Jim Gill Workshop is almost here!

Musical Play is Learning Play with Jim Gill: A Professional Development Workshop - Fri. Aug. 14th 1-4pm

Attention Youth Services Librarians!  

Photo provided by Jim Gill

On Friday, August 14^th from 1:00-4:00pm, Jim Gill is offering a professional development workshop tailored for librarians and early childhood educators at the Oak Creek Public Library in Oak Creek, WI. Registration is required to secure your spot for this event. This workshop is free for participants.

Register now: https://events.getlocalhop.com/music-play-is-learning-play-with-jim-gill-professional-development-workshop-for-early-childhood-educators-and-librarians/event/mp0upT1Ace/

A free family concert will follow in the evening on Friday, August 14^th at 6:30pm. No registration required.

Other events to enjoy while in town include:

Oak Creek Kids Night in Drexel Town Square (Also Jim Gill concert venue, food trucks will be available!)
Friday, August 14^th, 5:00 P.M. – 8:00 P.M.
https://www.oakcreekwi.gov/visitor/events/kids-nights

Oak Creek Farmers Market
Saturday, August 15^th, 9:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M.
https://www.oakcreekwi.gov/visitor/events/farmers-market

For more information, visit https://www.oakcreekwi.gov/visitor 

All these events are sponsored by Visit Oak Creek.

Free Professional Development Workshop with Jim Gill!

 Musical Play is Learning Play with Jim Gill: A Professional Development Workshop - Fri. Aug. 14th 1-4pm

Photo provided by Jim Gill

 

Attention Youth Services Librarians! Save the Date!

 

On Friday, August 14^th from 1:00-4:00pm, Jim Gill is offering a professional development workshop tailored for librarians and early childhood educators at the Oak Creek Public Library in Oak Creek, WI. Registration is required to secure your spot for this event. This workshop is free for participants.

 

Register now: https://events.getlocalhop.com/music-play-is-learning-play-with-jim-gill-professional-development-workshop-for-early-childhood-educators-and-librarians/event/mp0upT1Ace/

 

A free family concert will follow in the evening on Friday, August 14^th at 6:30pm. No registration required.

 

Coming from out of town? Hotel blocks are available while supplies last.

TownePlace Suites by Marriott Milwaukee Oak Creek for 169.00 USD per night - Last Day to Book : Monday, July 13, 2026
Book your group rate for Oak Creek Public Library-Jim Gill Event

Homewood Suites Oak Creek by Hilton 159.00 USD per night

https://group.homewood-suites.com/0cmx1t

 

Other events to enjoy while in town include:

 

Oak Creek Kids Night in Drexel Town Square (Also Jim Gill concert venue)

Friday, August 14^th, 5:00 P.M. – 8:00 P.M.

https://www.oakcreekwi.gov/visitor/events/kids-nights

 

Oak Creek Farmers Market

Saturday, August 15^th, 9:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M.

https://www.oakcreekwi.gov/visitor/events/farmers-market

 

For more information, visit https://www.oakcreekwi.gov/visitor 

 

These events are sponsored by Visit Oak Creek.

Tips and Info from DPI's April 9, 2026 Youth Services Newsletter

 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 April 9, 2026 edition:

Weekly Resources & Reminders

 

Hello All,

Reimagining Information Literacy: A National Forum  Empowering Educators, Librarians, and Learners for a Knowledge-Driven Future. Tuesday, July 14 and Wednesday, July 15, 2026, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Reimagining Information Literacy is an opportunity for librarians, educators, and researchers to gather to reflect on the importance of information literacy. Variously understood as digital, visual, media, textual, and/or technological literacy, this forum approaches information literacy as an umbrella that is inclusive of all types. Register for free.   WiLSWorld Shorts WiLS is inviting you to attend a very special WiLSWorld Shorts, featuring Kirsten Cappy, Executive Director of I’m Your Neighbor Books, on Friday, April 17th at 1:00 pm CT! In this time of unbelonging for our Immigrant and New Generation communities, how do we build belonging for all of our communities? The nonprofit I’m Your Neighbor Books utilizes SEL tenets and the immigrant characters in K-12 books to help readers explore their place in the world and their responsibility for making this nation less “unkind.” Including recommendations for books that address detention, deportation, and the healing power of families, Executive Director Kirsten Cappy will share the free and grant-supported resources I’m Your Neighbor Books offers. With books in our hands, this nonprofit feels we can find a way to “be more human.” Register for the webinar. Can't attend live? Register to receive a link to the recording. For questions, please email us at coop@wils.org  PBS Wisconsin Education: A Love of Learning Workshop Invitation  Please join your colleagues from library systems in central WI at PBS Wisconsin's A Love of Learning workshop on May 7, 2026, from 1:00 to 3:15 p.m., at the Portage County Public Library in Stevens Point. If you work in or with a public library or library system in Wisconsin in a role serving learners in grades 3-12 (ages 8-18+), we would love for you to join us for this workshop + meet-up to connect with colleagues and learn about free multimedia resources you can use.

