|
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1998 00:17:50 -0400 (EDT)
To: pubyac-digest@nysernet.org
Subject: pubyac V1 #424
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 19:59:33 -0700 (PDT)
From: Kirsten Edwards <kirstedw@kcls.org>
Subject: Re: Wizard mag
On Sat, 15 Aug 1998, Erin V. Helmrich wrote:
> I'd like to hear the thoughts of those who are familiar with WIZARD.
> Despite what I have descibed above the majority of the magazine is tame
> material discussing comic books, toy collecting etc. I tend to be more
> "permissive" than my co-workers and would like to try putting it
out and
> see how it goes. TIA for any comments.
I had to go back and look at WIZARD again with my "small town conservative
eyes" (believe it or not, I have 'em, just don't use 'em very often :-)
and I have to admit that Erin has a point. My equally rarely used
feminist eyes were also a bit outraged.
WIZARD, for good or ill, does reflect the comic book industry - about as
well as, say PEOPLE magazine represents the entertainment biz. (Serious
collectors read THE COMICS JOURNAL) Which means lots of sexist super-hero
babes-in-tights and the occaisional very edgy book. While neither of my
"alternate eyeballs" believes that discussing homosexuality between
characters is inappropriate for a teen-aged collection (and I'll admit
right now that there are plenty of parents who would disagree with me on
this), there are books - reviewed and discussed in WIZARD - which would
raise any parent's hackles (SPAWN - popular dreck and THE DREAMING - less
popular and very edgy or THE PREACHER - cult hit) Demons, eyeball-chewing
serial killers and sexually active ministers are the stuff of challenged
materials and 7-year-old nighmares.
But the majority of the magazine, despite the babe-o-rama illustrations,
is fairly tame. If you're asking me, is this an appropriate mag. for the
kiddy collection - no. But older teens or adults? Well, if you've got
enough teens who read or collect comics/graphic novels, I'd say
definately - yes.
Just my two cents,
Kirsten Edwards
kirstedw@kcls.org
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 20:52:28 -0400
From: SANDY <furrs@localline.com>
Subject: automation
I work at a small library and we are working at getting automated. I
would like to get some input on how you read shelves after automation.
Do any of you use a portable bar code reader? How does that work for
shelf reading? Do any of you keep a shelf list of catalog cards? Just
wondering. Thanks in advance.
Sandy Furr
Benton County Public Library
Fowler, IN
furrs@localline.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 15:37:29 +0000
From: "Nancy Magi" <Nmagi@acpl.lib.in.us>
Subject: Teen Week Activities
We plan to run the art contest as suggested by Yalsa, and we are also
going to create posters and bookmarks that promote the idea if you
read a book for fun during Teen Read Week you will get a free
paperback book. They will contain the equation ...
1 to Checkout
+1 for Keeps
__________________
2 for Fun!
Now that we have heard what some of your are doing for Teen Read
Week, I would like to hear about your plans for Children's Book Week.
Nancy Magi
nmagi@acpl.lib.in.us
*******************************************************
Branch Youth Services Coordinator
Allen County Public Library
nmagi@acpl.lib.in.us
*******************************************************
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 11:00:42 -0400
From: Lesley Gaudreau <lesley@seabrook.lib.nh.us>
Subject: 5th gr. choosing books
Hi all,
In a couple of weeks I have some 5th graders coming to the library for
the typical beginning of school tour. One thing their teachers have
asked me to concentrate on is *how* to choose a book that you will
enjoy. Does anyone have any ideas on how to jazz this up? I'm thinking
along the lines of a fun "personality quiz" or "dating game"
to match up
kids with books or at least get them thinking about their own interests
beyond "skinny" books. Has anyone done something like this? Or
something else fun that will get these kids excited about choosing
books?
Thanks! lesley
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
***Please notice new e-mail address***
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Lesley Gaudreau
YA/REF Seabrook Library
Seabrook, NH
lesley@seabrook.lib.nh.us
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 03:49:23 -0400
From: Beth Gallaway <egallawa@concentric.net>
Subject: Computer Club at the Haverhill Public Library
I hope this helps out some fellow librarians . . . so often we only
hear about success stories in our journals. Well, this was a learning
experience! *chuckle* Hope it helps some of you, comments & questions
welcome.
