In theory weeding is necessary and beneficial, but often, in reality, it is seen as alarming.  After just a few hours of going through each book by hand, with no generated lists, I had a four shelf cart full of books ready to be put in weed status. A couple of things jumped out at me while I was weeding and I thought I should share my findings with other youth librarians. The sciences are particularly problematic because of constant new discovery and revision.  In 2006, the planet Pluto was designated a dwarf plant, and is no longer listed as the ninth planet from the sun. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pluto )  this means that many of the astronomy books from the 1990s and early 2000s are no longer accurate. They may not be worn looking, but they must be pulled from the shelves.  My boss, Angie Manfredi, calls it her worst nightmare:  some child writes a report using outdated information from one of our library books. In a town like Los Alamos, which prides itself on its scientific background, this would be especially embarrassing.

The other thing that leapt out at me during my weeding was that our outdated books about Native Americans needed very close examination. Racist inaccuracies in text and in illustrations are rampant in older books. Libraries located in the Southwest which carry many books about Native Americans need to be vigilant about finding and weeding these books. This is particularly important for our library as we are located in an area with several Pueblos nearby, and we want to maintain a good relationship with our neighbors.  The same issue came up when we received a large number of foreign language books. Not knowing what sort of pitfalls existed in a very simple German children’s encyclopedia, we asked one of our German-speaking patrons to take a quick look. She discovered that the entry about Native North Americans was rife with racist terminology. It was worth the extra time taken to get a second opinion on these donated items.

Science changes and people do come to the realization that racist beliefs are not founded in fact.  Progress does occur and it should be reflected in the juvenile collection of nonfiction.
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“Pluto, the Ninth Planet That Was a Dwarf.” Space.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2013.

The post Spring Weeding – Progress Should Be Reflected in Your Collection first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

And there are plenty of questions:

How much responsibility does the library have for the safety of these unattended children?  What standards of behavior will all children in the library be expected to follow?

How will the library determine which children are “unattended” children?  If a child is with an older sibling does that mean that the child is unattended?  What about the child who is with an older cousin?  How will the library determine whether or not the child is actually related to the older child?  Does the library really want to start asking children questions like these?  At what point do we begin to sound like we are asking for “papers”?  For librarians, who pride themselves on protecting intellectual freedoms, the whole procedure starts to be problematic.

The question we face is how to provide safety without prying into a child’s privacy.  The idea that a child might be in danger because the child is unattended is worrisome, but it may also be true that the child is safer when not in his or her home.  In fact, asking the child to leave the library may subject the child to more danger or to parental abuse.  The library may be the safest place for that particular child at that time of day.  As long as he or she is not posing a danger to other children, perhaps it would be best for the community as a whole to keep the child at the library.  We have no way of determining what situation any child lives in even if we can guess the child’s socio-economic level.  In fact, we never want to pick and choose which children we ask questions about based on race or economic disadvantage.

Another important aspect of all these questions is that once a library has determined what its policy will be, the director needs to be sure that the reality reflects the policy.  Casual employees and volunteers must know what the policy is and never cross the lines the library has drawn.  The youth services department must review the policy from time to time and be sure that everyone in the department is walking the walk and not just talking the talk.  As librarians we have to be sure we are acting on our ethical standards, not just paying lip service to them.  I’d love to hear how your libraries are working with unattended children – leave your comments below.

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1. “LibraryLaw Blog.” ‘LibraryLaw Blog’ N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2013. http://blog.librarylaw.com/librarylaw/2007/01/unattended_chil.html

