Young Adult Services Fundamentals

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Young Adult Services Fundamentals

• Instructor
• Michael Cart
• mrmcart_at_aol.com
• An Infopeople Workshop
• Winter/Spring 2004

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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 Web site
at infopeople.org.
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Workshop Overview

• Fundamentals
• Youth Participation
• Collection Development
• Trends in YA Literature
• Books and Readers Advisory
• Programming for YAs

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Fundamentals

• Basic Print and Online Resources
• Competencies
• Teen Developmental Needs
• Fundamentals of Planning

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Basic Print and Online Resources

• Print
• Patrick Jones. Connecting Young Adults And
  Libraries.
• _____. New Directions For Library Service To
  Young Adults
• Renee. J. Vaillancourt. Bare Bones Young Adult
  Services
• Online
• The Internet Public Library http//www.ipl.org/
• Young Adult Librarians Help/Homepage
  http//yahelp.suffolk.lib.ny.us/
• Young Adult Library Services Association
  www.ala.org/yalsa/

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Competencies

• In Young Adults Deserve the Best YALSA
  identifies 7 basic areas of competency
• 1. Leadership
• 2. Knowledge of Client Group
• 3. Communication
• 4. Administration
• 5. Knowledge of Materials
• 6. Access to Information
• 7. Services

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Teen Developmental Needs

• YA Services equip teens with information and
  abilities that enable them to achieve
  developmental skills necessary to graduate from
  adolescence to adulthood.
• The handout lists developmental needs from a
  variety of sources.

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Fundamentals Of Planning

• Know Your Community
• --Demographics
• --Socioeconomics
• Identify Community Partners
• Identify Needs
• YA User Survey
• Self-Assessment Survey

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Youth Participation

• Definition
• Importance of youth participation
• how teens can help
• Forming the Teen Advisory Board
• who should belong?
• best ways to recruit

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Characteristics of Successful TAB Programs

• Allow youth input from planning stage forward
• Center on issues of real interest
• Focus on specific, doable tasks

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Planning Young Adult Spaces

• What will you call it?
• Location, Location, Location
• Layout
• Furniture and furnishings
• Technology
• Decor

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Readers Advisory

• Definition
• Goals
• The Interview
• The Browsing Factor
• Merchandising

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Readers Advisory Interview

• Are you reading for fun or for an assignment?
• What was the last book you read and enjoyed?
• Have you heard of good books or authors from your
  friends?
• What kinds of books dont you like?

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Practice A Readers Advisory Interview

• My English teacher says I have to read a 500 page
  novel with a contemporary setting that involves a
  quest
• I just read the last Harry Potter book, what can
  you recommend thats just like it.

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Demystifying Collection Development

• What is YA literature?
• Administration, maintenance and promotion
• Evaluation and selection tools
• Current trends in young adult literature

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What Is YA Literature?

• Fiction
• Nonfiction
• Formats
• Non-book materials
• Online materials

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Administration, Maintenance and Promotion

• What Will Your Collection Contain?
• Popularity vs. Quality
• A BRIEF group discussion (no fisticuffs, please!)
• How will it be used?
• Where will it be located?

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Evaluation and Selection Tools

• Print Materials
• Magazines Journals
• Books
• Online Materials

The Webliography and the Selected Print Resources
handouts offer comprehensive lists.
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Current Trends in YA Literature

• Rise of retail market commercial fiction
• Crossover materials
• Globalization
• Emphasis on the visual
• Renaissance of poetry, short stories, fantasy
  historical fiction

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Why Do Book Discussions
But first how many have actually done book
discussions?

• 1. Increase circulation
• 2. Get new users
• 3. Promote reading

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Book Discussion Mechanics

• Getting started
• Creating a model for discussion
• Formulating questions

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The Art of Booktalking

• What it is and what it isnt
• While youre reading
• While youre writing
• that darned first sentence!!!
• Preparation
• Doing it

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Programming for Young Adults

• Definition
• Why do it?
• Funding
• Types of programming
• Educational/Cultural
• Informational
• Recreational

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Prior Planning Pays

• When planning YA programming consider
• format
• audience
• what
• when
• where

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Implementing Programming

• Whos in charge?
• Make a checklist
• Timeline
• Promotion
• Practice imaging
• Dont forget the refreshments!

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A Hit . . . Or a miss?

• Evaluation
• Have a form
• What went right?
• What went wrong?
• Whatll I do differently next time?
• !!Dont be discouraged!!

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Summary of the Day

• Favorite topic covered today
• What you feel ready to do next
• Things you found useful

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Thanks!

• Please fill out the Evaluation Form in your
  packet
• If you think of other questions later, please
  email me at mrmcart_at_aol.com I will be happy to
  answer anything I can!