I tried a pilot program this summer, a computer club for kids
entering grades 4-6. When I made up the publicity, I decided that the
club would be run based on the kids interests. Possible meeting agendas
might include learning how the Internet works, how to use email, how to
search the WWW, discussing games, including other types of computer
games like Nintendo, or just sharing favorite sites.
Based on this general description, we had 9 boys and 1 girl sign
up. Fearing the girl would get lost in the shuffle, we decided to run 2
groups, and begin recruiting girls who came in to use the Internet
workstation. We signed up 10 boys and 7 girls. Five kids signed up and
never showed. One came only the first week (either got bored, or didn't
realize it was 5-week program). The boys met at 1 pm , the girls at
3pm, both on Friday afternoons. Usually, 6-8 boys, and 3-4 girls
attended each meeting. Most missed one meeting.
MISTAKE:
Bad timing. Lots of families go away in the summer. A weekday
might have been a better for some. I never had full attendance, and the
meetings tended to build on one another, week to week.
GOOD IDEA:
Don't make it a week to week club. Run one-time workshops.
WEEK ONE: Intro
We started the first meeting with a survey so I could get an idea of
how much computer experience they had. Most had used computers at
school or the library, some had computers at home, but were not online.
Some had their own email accounts & used AOL.
We discussed Internet safety and the library's Internet Policy.
Sent copies of policy and safety agreement home to parents. Then, I had
each child set up a hotmail account, based on a demonstration and
step-by-step directions. They went out to the 2 computers 2 at a time,
then they swapped.
MISTAKE:
Letting kids set up their own email. This took WAAAY too much
time. I could have done in in 5 minutes for each child. The process
was new, they read & typed slowly . . . and setting up a hotmail account
is a one-time thing, and had little value as a learning experience.
GOOD IDEA:
Set up email accounts for each child & have a message waiting for
them the 1st week.
WEEK TWO: Email
The kids checked their email to see the assignment I sent them.
They learned how to get into their hotmail accounts, and how to use the
address book, forward, and reply features. This was a good meeting.
I split the boys into 2 groups. The first group met with me and we
discussed parts of an email address, netiquette (being polite on the
Internet, especially while using chat & email) and I explained how the
Internet worked. We also went over some computer terms. The second
group checked their email with assistance from a 15 year old who was a
regular Internet user. There we so few in the girls group that we
split the meeting up, instead of making groups . . . first half, they
checking email; 2nd half, we had the discussion. It went fine.
GOOD IDEA
Have one or two helpers to run the club! Teen volunteers would be
ideal . . . other staff were not free to assist, and the teens can
explain in simpler terms sometimes, and relate a little better to the
kids.
WEEK THREE: Plug ins
I intended to spend the third week on cool things you can do on the
Internet. Fearing that the 2 Children's Room (CR) terminals would not
be enough, I booked 3 Internet computers on the main floor for the boys,
since their group was larger. We got downstairs, and not only were the
computer we had been assigned far apart from one another, none of them
had the Shockwave and RealPlayer plug ins I needed installed . . .
because the Reference Staff don't want to listen to the noise from
games, music and/or animation clips. So, we abandoned the 'plan' and
did some searching instead. I promised they could do games the next
week. The boys looked at sites for Cartoon Network, Legos, &
Nickelodeon.
The 4 girls used the computers in the CR, and experienced a few
technical difficulties -- were able to hear some Spice Girls music clips
from Amazon.com, see part of "Celebrity Deathmath" at the MTV site,
and
play games at the Cornpops site. They also tried a ICKChat, a kids chat
site.
MISTAKE:
Not investigating resources before class. All the things worked on
the CR computers! :( Had disappointed kids. Let the boys surf the web,
did a little keyword searching to find what they wanted.
MISTAKE:
Not supervising Reference Desk Internet Sign-ups. They didn't give
me 3 computers in a row. . . I had to run around in circles to assist
the boys.
GOOD IDEA:
Be flexible. Technology isn't faultless . . . sometimes sites go
down, the plug ins don't work, etc. Have a backup plan just in case.
GOOD IDEA:
Check all computers beforehand and set up all necessary plug ins &
software.
WEEK FOUR: Searching for the Girls, Games for the Boys
I split the boys into 2 groups again, and they took turns at the 2
CR terminals. Group 1 took turns playing games at the Cornpops site &
M&M's site. Group 2 did a matching game with vocabulary words. After a
half hour, they switched. With no helper this time, it was hard to be
in two places at once.