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On a deeper level, we as librarians must try not to carry our personal prejudices with us to the library.  Anyone who thinks they have no prejudices at all is being dishonest. Even if we think we have moved beyond the evils of racial or gender prejudice, we carry other prejudices in our hearts without realizing how it sours our attitudes. I have seen it so often in observing the interactions that my teen patrons have with adults. When a young man with a pierced nose and all black clothing comes in to the library, many moms and dads with their toddlers will give him an apprehensive look. Perhaps even the library professional at the desk will seem reserved and less than enthusiastic about interacting with this teen. I admit that I have found myself thinking prejudicially about some of my patrons. When a boy comes in and asks for “books about sports” I hear myself thinking “oh, he’s not really interested in books, he’s just a jock.” This thought will subtly change the way I serve him, and not in a positive way. Whatever my own personal history, I cannot let preconceived ideas about people color the way I serve my patrons. I try to wipe the slate clean for every individual patron and for groups of patrons every day.  It would be better if I could convince myself not to group my patrons together at all, but I understand that overcoming every impulse of human nature is not realistic. Nonetheless, I do hold myself to the high standard of greeting each patron with an open mind and an eager desire to help them navigate the information world. Especially now, at the start of the new year, isn’t this a good time to make sure we renew our effort to hold to this standard?  Next time the teen with a nose piercing comes in, don’t hold back and try not to hold any prejudices about this “type” of individual in your heart.

The post Start the New Year with a Clean Slate first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

May there always be sunshine.

May there always be blue sky.

May there always be Mama.

May there always be me.

The performance I used is on a CD called Global Lullabies by Freyda Epstein (1995). During the song we all gathered in a circle, held hands, and swayed slowly to the beat of the song.  When the chorus says “sunshine” and “blue sky” we all waved our arms slowly above our heads.  When the chorus says “Mama” and “me” we all gave ourselves a hug.  The slow and reverent tone seemed perfect to convey my mixed feelings of sadness and gratitude. The shooting made me sad, but I was also so grateful that the children I see regularly at the programs are safe and alive.  At the end of the song, I told everyone “May we all be as safe, protected, and loved as we are right now.”  I also expressed my wishes that they have a nice holiday and how much I love having the honor of working with their children.

I felt it was better to acknowledge my feelings rather than to act as if nothing had happened.  I only hope that I never have to adjust the “Music and Movement” program ever again to acknowledge my sadness about a tragedy like this.

The post A Special Children’s Program first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Make Hobbit Habitats
The Hobbit Habitat project is very similar to the craft ideas represented in Fairy Houses…Everywhere! By Tracy Kane and Barry Kane.  This activity is suitable for older elementary, middle school, teen and young adult patrons.  The project involves making a miniature dwelling out of found materials in the yard or in nearby nature.  Gathering the materials is part of the craft activity and you need access to a park or the library grounds.  It would also make sense for the librarian to gather some materials to serve as examples and as supplemental material for the craft.  The idea is to model the miniature dwelling on the houses in Hobbiton, like the one Bilbo Baggins lived in.

Hobbits vs. Goblins Trivia Competition
Invite fans of the Tolkien movies and books to come to the library for a night of trivia competition.  Divide the patrons into teams and ask trivia questions and keep score.  Take a picture of the winning team and post the picture on the library website and post it somewhere in the library so that the team can take pride in their victory.  If funds allow, give the winning team members a small prize related to Tolkien or the Hobbit. (See the list of websites below for potential trivia questions.)

Hobbit Songs
Have an evening when “folkies” can come and pretend to be Hobbits singing actual Tolkien songs or simply traditional English folk songs.  Inviting at least some people who can play instruments would be great, but not mandatory.  This would be a family activity for all ages.  Pull some song books, CDs. and the Tolkien series and have them on prominent display to everyone who comes to the event. It’s a good idea to have the librarian or a willing volunteer break the ice with the first song, and make the patrons take turns. The best way to do this is to seat people in a circle and go around the circle asking each person to sing a song alone or ask that everyone sing a song together, or pass to the next person.  The circle is a good way to make sure that no one takes over and turns the evening into a one-person show.

Here are some websites that include ideas for celebrating “The Hobbit “at the Library:

Did you know that LEGO has a site related to “The Hobbit,” with LEGO games and activities?  There’s a whole series of LEGO products related to “The Hobbit.”  However, it is not be necessary to buy any new LEGOs to make a fun activity tying Hobbits and LEGOs.  This program would be geared towards elementary school-aged children and their families.  Perhaps a few laptops showing the LEGO site and open to the games related to the Hobbit would be a good addition.  LEGO Hobbit website: http://thehobbit.lego.com/#79010.

The Tolkien Society: http://www.tolkiensociety.org/ed/ed_006.html  This website has an excellent idea for elementary school-age kids.

