Childrens Services Fundamentals

1
Childrens Services Fundamentals

• Instructor
• Penny Peck
• Pikly_at_aol.com
• An Infopeople Workshop
• Winter/Spring 2004

2
This Workshop Is Brought to You By the Infopeople
Project
Infopeople is a federally-funded grant project
supported by the California State Library. It
provides a wide variety of training to California
libraries. Infopeople workshops are offered
around the state and are open registration on a
first-come, first-served basis. For a complete
list of workshops, and for other information
about the Project, go to the Infopeople website
at infopeople.org.
3
Workshop Overview

• Reference and Homework
• Storytime and other programming
• Summer reading programs
• Access and Liability
• Tours
• Book discussion groups

4
At the Childrens Desk

• Reference
• Homework Help
• Readers Advisory

5
Reference

• Reference Interview
• Homework related requests
• Dealing with the child instead of the parent
• Recreational reading requests
• Do you really need a book (encyclopedias,
  websites, other resources may be better)?

6
Homework Help

• Is information or instruction needed?
• Websites useful for homework
• yahooligans or kidsclick.org
• Tutoring issues
• just doing a sample problem should be enough
• How much help is too much?
• Assisting teachers
• often need a childrens librarian for curriculum
  consultation

7
Readers Advisory

• Childrens Genre Fiction
• Finding recreational reading for kids vs. adults
  
• Kids more flexible in their preferences
• Open to new genres (mystery, fantasy)
• Tools useful for Readers Advisory
• Readers Advisory Interview
• Gender Issues

8
Common Questions for Readers Advisory

• Whats a book you read recently and liked?
• What grade are you in?
• Did you want something true or a chapter book?
• Is this for a book report or to read for fun?
• What kind of thing do you do for fun (sports,
  etc.)?
• Do you like mysteries? Fantasy like Harry
  Potter? Books set in the past (Historical
  Fiction)?
• (If child isnt there) Is this for a boy or a
  girl?
• Do you like books in a series?

9
Reading Levels

• How to help child determine reading level
• Look on back of paperback for RL
• Five finger rule
• Not one size fits all
• Nonfiction levels may be higher but still work
  for that child

10
Childrens Fiction Jeopardy

• This series by a San Francisco author stars three
  orphans out to escape Count Olaf in A Series of
  Unfortunate Events, written by?
• This famous girl detective has been popular for
  more than 50 years
• This series by Dav Pilkey has comic drawings
  interspersed through each chapter and stars a
  superhero famous for his tighty whities

11
Programming What Do You Do?

• Storytimes
• Summer Reading Programs
• Entertainment/Cultural/Fine Arts
• Library Tours
• Book Discussion Groups

12
Why Do Storytime?

• Foster love of books and libraries
• Modeling for parents
• Boosts circulation
• Creates
• readers
• library users

13
Storytime - Preparing For Kindergarten

• Kindergarten readiness
• need to know alphabet, numbers, shapes, colors,
  use of scissors,how to write name, phone number,
  etc.
• Promote readiness through
• Fingerplays
• Song
• Props
• Puppets

14
Storytime Things to Consider

• Age divisions
• - baby/lapsit, toddler, preschool, family
• Basic format for storytime
• Time 20 min. 45 min.
• Types of stories
• Themes
• -useful websites

15
Crafts for Preschool Storytime

• Its the process not the product.
• Learn skills needed for Kindergarten
• motor skills
• basic problem solving
• Websites
• enchantedlearning.com
• bayviews.org

16
Five Green and Speckled Frogs

• Five green and speckled frogs,
• Sat on a speckled log,
• Eating the most delicious bugs.
• Yum,Yum
• One jumped into the pool,
• Where it was nice and cool,
• Now there are four green speckled frogs
• Ribbit, ribbit.

17
Summer Reading Programs

• Procedures
• sign-ups
• prizes
• Goals
• books, pages, time spent reading?
• Teen volunteers
• can help with sign-ups, records, prizes
• often bilingual

18
Themes and Games

• Games
• must be luck, not skill, so equal for all ages
• Themes
• literature-based
• educational
• fun
• Programming relating to themes

19
Entertainment Programming

• Reasons
• increase circ.
• get new users
• promote reading
• Entertainment library as place
• Multicultural outreach to nonusers
• Fine Arts promote related library materials
• Hosting duties making the program work for
  audience and entertainer
• -sample confirmation letter and checklist

20
Access and Liability

• Children are different from Adults
• age 8 is the age of reason
• Have a written policy to hand adult
• Policy comes from Management
• Access to library, to information, to services
  should not be based on age

21
Unaccompanied Children

• School truancy rules
• w/adult during school hours
• Age divisions
• need age rule for unaccompanied children
• high school age more flexibility
• Legal Obligations
• only parent can give permission for card or
  internet
• Children left at closing time
• check with management on policy ( police)

22
Latchkey Children

• Children grades 3-8 in library after school
• Need a written policy
• They need to
• be using library materials
• follow written rules
• You need to communicate with parents regarding
  behavior problems

23
Library Tours

• Goals
• get new users, new cardholders, promote library,
  instruction on use of library
• What to cover
• circulation, media, recreational reading,
  homework materials, computers, searching skills,
  library rules

24
Working with Teachers

• Schedule tours
• Library card outreach
• Special topics for upcoming assignments
• Your agenda vs. the teachers agenda

25
Make Tours Fun

• Scavenger Hunts
• Family Feud-style games
• Puzzles for younger children
• Trivia questions
• Bookmarks, stickers

26
Book Discussion Group

• Goals, Types of Groups
• Xtreme Readers
• 4th and 5th grade, Middle school, High school
• Costs involved
• free or charge a fee
• same book or just same genre or author
• Methods
• read book before meeting, discussion questions,
  hands-on activities, refreshments, movies, author
  visits

27
Handling Diverse Learners

• For visual learners write on board
• For audio learners do listening based activity
• For kinetic (hands-on) learners do crafts and
  other hands on activities

28
Gender Issues

• Boy books vs. Girl books
• More boys are kinetic learners
• Books on tape for those with learning
  disabilities/ESL

29
Summary of the Day

• Favorite topic covered today
• What you feel ready to do next
• Questions on any of the topics
• Things you found useful
• What you would like to learn next tim

30
Thanks!

• If you think of other questions later, please
  email me at Pikly_at_aol.com I will be happy to
  answer anything I can!