The girls viewed a Multnomah website with searching tips, then tried
keyword searches using an index (Yahooligans) and a search engine
(HotBot)
MISTAKE:
Group 1 didn't want to do a quiz after playing games. Both groups
resented being made to "work" in the summer. Keep it fun . . . or make
it clear that the club is going to be lesson oriented in the future.
GOOD IDEA:
Have meetings on using the Internet to search for information BEFORE
the meeting on games & plug ins.
The girls wanted to play games a 2nd week.
WEEK FIVE: Tying up loose ends
I booked the Internet computers downstairs to do more searching with
the boys. They only wanted to play more games, weren't interested in
any sort of lesson I wanted to teach. One 9 year old wanted to know if
he could get pictures of naked women *sigh* I explained yes, there was
lots of that on the Internet, but it was illegal for him as a minor to
look at it, and it was not an appropriate use of library computers.
Turned his attention to other things.
The girls checked their email (most of them had friends or relatives
with email) and then surfed the Internet.
The kids also filled out an evaluation form about the computer
club.
SUMMARY
The evaluation forms showed that the general consensus was that it
was a fun 5 weeks, they learned some things about how the Internet
worked, they would be interested in continuing in the fall, I usually
made sense when I was explaining or trying to teach something, and they
didn't like the quiz, even though it was a matching game, wasn't graded,
and was for their own benefit.
In the future, I think instead of a 'club' we will offer monthly
workshops at different times with a specific topic. The group will be
kept small. We will have a half hour demonstration/lecture then have an
hour to put the lesson into effect. If there are not more terminals in
the CR, we will use the ones on the main floor, making sure that we book
several in a row so participants can help each other. One person will
run the workshop, and we'll have several volunteer helpers to assist.
Topics of workshops might include:
Internet Safety
Using Email
Using a Browser or Surfing the Internet
Searching on the Internet
Cool Sites or Fun Links
Website Evaluation
How to create a webpage (by using a form, provided by geocities etc)
Searching the online catalog (especially when it becomes web-based this
fall)
Hope this helps any of you planning something similar, especially with
the Kids Connect @ the Library Program & Internet Teach-ins coming up in
September! :)
Beth Gallaway
egallawa@concentric.net
Haverhill Public Library
Haverhill MA
Sites mentioned:
Yahooligans: http://www.yahooligans.com
HotBot: http://www.hotbot.com
Cornpops: http://www.cornpops.com
M&M's Arcade: http://www.m-ms.com/gamez/
Nickelodeon: http://www.nick.com
Cartoon Network: http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/
Lego World: http://www.lego.com/worlds.asp
Celebrity Deathmatch: http://www.mtv.com/mtv/tubescan/deathmatch/
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com
IckChat: http://www.cybercs.com/ick/
Search Tips:
http://www.multnomah.lib.or.us/~walterm/alasearch/minkel.html
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 22:48:34 -0400 (EDT)
From: Rebecca Goldberg <goldberg@lemming.uvm.edu>
Subject: picture book bins
I would greatly appreciate any suggestions you may have regarding picture
book bins for our public library's children's area. We presently have
custom made book bins from about 25 years ago that our collection has
outgrown. We are committed to keeping our picture books in book bins and
would like to know whether you have purchased book bins that you
especially like or have any suggestions regarding having them custom made.
Does anyone use double sided bins?
I was pleased to see pictures of book bins on the web page of
Bettendorf Public Library. Does anyone else have web page pictures?
Thank you for your suggestions
- --Rebecca
__________________________________________________
| |
| Rebecca Goldberg goldberg@lemming.uvm.edu |
| Youth Services Librarian |
| Fletcher Free Library |
| 235 College St. |
| Burlington, VT 05401 |
| 802 865-7216 |
|_________________________________________________|
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 14:35:36 -0500
From: jvandcar@park-ridge.lib.il.us
Subject: Puberty/Sex Education Videos
Our department serves children from birth through 6th grade. Occasionally we
get requests from parents for videos about the 'facts of life' and body
development for preteens. Does anyone have videos in their collection on
these topics that they think are well done and up to date?
