters) and DPI staff (Tessa Michaelson Schmidt) invite you to be part of this positive, simplified, and intentional approach to youth services for the coming months.  

Putting on a Tea-Rex Party

What's better than a tea party? Why a Tea-Rex party complete with royalty and dinosaurs. I talked to Youth Services librarian Tricia Wehrenberg, Youth Services Librarian at the Winona (MN) Public Library (once youth librarian at Amery Library in IFLS) about the fun and this is what they did.

The seed for the program came from Tea REX, Molly Idle's 2013 book. Tricia and Marcia, her library associate, hatched the idea of doing a family evening program that would be attractive for girls and boys and many ages. I mean who doesn't like dinosaurs and royalty?

Kids were invited to wear royal or dinosaur costumes. Fliers, Facebook, telling storytime caregivers and awesome patron word-of-mouth were all that was needed. Kids from tots to early elementary-aged came to enjoy the fun with their families.

On the night of the program, Marcia was the princess host and Tricia was her silent t-Rex partner (the fan in in the costume to keep it inflated prevented talking). The princess began the soiree with a story, Crunch the Shy Dinosaur (Cirocco Dunlap, 2018). Next she knocked at a door and out came the T-Rex to "help," through mime, with the featured Tea Rex book., a hilarious take on tea party etiquette lessons for a dinosaur.

The rollicking fun continued with dinosaur stretches, and songs (I'm a Little Tea Pot) that had the families laughing as the T-rex attempted the actions with those oh-so-tiny T-rex arms. As Tricia said, "I did alot of dancing and tail shaking for sure!"

Activities included a paper hat-making station and dinosaur mask-making with accessories like mustaches and jewels for the royally-inclined. Lemonade was served in plastic cups (with handles to fancy them up) and mini-cupcakes completed the treats.

For more pictures of the party, head to Winona's Facebook page. If you want more info on the party, contact Tricia. Thanks for sharing!

Photos courtesy of Winona Public Library

Guest Post: BULLIED

This week's blog post and super rad program idea comes to you from Elizabeth M. Timmins, Muehl Public Library Director & Programmer, Seymour, WI J

Guest Post: BULLIED

Author: Elizabeth M. Timmins, Muehl Public Library Director & Programmer, Seymour, WI

Thanks to Scott Langteau, homegrown Seymour, WI talent, who has written another amazing picture book. This one, BULLIED, is aimed toward middle schoolers. In the book, two bullies named Billy and Bella Bully grow up regretting their negative actions. In fact, in the hopeful ending of the book, they actually turn themselves around as adults. 6th grade students acted in a Reader's Theater production of the book on April 25, 2019 at our public library. I paired Scott’s book with a PowerPoint of the marvelous picture book BULLY by Laura Vaccaro Seeger.

We had a packed room of patrons to experience both stories and then do Q & A with Scott. Many of his high school classmates were in attendance. The support was palpable. We collaborated with the Seymour School District and the Community Family Resource Center in our community to get word out about this special event. Sadly, our program was the same evening as the funeral for two slain children in our community. However, we persevered. Scott lives in Los Angeles and was home for a small window of time that we had to optimize.

After Q & A, we had book selling and autographing time. Scott autographed a copy of his book for the library...his words are touching and wonderful! "Note to ourselves...always be ourselves...and always be KIND doing it."

Scott Langteau loved the reader's theater that I scripted for his picture book BULLIED and he gave me permission to freely share it with educators.  (Scott has a BFA in Theater and a Masters in Acting!) This is an amazing creative outlet for me!

So here are the two links where educators will be able to find it. Hurray!

https://www.teachingbooks.net/tb.cgi?tid=64793

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/BULLIED-by-Scott-Langteau-Readers-Theater-4569408

                                                                 BOOK COVER

6 students who acted out the script, Scott Langteau on right, me on left:

Craft Stick Harmonica DIY

Super simple musical craft alert!

I just had a DIY Instruments program and the far-and-away winner was the Craft Stick Harmonica!  I used instructions found on the Housing a Forest blog.