Jeni Schomber Public Library Consultant The DPI Bureau of Libraries does not sponsor or endorse external resources or events. They are provided for your consideration only. Contact: jeni.schomber@dpi.wi.gov

Upcoming Games-based Learning Opportunities

Image by Araxhs Official from Pixabay

There are a number of upcoming presentations and professional development opportunities related to games-based library services, playful learning, and interactive pedagogy; some options are free, and some have a registration cost associated with them. Please help spread the word about these opportunities to your networks -- and register today!!

Friday, May 23rd, 1:00 pm
  WiLSWorld Shorts: Roll for Initiative! Wisconsin Adventures in the Library

• "Proven education foundations and dragon-slaying go hand in hand! Wisconsin Adventures combines the myths and legends of Wisconsin’s past with the deep learning opportunities of fantasy role-playing games (RPGs). Join WiLS and Wisconsin Historical Society’s Manager of PK-12 Education Initiatives Kurt Griesemer on Friday, May 23rd at 1:00 pm CT to hear about how you can engage new audiences, connect players with Wisconsin and its history, and build community and literacy skills with Dungeons and Dragons and Wisconsin Adventures in your library."
• REGISTER HERE

Wednesday, May 28th, 10:00-11:00 am CST
  Video Game Collections in Libraries, Pt. #3:

Collection Maintenance, Circulating Consoles, Wraparound Services, and Digital Games 

• In parts one and two of our “Video Game Collections in Libraries” webinar series, we first outlined effective pathways for video game selection and acquisition, and followed that up by showcasing how to “librarianize” your acquired games via processing, cataloging, and displaying best practices. So – you’ve got games on shelves, and they’re checking out; done! Mission accomplished? … Not so fast!! There are additional steps needed to maintain that collection and keep it healthy, with further opportunities to implement “value-added” services that will support your video game collection. Finally, it’s important that we collectively ask: what will our video game collections look like in 5 to 10 years, where most games will likely be “all digital”? How can a librarian prepare for that inevitable shift?
  
  In part #3 of our “Video Game Collections in Libraries” webinar (the final part!), we will dig into suggested protocols for weeding and repairing discs, recommendations for “wraparound” services like video game programs, circulating game consoles, and helping your patrons acquire necessary video game patches/updates – along with a deep (but brief) exploration into important questions like “What will libraries do when video games transition to all digital?”, “what impact would all-digital video games have on offering library game collections?”, and, most importantly, “who is working on what in this space right now?” – to set our libraries up for success in the future!
• REGISTER HERE
• Presenters: Chris Baker (Public Library Consultant / Games & Learning Consultant, Library Services Team of the Wisconsin Dept. of Public Instruction; chris.baker@dpi.wi.gov), Jenna Gilles (Youth Services Associate, Chippewa Falls Public Library; jgillesturner@mycfpl.org), and Jamie Hein (Library Director, Clintonville Public Library; jhein@clintonvillelibrary.org)

June 20th-22nd
  NarraScope 2025: Celebrating Narrative Games

• Registration for NarraScope 2025 is now available! What is Narrascope? "NarraScope is an event that supports interactive narrative, adventure games, and interactive fiction by bringing together writers, developers, and players. NarraScope 2025 will be hosted at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA. All talks will be streamed live via Discord. Our conference aims to be a place for everyone interested in narrative games to hang out, exchange ideas and get inspired. We do this through a broad selection of talks, keynote speakers, discussions and workshops."
• "Registration is required for both in-person and online attendance, and must be done in advance of the event. The number of in-person memberships is limited by the capacity of our venue, and they are available on a first-come, first-served basis. We have no capacity cap for our online registration. In-person registration is open until May 23, 2025; online registration is open until June 18, 2025."
• REGISTER HERE
• I (Chris Baker) will be co-presenting at the Narrascope Conference on Sunday, June 22nd from 12:30-1:00 pm CST. More info:
• Gaming Collections & Services in Libraries: "Libraries have a long history of collecting games as part of our shared cultural heritage. This session will feature two presentations on how academic and public libraries are preserving the history of games and broadening access to both legacy and contemporary games. Learn more about the cutting edge of games librarianship and discover ways to get involved with efforts to collect and preserve today's digital games in libraries."
• Co-presenters: Colin Post, David Carter

August 21st & 22nd; Pre-cons on August 20th
Play Make Learn 2025 - Register NOW!!