Janet Van De Carr
Janet Van De Carr
Park Ridge Public Library
Park Ridge, IL 60068
mailto:jvandcar@park-ridge.lib.il.us
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Aug 1998 21:19:36 -0400
From: "Andrea H. Mandel" <mandel@voicenet.com>
Subject: Re: Best of bibliographies for juvenile nonfiction
David,
Check out http://www.sunlink.ucf.edu/weed/
Not only is this a great site for what books you should have in your
collection, but also for those you shouldn't have.
Hope this helps!
Andrea Mandel
Marple Public Library
Sproul Rd. & Springfield Rd.
Broomall, PA 19008
610-356-0550
mandel@voicenet.com
David Schmit wrote:
> Greetings:
>
> I have some gaps to fill in my nonfiction collection to fill and not a lot
> of time to do it. I'm loooking for some "best of" bibilographies
in
> juvenile nonfiction for the following areas: Zoology, Athletics, U.S.
> History, Pure Science, Palentology and General Biography. Databases would
> be fine as well. Thanks.
>
> David Winkler-Schmit
> New Orleans Public Library
> dschmit@gnofn.org
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 11:30:21 +0000
From: Lisa Payton <ufj000@mail.connect.more.net>
Subject: special calendar days
What is a good resource for special calendar days and weeks, ie. national
fire prevention week, etc. I am especially interested in all things
obscure, like . . . national pickle appreciation day.
Lisa Payton
Puxico Public Library
ufj000@mail.connect.more.net
PO Box 65
Puxico MO 63960
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 08:31:54 -0400
From: Sherri McCarthy <smccarth@mcls.rochester.lib.ny.us>
Subject: Re: Mother-Daughter Book Group
Katie O'Dell Madison wrote:
>
> Multnomah County Library has added a Mother-Daughter Book Group web page
> to our Kids Page that you invited to check out:
>
> http://www.multnomah.lib.or.us/kids/mdbg.html
Dear Katie: Thanks for this great message. The website is fantastic.
But, the URL is wrong. Here's one that worked:
http://www.multnomah.lib.or.us/lib/kids/mdbg.html
Sherri McCarthy
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 08:50:58 -0400 (EDT)
From: Rebecca Hastings <rhasting@vlc.lib.mi.us>
Subject: book challenge
dear colleagues, we recently received a book challenge for angela and
diabola by lynne reid banks i am currently reading it and preparing for a
committee discussion on monday 31 august. we have some reviews and comments from
kids about the book, i just wondered if anyone else had any opinions or
insights? thanks. rebecca
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 06:50:40 PDT
From: "Linda Carmichael" <lindacarmichael@hotmail.com>
Subject: Fall programming ideas
As the manager of a small, rural library in Georgia, I am seeking to
expand our children's programming. We will begin weekly preschool story
hours in mid-September. We are seeking ideas to put that added spark
into our time with the preschoolers (sings, puppet ideas, fingerplays,
etc.)!! Thanks in advance for any help you might offer-- Linda
Carmichael, Franklin Memorial Library, Swainsboro, GA
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 11:51:28 -0400
From: "Kelly Poole" <kpoole@lex.lib.sc.us>
Subject: CD-Roms Selection
I've been subscribed for a few weeks, and this is my first question for
the group. I work in a public library, which does not have any CD-Roms
for children (for use in the library or circulating). However, I feel
very strongly that this is an area that needs consideration. Does
anyone have a written selection policy that they could forward me? I'd
appreciate your answers emailed or mailed to me, and I will post the
common features to the list. Thank you!
Kelly Poole
Youth Services
kpoole@lex.lib.sc.us
or
Kelly Poole
Youth Services
Lexington Main Library
5440 Augusta Road
Lexington, SC 29072
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Aug 1998 22:24:18 -0400
From: espicer <espicer@accn.org>
Subject: Interview questions, finale!--LONG!
Okay--this is the end! I'll cut and paste questions and thoughts from
those who responded just to me, when I asked this question, oh so many
months ago! (And you'll see where some of the questions came from that
were in my list posted last week!)
Thanks again for your help--as I said before, the response from you
folks was nothing short of overwhelming!
Ann Perrigo, Director (no longer Children's Librarian!)
Allegan (MI) Public Library
espicer@accn.org
If I was going to hire someone to do storytime I would have them do a
storytime. It will be awkward but it's the only way (unless they have a
video of them doing a storytime with a group.) Also, watching them do a
program will give you a good idea of how they get along with children.