It was simple, fun...and--chances are--you already have all the materials necessary on your craft shelves! 

Materials Needed:

• craft sticks
• paper
• rubber bands or string
• toothpicks
• scissors

Each patron will need two craft sticks.  We used the wide ones, so I can't speak for the success of the skinnier ones.  Cut a piece of paper the same size as your craft sticks and sandwich the paper strip between the two.

Wrap a rubber band or some string around one end until it is snug.  Then, slide a toothpick--cut to the approximate width of the craft sticks--to the inside of the rubber band/string.  Repeat with an identical toothpick at the other end and wrap with a rubber band/string. 

And THAT'S IT.

Simply have the kiddos exhale or inhale to make a unique noise.  They can also try pinching the sticks together to see how the noises and vibrations change!  There was a bit of a learning curve, but once they figured out the technique, it was a symphony of buzzing and giggles.

Rockin' Crafts

Rocks rock.  Let's be frank. 

You can paint them, draw on them with Sharpies and/or crayons, or just use them as they are!  If you're planning a large program and need oodles of supplies, you can always buy bags of rocks from a hardware store or a garden center.  Otherwise, go on an adventure (take the kids on a nature walk, rock out a scavenger hunt, etc.) and gather your supplies!

What do you do with all these rocks once you have them?  I'm glad you asked!

How about Kindness Rocks?  Sprinkle kindness around like confetti!

Story Rocks (or Story Stones) are a super fun and easy activity that will encourage continued play and exploration!  Give the kiddos the stones, a simple prompt--for example: "Choose 5 stones and write a story that incorporates all of them."--and watch them go!

If you're looking for inspiration on additional ways to use your Story Rocks, simply Google and you shall receive what you seek in abundance.

Here's another fun option: Land Art!  

This can incorporate rocks, of course, but the possibilities are endless!  Check out this article found on The Artful Parent blog where they spoke with Richard Shilling, the author of the Land Art for Kids book series.

You can also create games!  Tic-Tac-Toe, Dominos, you name it!  Or perhaps a matching game is more your speed?  You could decorate stones--or have the patrons decorate stones--to create games to work on matching colors, upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and more!

Here's an adorable fish rock craft from the Hello, Wonderful website:

And another goodie from The Artful Parent: Making Faces with Rocks!

Maker Projects for Every Budget? YES, PLEASE!

Looking for some inspiration on maker projects and supplies that fit into your library's budget?  Library Journal recently shared a download for their article Cheap Thrills (originally published in the November 2017 issue of School Library Journal, with oodles of fun ideas!)

Just can't get enough? 
Do you have a fever and the only prescription is more maker spaces?  

Then you'll definitely want to feast your peepers on this!

Make It @ Your Library is a rad website where you can search for maker ideas by price per person, age...even time needed to complete each project!

WLA YSS Sessions in Short: Fear Not: Coding for the Rest of Us

Fear Not: Coding for the Rest of Us

There were several sessions at WLA that gave me some superb program ideas, but none more so than “Fear Not: Coding for the Rest of Us,” presented by Andrea Stepanik and Gillian Dawson (Brown County Library, Green Bay). I’ve always been interested in coding; learning how computers work and how to create programs is incredibly empowering. Here’s the thing, though: growing up—even up until just a few years ago—I never thought coding was for me. I have never been good at math or science, and don’t you have to be some kind of genius to code? The idea of learning—much less, leading—a coding program seemed way too intimidating for me to ever consider a realistic possibility.

If you have ever felt like me, “Fear Not: Coding for the Rest of Us” is a perfect resource for you. Stepanik and Gillian began the session admitting that they were also completely self-taught and had never imagained they would be leading innovative coding programs. First, they introduced the different kinds of coding languages you can use in your programs from HTML to Scratch, and which languages are best to use with which ages.

