Jeni Schomber's DPI Youth Services Weekly Reminders and Resources is an email newsletter chockfull of great resources we've come to rely on. If you are a WI youth library staffer and you don't receive this weekly missive in your email inbox, please contact Jeni (jennifer.schomber@dpi.wi.gov) to be placed on the list!
Here is the July 30, 2026 edition:
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Jeni Schomber's DPI Youth Services Weekly Reminders and Resources is an email newsletter chockfull of great resources we've come to rely on. If you are a WI youth library staffer and you don't receive this weekly missive in your email inbox, please contact Jeni (jennifer.schomber@dpi.wi.gov) to be placed on the list!
Here is the February 19, 2026 edition:
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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.]
Be sure you get registered for this webinar (free to WLA members; $25 for non-members)
WLA's Youth Services Section (YSS) presents
Join us for the next installment of the YSS Presents webinar series! Jessica Oakland, physical therapist, and Hannah Delaney, speech-language pathologist, from Progressive Beginnings Rehab Agency, will discuss how to incorporate OT/PT/ST into libraries and library programs, and the fun and creative ways we can promote child development through activities, songs, and crafts.
Registration closes at noon on May 9
Free for WLA Members/$25.00 for Nonmembers
Our speakers:
Hannah Delaney, MS, CCC-SLP
Hello, I'm Hannah! I graduated from Marquette University in 2020 with a bachelor's degree in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. I continued my education at Marquette and graduated in 2021 with a masters in Speech-Language Pathology. From there I completed my Clinical Fellowship Year (CFY) at a school district in Wisconsin evaluating and treating students from ages 2-18. I found a love in evaluating/treating pediatric clients with a variety of communication and feeding/swallowing needs. I have been a part of the Progressive Beginnings team for about two years now and have loved collaborating with OT, PT and families to help achieve our clients goals along with making a difference in their lives. I am currently working on getting my NLA (natural language acquisition) certification so that I can better support my neurodivergent pediatric patients. In my free time, I enjoy watching/playing sports, baking sweet treats, spending time outdoors and playing board games with family and friends.
Jessica Oakland, PT, DPT
Hi, I'm Jessica! I graduated with my Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology in 2010 and then my Doctorate of Physical Therapy in May 2014 both from the University of Wisconsin- Madison. I started with Progressive Beginnings in June 2014 and then joined the family business as an Operational Partner in November 2014. I have a passion to work with pediatric patients and truly love being becoming part of each of their stories. I create our newsletters, social media posts, and community outreach as the Director of Marketing as well as oversee both Human Resources and Patient Services Division. My husband and I live in Manitowoc with our daughter, son, and dog. We love to travel, hike, camp, and spend time with our family and friends.
Thirty-five years ago, Jim Gill picked up a banjo excited by the idea that music, apart from the joy it brings, is a great way to help young children learn. In this energizing session Jim shares examples of his award-winning songs and musical books that combine opportunities for active movement with word play and rhymes. He also discusses:
-How music play inspires young children not only to move, but to regulate their movements…..not only to sing, but to make connections between the words they sing and the printed word and world of numbers.
-How music play can help create an inclusive environment for children with special needs and from all different backgrounds.
Librarians and early childhood educators will leave the session inspired to celebrate with new songs and playful literacy activities. Even more, they will leave the session thinking about new strategies to help children learn!
WLA's Youth Services Section (YSS) presents
Join us for the next installment of the YSS Presents webinar series! Jessica Oakland, physical therapist, and Hannah Delaney, speech-language pathologist, from Progressive Beginnings Rehab Agency, will discuss how to incorporate OT/PT/ST into libraries and library programs, and the fun and creative ways we can promote child development through activities, songs, and crafts.
Registration closes at noon on May 9
Free for WLA Members/$25.00 for Nonmembers
Our speakers:
Hannah Delaney, MS, CCC-SLP
Hello, I'm Hannah! I graduated from Marquette University in 2020 with a bachelor's degree in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. I continued my education at Marquette and graduated in 2021 with a masters in Speech-Language Pathology. From there I completed my Clinical Fellowship Year (CFY) at a school district in Wisconsin evaluating and treating students from ages 2-18. I found a love in evaluating/treating pediatric clients with a variety of communication and feeding/swallowing needs. I have been a part of the Progressive Beginnings team for about two years now and have loved collaborating with OT, PT and families to help achieve our clients goals along with making a difference in their lives. I am currently working on getting my NLA (natural language acquisition) certification so that I can better support my neurodivergent pediatric patients. In my free time, I enjoy watching/playing sports, baking sweet treats, spending time outdoors and playing board games with family and friends.