I don't have set questions but I might ask them what they might
recommend
to a fourth grader looking for a funny book, or a mom who wants to talk
about a new baby coming with a preschooler (or some such scenario).
Ask them if they know what the Newbery & Caldecott awards are - not
specific titles necessarily (tho they should know a few!) but more if
they recognize and can explain what they are.
Ask them to describe a successful program that they planned and
implemented - one that they are proud of.
I like a question about making sugar crystals. Where would you look for
recipe. I like to listen to their search strategy and reasoning.
I've heard it's especially important to find out if they are readers.
Do
they like to read themselves? Will they spend a good portion of their
own time reading children's and young adult literature?
"Recently a parent complained that a picture book showed one child
hitting
another and asked that the book be reomoved from the library. How would
you have responded to this user?"
"What would you say to a mother who is looking for material to encourage
her 12 year old daughter to read and not watch so much television?"
Ask why they want to be in the children's field. Ask what other work
they
have done with children. Ask what were the last 10 children's books
they
read. Ask what their favorite children's books are and why. Ask why
they
want this particular position. Ask why they want to locate in your
area.
Ask what sounded best about the job description that moved them to
apply.
Ask what their stance on censorship, selection policy, and other
site-specific philosophy is. Ask what their favorite library program
was
when they were a child.
For the staff end of it, once you have a finalist or three, invite each
individually to a potluck or out to lunch with key (or even all) staff
members. Talk about everything. Who has dogs, kids, what movies are
out
and if they're good.... See what people think of the personality. (Of
course, don't grill the poor person *laugh*! Hopefully they will be
interested enough to ask plenty of questions too.) It's the little,
everyday things that seem to make or break a happy workplace. (Dirty
cups
in the sink, perfume that's too strong, neverending chirpy cheerfulness,
it's different everywhere.)
I don't have set questions but I might ask them what they might
recommend
to a fourth grader looking for a funny book, or a mom who wants to talk
about a new baby coming with a preschooler (or some such scenario).
Ask them if they know what the Newbery & Caldecott awards are - not
specific titles necessarily (tho they should know a few!) but more if
they recognize and can explain what they are.
Ask them to describe a successful program that they planned and
implemented - one that they are proud of.
Some interview questions I've been asked in the past:
- --Which reviewing sources do you favor for ordering books and why?
- --A parent asks for a book recommendation for her son who is a reluctant
reader. How would you respond?
- --How does a toddler program differ from one for preschoolers?
- --Who are your 3 favorite children's/young adult authors?
- --Describe a program you did for schoolage children. Was it successful?
Why or why not?
- --An adult has a complaint about a children's book. How would you
respond? [depending on your library's policies, you could substitute
video if anyone may check out any video, or internet access]
I'm off to another job in a month, but one of the most unusual questions
I've ever been asked was for my current job. The question was "Do you
think you have pizazz?" I laughed when I heard the question and maybe
it
helped me get the job. The question is to help relax the candidate, and
just to see what the responses is.
Some of the better questions I was asked today were these:
*There is a wide range of experience and education in our staff...you
will
be one of two professionals, how will you relate to the
paraprofessionals
etc?
*What is a risk you have taken in your life and how did it turn out?
*What management style do you work best with?
*What has been your previous programming experience with children, what
was your favorite part and your least favorite part? What will be a
challenge for you in the future?
and then of course the old standards of
*where do you see yourself in the future
*what have you done in the past that will contribute to this job
etc.
One of the best questions I have been asked is the old "What is your
greatest weakness/greatest strength" question. It gives a person a
chance to expand on their own abilities.
The sort of question I don't like is the "What do you do when an angry
mother wants you to prevent her child from getting XXXXX type books
here" sort. I think the answer is too obvious, and it doesn't get
anywhere in the person's thinking.
I don't feel the interview questions I use are exactly what I want, I
keep
rewriting them. I do ask what changes and trends they seen in
children's
literature over the past 20 years or since they were children. I do
require each applicant to present a sotry. They are told this ahead of
time, present a brief story, something you would use with children in
the
Library. It is their choice what book to present and how to present it,
read tell, use props, whatever. I often get a good idea of how well the
person knows children's literature and children based on what is chosen
to
present. Storytelling and reading aloud are skills that can be
developed
so I don't expect the applicant to do a polished performance. I can get
clues as to their potential based on how they use their voice, their
enthusiam,
eye contact. Presentations are a basic part of the job and someone not
willing to attempt it in an interview will have problems doing the job.
