Storytime Underground Admins Call It a Day

On Monday, July 19, the administrators of the Storytime Underground Face book page shared the following announcement. We often used the ideas generated in the blog and saw the sharing show up in services around our state. It takes alot to have a FB group with almost 17,000 members. A huge, huge thank you to founding mother and ongoing administrator Cory Eckert and current administrators Mary Kuehner, Kendra Lu Jones, Julie Crabb, Soraya Silverman-Montano and Mary Kuehner. We will miss SU for its passion, commitment to diversity and sheer advocacy for all things preschool and early literacy. You rocked our world for eight years. Here's what they shared on the ST Facebook page:

"A somber announcement for all of you: we’re shutting it down.

Eight years is a long time. We look back at the long road we’ve traveled as admins and bloggers and hold dear so many things that Storytime Underground contributed to our field. Many of you have been a long part of that journey. Thanks for being here and keeping that memory with us.

The passage of time means change to all things, including this platform and your admins. While we started with one purpose and commitment, we are now in very different places professionally and personally. Storytime Underground has also worn and evolved over the years alongside events in our world and the growth of our career fields. The platform’s needs and the admins’ needs just aren’t reconcilable going forward. There’s a kind of joy in bringing a close to a creation that has been well-loved and meaningful to others. We hope that new possibilities arise as we free up space in the conversation.

Some of you may hope to begin again with a new group and we wish you the best of luck. Please respect that the SU name, images, and all associated content are the intellectual property of your admins. Go create something entirely new. You’re welcome to post links to any new groups here.

We will shut down posting outside this thread effective immediately and will close down all posting after one week. Thank you everyone for your commitment to Youth Services and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for our profession."

ICYMI: Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices, now on Netflix!

"...Netflix will begin streaming a 12-episode live-action preschool series that will use books to spark difficult conversations, give power to Black voices, and spotlight Black children's authors. 

Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices is hosted by 15-year-old Marley Dias. The teen author, activist, and founder of #1000BlackGirlBooks is also the show's executive producer. Dias is among the Black authors, athletes, actors, musicians, and comedians, who read aloud to viewers. Joining her are Common, who reads Let’s Talk About Race by Julius Lester; Tiffany Haddish, who reads We March by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley; and Jacqueline Woodson, who reads her book, The Day You Begin, among others. 

'Many of us have turned to books to navigate hard conversations around topics like race, representation, and self-love with our kids,' Heather Tilert, Netflix director of original animation, preschool, said in the series announcement. Those books and conversations were the inspiration for the series, which will bring 'children’s stories from prolific Black creators centering around themes of identity, respect, justice and action to the screen,' according to Tilert."

The episodes will be available both on Netflix proper and on the Netflix Jr. YouTube channel, making them accessible for everyone, regardless of whether or not they have a Netflix account.

To see the official press release and list of titles, authors, and readers, click HERE.

Antiracism Work with Preschoolers

We have been sharing some antiracism and social justice resources over the past month that have come our way. You can access these resources in the compiled blog posts link at the bottom of this post.

Some resources that we have seen lately are important to highlight especially in providing programs, services and collections to preschoolers and thinking about talking to our youngest children about race or helping support families with young children  as they address racism.

They're Not Too Young to Talk About Race
This graphic from the Children's Community School In Philadelphia is an excellent place to begin raising awareness and learning about the importance of talking about race with young children.

Diverse BookFinder for picture books 
As described in Tessa Michaelson Schmitt's recent Friday FAQ:
"The Diverse BookFinder's free, online Collection Analysis Tool (CAT) for public and school libraries -- funded by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services -- offers an analysis of which racial/cultural groups are represented, and how they are represented, in your current picture book collection." You can signup for their newsletter here: sign up"

Photo - ALSC Virtual Storytime Services Guide

Serving Diverse Children and Families section of ALSC's  new Virtual Storytime Services Guide

In 70 powerful pages, a wide range of issues are explored and resources and guidance provided to empower librarians to make their storytimes more inclusive, more diverse and more just. The sections include:

• COVID-19, Racism and Xenophobia

• African American Children and Families

• Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander Children and Families

• Children and Families with Disabilities

• Latinx Children and Families

• LGBTQ+ Children and Families

• Native/Indigenous Children and Families

• Serving Families Across the Digital Divide

Join the Movement #FamilySummer4Black Lives
Seen on the blog Books for Littles, three monthly actions are being planned to engage families in anti-racism work. The first, coming up this weekend, involves families creating cards and "To Minneapolis with Live - Love Letters 4 Black Lives." It's a great way to work in the larger community to support Black Lives and communities and social justice work.

For more information on anti-racism and activism resources, please see these additional YSS posts:

• Race, Justice, Kids and Libraries   5/28/20
• CCBC - Black Experiences: Affirmation and Resilience, Activism and Resistance  6/19/20
• CCBC - Race and Racism: Selected Books for Children and Teens  6/19/20
• DPI- Race and Anti-Racism Resources for WI Libraries   6/22/20
• Antiracism Work with Preschoolers  6/24/20

Reimagining School Readiness - a Toolkit for Librarians

Pixabay Image

From ALSC Matters newsletter, a publication of the Association for Library Service to Children, August 2018:

"No matter their economic or educational background, all parents want their children to do well—in school and in life. Research has demonstrated that the first eight years of life are the most important phase in the human lifespan for overall development, and lay the foundation for future health, education, and economic participation. With this in mind, the Bay Area Discovery Museum’s Center for Childhood Creativity (in collaboration with the California State Library’s Early Learning with Families (ELF) initiative) undertook a multi-year project to co-create, pilot, refine, and then publish a toolkit to help libraries provide evidenced-based school readiness programming for their communities.

Designed specifically for libraries, this online toolkit builds on the research findings from Reimagining School Readiness: A Position Paper with Key Findings, compiled by the Center for Childhood Creativity. The toolkit of research-backed resources is intended to support libraries in offering school readiness programming to families with children birth to age 8. It was pilot tested by six different California library systems. The toolkit includes promising practices, case studies, and Pinterest boards. It also includes bookmarks, flyers, posters, and social media messages—all in six languages—which can be customized with a library’s own logo."

To read the full article and links to the toolkit, please click here.

ALSC Webinar: New Media and Preschool Services

Tuesday, August 14

11:00AM (Central)

New media is everywhere and children are using it. This webinar will focus on real best practices of incorporating new media into preschool services.
What are some specific apps that are age appropriate for preschoolers? How much time should be devoted to using an iPad or other tablets in a preschool storytime? What are the pros and cons of leading a digital-focused preschool storytime versus a traditional preschool storytime?

Instructors:
Claudia Haines, Youth Services Librarian, Homer Public Library (Alaska)
Melissa Ronning, librarian who works for institutions that promote the accessibility of digital resources to the entire community
Laura Jenkins, Library Services Clerk, Huntington Beach Public Library

Learn more and register HERE.