Friday FAQs for April 17, 2020

Dear Library Staff Serving Youth,

Happy Friday! Here is the second installment of  Friday FAQs for Youth Services. The slides used in the recording are attached as a PDF. Also, the FAQ Friday form is open for your input on next week’s episode.

           FAQ Friday 4/17/2020 recording 

FAQ Friday form 

Last Week’s FAQ Friday 4/10/2020 recording https://youtu.be/h7UinjYf_YE

Resources related to this week’s topics:

Booktalking

• South Central Library System’s CCBC Shorts

View the librarians from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) discussing “Great New Books for Birth - Grade 5” and “Great New Books for Older Children and Teens” in two recently recorded webinars hosted by South Central Library System. 

• Making Videos8 Tips for Teachers, Librarians and Small Business. How to Make Videos During Coronavirus by Jester Jim A short video made expressly for beginners (5:43) 

Accessibility and Equity

• Keeping Equity at the Forefront: Emergency Remote Learning
  Be sure to see the graphic from Daniel Stanford

• How to Make Your Virtual Meetings and Events Accessible to the Disability Community

Be proactive, versus reactive

• Simple Language Webinar from Wisconsin Literacy, Inc. hosted by IFLS Library System 

Available until May 7, 2020

Clear up written communication to make it easier to read and comprehend for everyone, and especially for people who struggle to read.

• Youth Services Shout-out: YSS Blog: Creating Accessibility in Your Virtual Programming

Resource round-up from your Wisconsin peers

Professional Development

• Reach Out and Read in the time of COVID-19: It Matters Even More Now, Dipesh Navsaria, MPH, MSLIS, MD

Books build better brains, especially during emergencies

Be well,

Tessa Michaelson Schmidt

Public Library Consultant – Youth and Inclusive Services

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

(608) 267-5077

tessa.schmidt@dpi.wi.gov

Friday FAQs with Tessa Michaelson Schmidt

• 6/18/21 recording

• 5/14/21 recording
• 4/9/21 recording
• 3/12/21 recording
• 2/12/21 recording
• 1/15/21 recording
• 12/11/20 recording
• 11/13/20 recording
• 10/9/20 recording
• 9/11/20 recording
• 8/14/20 recording
• 7/31/20 recording
• 7/17/20 recording
• 7/10/20 recording
• 6/26/20 recording
• 6/19/20 recording
• 6/11/20 recording
• 6/5/20 recording
• 5/29/20 recording
• 5/22/20 recording
• 5/15/20 recording
• 5/8/20 recording
• 5/1/20 recording
• 4/24/20 recording
• 4/17/20 recording
• 4/10/20 recording       

Ready to Booktalk?

Sychronicity. Recently, two things related to readers advisory and booktalking appeared in my inbox and on top of that it's the time of year I start thinking about professional goals met and those to set. So, whether you're an expert or a novice, booktalking and readers advisory are skills that can be improved with practice and confidence to better serve your patrons.

Here are two current resources to help grow your RA skills:

Junior Library Guild covers Six Mistakes Booktalkers Make in this recent online article by Deborah B. Ford. While the title says mistakes, the article really provides tips and concrete advice for giving great booktalks.

South Central Library System is hosting a daylong RA Rethink workshop at the Sun Prairie Library on Thursday, August 17 presented by Becky Stratford of RA for All. The workshop will empower library staff to provide great RA services and to improve their booktalking skills. For a full description of the workshop and to register, click HERE.

Enhancing Your Readers' Advisory Skills and RA from YSS Members

At January's YSS Retreat, the YSS members and board members who attended brought a book (or several books, after all we are librarians!) they've loved to booktalk. Here is a shortlist of those titles for you to read or recommend and a brief note on appeal or themes:

Booktalks

Diary of a Tokyo Teen - graphic memoir

Roseblood - new take on the Phantom of the Opera

Wolf by Wolf - alternative history of WWII in which Hitler won the war, there is a sequel

Sophie's Squash Goes to School - diverse

Frontline - another alternative history

The Best Man by Richard Peck - depictions of masculinity and male role models

Ghost by Jason Reynolds - themes of family violence and anger management but trauma is not the only thing about the character that we know

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

Winter Woes - out of print, but it is a great Storytime readaloud by Marty Kelley

Delia Dirke - graphic novel series

Need - YA thriller, set in WI, examines the dark side of social media

Learning to Swear in America - YA

Garvey’s Choice by Nikki Grimes - novel in verse

We Were Liars - readalike The Accident Season

Radiant Choice: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat - award winner

I Kill Giants - graphic novel, pairs with A Monster Calls

Lilliput - a good readaloud for middle schoolers

Walking in a Winter Wonderland - picture book

Brushing up on Readers' Advisory skills can help with booktalking or connecting the right person with the right book. NoveList is a handy resource and the folks there have put together a list of links and some guides to genres and appeal terms updated for 2017. You can view those HERE.

Booktalks are a great icebreaker or professional development activity at your system Youth Services Meetings, too, and a fun way to learn about some new titles.