Then, we got to learn about the toys. Oh, the coding toys! I can forsee much grant and supply money going toward these fun pieces of tech! Here are a few of my favorites that Stepanik and Gillian recommended using for your coding programs:

Preschool

·         Code-a-Pillars are about $50.00 each and teach kids the basics of computational thinking with a fun (and noisy!) hands-on caterpillar that they code by manipulating and connecting pieces.

School Age-Teen

·         Lego Maze Coding. You just need Legos for this unplugged coding activity. Kids build Lego mazes, switch mazes with someone else, and then write the code that would allow a Lego figure to navigate the maze.

·         Coding Escape Rooms: Breakout Edu kits includes access to three computer science kits that make kids use code to get out of the room! Difficulty can be scaled up and down depending on difficulty.

Multiple Ages: Coding Board Games

·         Coding Farmers (ages 7 and up)

·         Code Master (ages 5 and up)

·         Littlecodr (4-8 years)

·         Robot Turtles (ages 4 and up)

·         Science Wiz Cool Circuits (ages 8 and up)

Then, there’s the granddaddy of them all: Arduino. Arduino reminded me of Raspberry Pi, but cooler. They combine circuitry and coding to teach kids through adults how computers work and how to create anything from a knock-code lock for your door to a self-watering system for your house plants. It is definitely the most complex and intense of the tech introduced in the session but I cannot wait to try it.

That was the biggest gain I got from the session: empowerment. I am excited to play with new tech and introduce it to my patrons. When you see your code working, it is incredibly empowering. Now that I’ve got my feet wet, I can’t wait to learn more! Since the session, I am proud to say that I have now lead my first coding class. And you know what? None of the kids laughed me out of the room or scoffed at me. They were so excited to learn and so engaged with the programs, they didn’t have time. In fact, most of them were more than happy to help me when I got stuck. The technology introduced at this session are more than just toys: they can be the tools that inspire your kids to imagine—and create—the future.

Author: Julia Lee

To see all the recaps of "WLA Sessions in Short" click below:
Reach One Teach One
Group Problem Solving
Using the Five Practices in School Age Programming
Plan Less, Program More

Diversify Me

Looking for a program as easy as pie?

'Tis the season for tasty pastries...  

Looking for a sweet program with minimal cost but maximum happiness?  Try this!

Inspired by a post from Karen Boardman (of the Public Library of Enid & Garfield County) on Storytime Underground's Facebook group, we held our first-ever all-ages DIY Make-and-Take Pie program at our library and, believe me, it won't be our last!

First things first, we needed a recipe.  To keep costs down while still embracing the season, we decided apple pies were the way to go.  After some trial and error, we went with good ol' Betty Crocker for all our pie-making needs.  We borrowed the filling fixings from this recipe and the crust from this one.

With our budget being somewhat limited--end of the year and all--and our meeting room having limited space--brother, can you spare some room?--we required registration beforehand.  Then, we promoted it EVERYWHERE: Facebook posts, Facebook events, our website, our in-house and electronic newsletters, the newsletters at the various schools around town, posters, and word-of-mouth.  Folks seemed genuinely excited by the program and we quickly learned that we'd need to offer a second session to accommodate the demand. (And, to be honest, we still had to turn some people away.)

Once we knew how many people we'd have each night, we set about collecting the necessary materials.  Our local Piggly Wiggly generously donated the majority of the apples, the staff provided some additional baking goodies, such as rolling pins, cookie cutters, and pie stamps, and the rest of the materials were able to be obtained from either the Dollar Tree or Aldi's.  All in all, we spent under $50!  For two nights worth of programming!

In terms of preparation, we lined the tables with paper (Hello, easy clean-up!) and pre-measured all the dry ingredients into gallon-size Ziploc bags.  Other than setting everything out, that was pretty much it!  The participants were responsible for mixing the crust, peeling and slicing the apples, and all the other bits and pieces involved with pie baking, including deciding how the top crust should look!  Everyone who attended left with a completed pie, as well as a handout with recipes, baking and/or freezing instructions, and suggestions on how they can gussy up this or future pies. 

Reports have come back that not only did they have a wonderful time, but the pies were mighty tasty, too!  Win-win.