Here are topics that we always cover
1. Book knowledge - who are some of favorite authors, illustrators or
titles
for preschool childre, kids just learning to read, middle school, ya's
2. Do you know what the Caldecott and Newbery awards are for and this
years
winner
3. How would you structure a toddler time, preschool storytime, program
for
elementary age kids? What kinds of programs would you suggest for
junior
high/high school students? How long, how many kids? What do you
consider a
large group? Do you do puppets, sing, play a musical instrument?
4. When you have worked in a group/committee, what role do you normally
take?
Tell us about a committee/group project you were part of? (Doesn't have
to be
in library field - could be church, school....
5. Have you worked with diverse populations? - age, race, ethnic groups
6. At TlCPL we have one library card so children can check out any
print,
audio, non-fiction video or children's fiction video. What would you
say to a
parent who complained about something his/her child cheked out?
7. We are a bureacracy. What would happen if you have a great idea and
you
are told "NO, not at this time" How would you handle it?
8. What attractes you to be a children's librarian?
9. What attracts you to this LIbrary?
10. What do the words "legendary service" mean to you? What would you
do to
give legendary service? Whay would patrons want to come back to you?
11. Real life scenarios...
After a family storytime, a parent says "all the characters in
thestories
you read were boy animals. where are the girls?"
During storytime, a group of parents are talking audibily in the
bask of
the room. What would you do?
A parent came in and said that another child had shown her
son/daughter
how to access pornographic internet sites at the Library. What would
you say
to the parent? How would you handle the situation?
12. Being the new kid on the block, how would you develop relationship
with
your co-workers?
I have also been asked how I would respond to certain hypothetical
situations--
such as a parent inquiring about what her child had checked out, etc. I
think
questions like that give a sense of a person's ideology with regard to
youth
services, and also potential conflict with established policies (where I
work,
it is ABSOLUTELY against the rules to give out information about a
patron's
account to anyone but the cardholder).Interview Questions for Outreach
Library Technician
Describe your experience working with children (ages, group size)
… in storytelling (Spanish, English, ages)
What are some of your favorite children's books or authors and why you
like
them.
What would you do in the following situation:
A child is being quite noisy and disturbing other patrons while
the parent
has seemingly tuned out the noise and is not attending
to the child.
How do you capture the attention of a group of children when a program
or
story time is beginning?
Here is another typical library situation:
One energetic child is disturbing a story time when others in
the group
(20 children) are quietly listening. What would you do?
Describe your experience with computers and your comfort level with
using
them
Tell us what interests you most about this job and how it fits into your
future plans.
Is there anything we haven't asked that you would like us to know?
- --------
I also ask situational questions such as:
We want to promote library use by elementary age children. Brainstorm
for
a few minutes about possible programs or ideas that would bring more
children into the library. [Gives a good idea of their creative thought
processes.]
1. Tell us briefly about for of the best youth books you have recently
read. Choose one pre-school; one early elementary; one older
elementary;
and one young adult book.
2. What components would you include in a story time for toddlers? for
preschoolers? for elementary school students?
3. How can a child make you angry? How would you deal with the anger?
4. What is your philosophy of Youth Services?
5. Give some important considerations that you would exercise in
selecting
children's materials.
Ask what their ideal supervisor would be like, and what experiences they
have had working in groups to determine how the candidate would fit in
with your staff.
Ask about favorite books to determine how widely read the applicant is.
Ask the applicant is s/he likes children, and to describe his or her
experiences in working with children to get a feel with how they relate
to children.
Best Interview Question: "tell us about your favorite books" & I
love
hypothetical situations!
Worst: "tell us about your education, background, work experience etc
that will prepare you for this job" (it was ON the resume AND job
application... didn't they read it?!)
I like the gentler questions. Why did you
apply for this job? How would your experience qualify you for this job?
What do you think you would be required to do for this job? What kind
of
reading do you do? How would you go about developing the collection?
Etc.
The name 5 children's authors kind of question -
leaves me in a cold sweat - when one is nervous one might not be able to
spit out the knowledge although you know the stuff and vice versa - I
would imagine one could spit out answers, but not really know the
literature and be good with children.