Hobbit party ideas: http://www.ehow.com/info_8199566_hobbit-party-ideas.html

LEGO Hobbit website: http://thehobbit.lego.com/#79010  This website provides fun online activities for children.

Websites containing trivia and questions about “The Hobbit” include:

http://www.funtrivia.com/quizzes/literature/j_r_r_tolkien/the_hobbit.html

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0903624/trivia

http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_9430000/newsid_9431800/9431884.stm

http://m.wyomingnews.com/articles/2012/12/15/entertainment/01ent%2012-12-12%20hobbit%20quiz.txt

http://www.marquette.edu/magazine/recent.php?subaction=showfull&id=1349802000

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Tweens are often very interested in expressing their opinions.  They want to be surveyed about their likes and dislikes, or about what they consider to be the best or the worst.  At the beginning of the summer, I distributed a brief paper survey to the students at the local middle school and to all the sixth graders.  (I live and work in a small town where this is possible, though I understand it might be a gargantuan task in a big city.)  The survey asked potential patrons explicitly what kind of activities they would like to try during the summer. It also served the dual purpose of marketing the tween program here at our public library.   I received many completed surveys and read them all, taking notes about the results and I used the results to direct tween programming.  Then, during the summer, before each program began,  I mentioned that our Tween patrons had suggested the idea for the program. This reinforced the idea that library patrons are empowered to get the programming they actually want.

The programs themselves should focus on tween interests, especially about the self.  Tween patrons often enjoy taking quizzes or creating self portraits. Take advantage of this tendency by creating programs on topics like introspection and extroversion. Gather some books on this topic, come up with a shortened version of the Myers-Briggs personality test, and have the tweens take the test.  They will really engage in this because it centers on self discovery and self definition. Tweens can really focus because definition of the self is the primary psychological task of their age group.

At my library, at the end of a summer reading program, we launched “the best of the summer” program with a tween group. We made a huge poster for the program room and listed the best program, the best book, the best movie, the best song, best video game, and the best vacation of the summer, all chosen by the tween group.  At the bottom of the poster I listed every tween patron who had contributed an opinion, as well as my name. I do enter into the discussion during these kinds of programs, but I mostly listen.  In order to contribute opinions about pop culture, I consistently try to read, listen, and talk about the things they are interested in.

Don’t struggle to get them to focus on things that don’t interest them, rather, play up to their obsessions.  That, in a nutshell, is my zen philosophy of tween programming—never try to swim upriver; go with the flow.

The post Tween Programming: It’s All About Them first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

I could put forth a dozen unsubstantiated theories about why most tweens do not want to look me in the eye.

1.  It is because they are so accustomed to looking at their electronic devices that they find human eye contact uncomfortable.
2.  All modern people are becoming detached from one another and do not know how to interact anymore.
3.  The young adolescent’s frontal cortex is still not fully developed and they are unsure of how to act in this situation.
4.  Tweens and teens are just rude and disrespectful in general….

None of these theories has any merit, especially not the last one.

Truly, it doesn’t matter why they act this way, the only thing that matters is how we respond to them.  Asking tweens to turn and look at us and repeat the question is too aggressive.  Demanding that they speak up and quit mumbling and repeat the question is not appropriate–unless you’re a drill sergeant in the military.

As a public librarian I’ve had to sharpen my listening skills to tune in to what tweens are saying.  Look for cues in the context and watch body language.  Don’t be demanding and irritated if you cannot understand what they have said to you. Don’t stare at them as you pass by.  Wander by where they are congregating and ask if they need help with anything.  Make a friendly comment about the magazine they are looking at, and walk away so that it doesn’t seem like you are watching them. Never correct their manners—that is not the role of the librarian.  If absolutely necessary, ask them kindly to repeat what they’ve said.  Ignore what may seem to be rudeness.

In reality, most tweens are intimidated when interacting with adults and that can be expressed in shyness or in what looks like surliness to most of us.  Always assume that their behavior is not malicious, and keep trying to reach out to them.  That is  the only way to build bridges of communication.  It is not always easy, but once you have built relationships with the tweens who come in to your library, it is enormously rewarding.

The post The Eyes Have It first appeared on Public Libraries Online.