• Registration is open NOW for Play Make Learn 2025! If you've never attended before, the Play Make Learn annual conference takes place at the Memorial Union on the UW-Madison campus; PML is a place for collaboration and discovery in the design, research and practice of playful learning, games for learning and positive social impact, making and makerspaces, STEAM education, and arts in education. PML creates an inspirational space for preK-12 educators, designers, developers, innovators, librarians, museum professionals, makers, and researchers to tinker together, share knowledge, and celebrate one another’s work
• REGISTER HERE
• Explore Pre-con Sessions
• NOTE: We've sold out on registration spots for Play Make Learn over the past few years -- so if you are interested in attending, don't wait too long! If you have questions about the conference, or would like to request support (while funds are available), you can reach out to the PLACE Office at conferences@education.wisc.edu.

Any questions? You can reach me at Chris.Baker@dpi.wi.gov. Consider joining our WISELearn Games + Learning + Libraries Cohort to collaborate with a wonderful community of practice -- and to start sharing (and using) our collected games-based resources. Game on!!

~Chris

Let's Get Crafty!

In a recent ALSC blog post, Alicia Hulten, writing for the ALSC Library Service to Underserved Children and Their Caregivers, wrote a really helpful post on combining crafts with learning opportunities. for youth ages 3-12.

Alicia writes: "Youth library programs play an important role in enriching young minds by providing a wide range of inclusive activities that promote learning and fun. Key components of these programs are the crafts and activities as they help children explore new ideas and express their creativity all in a warm, welcoming environment. Let’s take a look at some tips that will help you choose engaging crafts and activities for youth library programs. "

To read her handy tips, please stop here. [Crafting Joy for Everyone: Selecting Crafts and Activities for Youth Library Programs. Hulten, Alicia ALSC blog. April 5, 2025]

Play Make Learn Conference Registration Open

 [Note from Chris Baker: When it comes to Play Make Learn 2024 conference registration, I've received a couple of questions about which "Registration Type" librarians should choose when checking out; ultimately, the "Formal and Informal Educators" category is probably the most appropriate for library staff. If anyone is a student, though, definitely choose the student pricing – it's a terrific deal!]

Registration is Open for Play Make Learn

July 18-19, 2024

Register by May 31 for Early Bird Rates!

REGISTER NOW

The Play Make Learn (PML) Conference promotes high-quality learning opportunities for educators, researchers, developers, designers, foundation leaders, policy makers, museum and library professionals, and school leaders who are dedicated to promoting making, gaming, and playful learning. We aim to engage our audience in cutting-edge learning science ideas and experiences; communicate state-of-the-art design, education, and research; demonstrate new and upcoming games and technology; and network to spark new projects in the following themes: playful learning, games for learning and positive social impact, making and makerspaces, STEAM education, arts integration in formal and informal spaces, and research/practitioner partnerships.

 

Learn more at our website and follow us on social media for keynote announcements.

 

When: July 18-19, 2024

Where: Memorial Union | 800 Langdon St. | Madison, WI

We’re excited to announce Pre-Conference Sessions are back! These additional sessions will take place July 17, 2024. Please visit the website to learn more about session options. Pre-Conference session registration is an additional fee.

REGISTER NOW

Thanks to our generous sponsors, we are able to provide scholarships for a limited number of people in need of financial support. Complete the scholarship application here. GEE! Learning Games Awards Are Back! Submissions due June 1 Enter to win the coolest award in learning games! Finalists get free registration to Play Make Learn, a GEE! Award badge for your website, and the chance to showcase your game. In the spirit of James Paul Gee, we’re looking for digital and analog games that are fun, educational, and novel. Send us your best! LEARN MORE

Boost Your Own Professional Development

Image by Manfred Steger from Pixabay

A recent ALSC blog post by the ever thoughtful Jaime Eastman breaks down the many ways you can boost your own professional development outside employer-provided opportunities.