Jessica Oakland, PT, DPT
Hi, I'm Jessica! I graduated with my Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology in 2010 and then my Doctorate of Physical Therapy in May 2014 both from the University of Wisconsin- Madison. I started with Progressive Beginnings in June 2014 and then joined the family business as an Operational Partner in November 2014. I have a passion to work with pediatric patients and truly love being becoming part of each of their stories. I create our newsletters, social media posts, and community outreach as the Director of Marketing as well as oversee both Human Resources and Patient Services Division. My husband and I live in Manitowoc with our daughter, son, and dog. We love to travel, hike, camp, and spend time with our family and friends.
Brooke Newberry, La Crosse Public Library
Wednesday, February 15, 2-3 pm
Do you wish you had a better understanding of basic child and teen development? In this webinar, we will dive into how to use developmental milestones as we create programs, services, and collections to best serve your community. By using these developmental milestones you can help your library, your program attendance, and even your summer library programs become more successful!
Brooke Newberry holds a Master’s Degree in Library Science from Indiana University and is the Youth Services Manager at the La Crosse (WI) Public Library. She has worked with ages birth through teen for many years, served as chair of the Early Childhood Programs and Services Committee for the Association of Library Services to Children (ALSC), and is currently serving on the ALSC 2024 Caldecott Award Selection Committee.
This webinar will be recorded and captioned. It will provide one contact hour for public library directors needing certification.
This webinar is the first part of the IFLS All Together Now Youth Services Series. Other upcoming offerings include:
T(w)eens: Programming, Partnership, and Burnout webinar with Kymberlee Powee, February 21, 1-2 pm
As seen in the WRLS Weekly Newsletter, December 22,2022. Thanks to Cole Zrostlik for the link!
New Paper on Developmental Relationships— Perfect for after-school coordinators.
Developmental Relationships Help Young People Thrive | Search Institute
Developmental relationships are essential to help young people discover how to become their best selves.
Through the benefits of developmental relationships, young people move beyond surviving to thriving. Strong developmental relationships help young people of every age, race, and socioeconomic background discover who they are, cultivate the ability to shape their own lives and destinies, and learn how to positively contribute to the world.
What are developmental relationships, and how can we intentionally create them in our schools, programs, families, and communities?
To read more and access (via web or PDF) the 12-page paper, stop here.
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A recent ALSC blog post by Tess Prendergast explores the question of how we learn to do this developmentally appropriate work well. She focuses on the recently published research of Jennifer Sullivan, a practicing youth librarian, blogger at Adventures in Storytime (and Beyond), former teacher, science educator and researcher. Jennifer did a research project concerning children's librarians and child development knowledge.
Tess explores and summarizes the research results as well as providing links and resources to help you brush up on this knowledge. Stop here to read her post! (Child Development Knowledge: What Do We Know? Prendergast, Tess. ALSC blog. April 29, 2022).
The CDC's (The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Learn the Signs. Act Early. program, funded the American Academy of Pediatrics, revised its checklist of developmental milestones for infants and young children. This is the first update to the checklist since the checklist's release in 2004.
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| Photo from Unsplash.com |
The new milestones were developed by a group of 13 developmental experts and pediatricians. According to this article from The Washington Post, with these updates to the checklist, "developmental experts hope to encourage parents to seek interventions earlier instead of waiting until the delays become more obvious." The full article provides valuable insight into why these updates are important for caregivers and for professionals serving caregivers.
Check out the CDC's Developmental Milestones homepage here, and view the PDF guide here.
The Virtual Lab School is a resource with topics useful to those of us serving youth and families, especially as we look at social emotional development and health for young children with respect for cultural and familial values. Useful things I found on this page as we explore inclusive ways to serve diverse populations include "Creating Gender Safe Spaces," "Family Engagement," and "Social Emotional Development."
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| Photo credit: mmi9/Pixabay |
"The Virtual Lab School empowers professionals as they build their knowledge and skills around research-based practices in child and youth care and development. This new approach to professional development and learning incorporates practice-based coaching and also includes:
The VLS is anchored by 15 Core Content courses that include the 13 Functional Areas of the Child Development Associate competency standards used in early care settings around the world. The Core Content covers research-based developmentally appropriate practices for working with children from birth to age 12 across all the functional roles in child and youth care and education settings."
Free access is made possible by the partnership between The Ohio University, the US Department of Defense, and the US Department of Agriculture according to the website.
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First, is a booklist developed by the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning. Categorized by types of feelings, as well as subjects such as self-confidence and grief, the Children's Book List is a useful resource.
Our colleagues at the Denver Public Library in Colorado have developed booklists for Social, Emotional and Academic Learning. Their booklists were developed in the five competencies that support (SEL) and include K-2 and 3-5 booklists.
To learn more about the five competencies and SEL in general, you can visit the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning website which includes Research, Practice, Policy, and Networks.
Serve and return, a responsive way of engaging with children and families, is mentioned in both articles. While we can't do everything, especially as we may be facing stress and struggles of our own, simply being a responsive adult to those we serve will help.
Friday FAQs with Tessa Michaelson Schmidt