Jaime writes: "Does your job require regular professional development or continuing education? Often, this means mandatory training facilitated by your employer. It covers important topics and may provide useful tools and resources. But what about development that’s just for you?...What if you could explore topics just because they resonate, not because someone said you had to? I firmly believe choosing development opportunities that excite you should be an option. I’ll also admit that might not be your reality right now. Let’s talk about ways to add professional development that really resonates. What sparks your joy?"

Stop here to read all her great suggestions. [Boost Your Career: Professional Development Tips for Library Staff. Eastman, Jaime. ALSC blog. April 2, 2024.]

It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect

It's hard sometimes to cut ourselves a little slack. We want everything to to be just right in our programs, services and spaces. In two recent ALCS blog post, Mary Fellows and Jaime Eastman help us take a deep breath to put things in perspective and manage our time wisely.

Mary writes: "Do you nurture your work self by experimenting with new ways to meet the library’s mission? Are you known for your clever new programs? If so, like most youth services folks, you’re an idea person. We like variety. We stay current on kid trends. We keep it fresh.  There’s a downside to being an idea person, though: the alluring possibilities always exceed the time to try them. “There are never enough hours to get everything done,” we might bemoan to coworkers. We feel caught between what we need to do – like scheduling – and what we want to do: projects that move the library closer to our youth services vision. This dissonance may cause us to feel perpetually behind. Or to struggle with uncertainty about whether we’re doing the “right” things. Each diminishes our energy and equilibrium, and affects our job satisfaction. What’s to be done?"

For her bravura suggestions on learning to accept less than perfect, stop here. [Time Management: Practice Strategic Underachievement. Fellows, Mary. ALSC blog. March 21, 2024.]

Jamie writes: "It’s hard for me to admit, but perfection isn’t realistic or attainable. Library work requires our passion. We love connecting patrons with resources, sparking a lifelong love of reading, or supporting community needs. We feel strongly that we can, should, and will make an impact. When reality doesn’t match our expectations, we feel like failures. Spoiler alert: perfect isn’t necessary for success. Putting your imperfect heart in your work means you make an impact. And when you’re willing to learn and do better, you’re making progress."

For all her tips and supportive ideas, stop here. [Progress Over Perfection: Embracing Imperfection in Library Work. Eastman, Jaime. ALSC blog. January 26, 2024.]

Join the Libraries/Learning/Gaming Cohort

 

Hello, potential games-interested librarians!

Earlier in 2023, I’d reached out across multiple library networks seeking to connect library staff (school, public, & other) who are interested in the “Games + Libraries + Learning” space. I want to invite everyone to join our ongoing-development Wisconsin Games + Learning + Libraries Cohort!

 

Our Cohort will be digitally housed as a WISELearn Resources Group; WISELearn will allow us to virtually contribute Open Educational Resources (OERs), engage in discussion, and form an affinity space and easy-to-access network surrounding Games + Learning + Libraries in Wisconsin. I’m confident our group can help position our state as national leaders in this space!

 

This group welcomes educators at every level of experience in the gaming & games + learning space -- whether you have little to no knowledge on the subject and would like to learn more, or whether you'd consider yourself someone who has long studied & educated with gaming. You can visit the cohort to contribute resources directly, or can sit in the wings to utilize resources as they become available.  We don’t have much available yet, but over the next year, I’m excited for us to develop a robust, organized suite of resources and links!

 

Your participation is up to you – but I hope you’ll consider being an active part of this WISELearn community. The group is still very much a work-in-progress; much to come! But for STARTERS, if this sounds interesting to you…

 

1. Please go to the Wisconsin Games + Learning + Libraries Cohort on WISELearn and click “Sign In/Register” at the top left; register for a new account if you need to. Bookmark the group’s page! 
2. Click the green Join this Group button!
3. Visit the “Greetings, Introduce Yourself to the Group!” discussion post that I created. Share some information and start meeting others!
4. Share with other librarians and educators in your network who would like to join, meet others interested in this space, and contribute.
5. Begin contributing OERs related to Games + Libraries + Learning! Let me know if you have recommendations for additional “Folders” to keep things organized.
1. After all, y’all are the experts in this space! I’d encourage everyone interested to help us build this and take shape!

 

Let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to us building this wonderful space together. 

 

Happy Monday,

 

~Chris

 

Chris Baker

Public Library Consultant, Library Services Team 

Department of Public Instruction 

(608) 264-6709

christopher.baker@dpi.wi.gov