I'd also recommend that you be ready to communicate about your library =
and the things you are expecting from your new employee. They want to =
find a good fit just as much as you do. Show them the space for office,
=
the storytime supplies, have a sample calendar ready for a typical =
week.. if there is such a thing. Most people looking for a job realize =
how different libraries are from each other, so it really helps if you =
can answer their questions.
1. You have just finished straightening the picture books, which were a
mess,
and as you're walking away you hear the sound of books falling on the
floor.
A two-year- old is pulling off an entire section of books onto the floor
with
great delight, and his mother is standing there beaming at her clever
child.
What do you do?
(Answers vary widely. There is no one "right" answer, but certainly a
lot of
wrong ones.)
2. It is night, the maintanance staff has gone home, and a child barfs
up his
entire supper on the floor in the children's room. What do you do?
(The answer here is either to clean it up or, at the very least, block
off the
area from traffic. Of course, the parent should be found and notified
that
the child is sick. You would be amazed at how few librarians who are
not
parents are willing to let the mess sit in the carpeting overnight,
smelling
up the room and making everyone else feel ill, rather than trying to
clean it.
)
This question does two things. It gives the interviewee the clue that
these
are real children he/she will be working with, and that all the library
courses in the world will not answer some of the problem. This is where
common sense, compassion, and a strong constitution comes in. The
second
thing it does is let us know how willing the candidate is to take on
(extremely) unpleasant tasks that occasionally arise.
Every interview I have had as a children's librarian as lasted over four
hours. And this was what was recommended in the H. R. class when
interviewing your top candidates. The theory apparently is someone can
fake their personality for an hour or two, but not more than three and
half. I'm not sure I agree with this. But the upside is it allows you
as
the interview to require them to do a storytime. It also allows you
plenty
of time to show them the children's dept. Part of the interview could
be
going to lunch with members of the staff. Though this can be awkward if
the staff does not keep the topics to library related issues and not
personal type issues.
Another question to ask is how to deal with parents who are objecting to
a
book's appropriateness for children. Or if you have internet access,
how
to handle some of the situations that arise with children and the
internet.
As someone pointed out just asking who a favorite children's author is
doesn't really show the depth and breadth of someone's knowledge of
children's literature. You could perhaps ask them how they would choose
to
develop a section of the collection. Are they familiar with reviewing
tools, which ones would they choose to use, etc. This is also a good
way
to see how they would adjust to your particular library.
Know what your vision of children's services is. I've turned down
positions before in places where the director had no clear cut vision of
children's services or where children's services where clearly tacked on
as
an afterthought. To me this indicated that children's services had
little
value to the library's goals and purposes and that getting support for
programming and budgeting would be difficult. If part of your
children's
services vision is to assist in homework and school assignments and
provide
teacher support, then you need to get someone who is somewhat familiar
with
education requirement such as a person who has both school media
specialist
coursework as well as public library coursework. If it is to work with
certain age group, than look for those qualifications. If it is to do
outreach to preschools, make sure that person is comfortable with doing
that.
To see how well someone would fit in with the staff, my current director
has given the interviewees a cultural literacy test. Not really to see
how
many correct answers they get, but more to see where their interest are.
Sorry for the length--hope this is as helpful to some of you out there
as it was to me!!
Ann
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 14:30:01 -0600
From: Jo-Anne Cooper <wpl1@incentre.net>
Subject: favorite professional books
Hi, my new library has zilch for professional books. I would like to do
some ordering in this area. Which books do you love or consider
essential? I will post a hit of librarian's favorites to the list.
Thank you.
- --
Jo-Anne C. Cooper
Manager of Library Services
Wetaskiwin Public Library
5002 - 51 Avenue
Wetaskiwin, Alberta.
T9A 0V1
Phone 1-403-352-4055
FAX 1-403-352-3266
e-mail wpl1@ccinet.ab.ca
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 14:02:01 -0400 (EDT)
From: Elaine Williams <williael@oplin.lib.oh.us>
Subject: Tooth Storytime Ideas Compiled!
Dear Pubyakkers,
Thank you for all the responses to my query about loose tooth
activities! Since several people asked for a general posting, here it is!
I am using the following books:
MY TOOTH IS ABOUT TO FALL OUT by Grace Maccarone
THE TOOTH FAIRY by Kirsten Hall
HOW MANY TEETH? by Paul Showers.
I am only using three because the last book is a little longer.
My fingerplays are both from 1001 Rhymes & Fingerplays by Totline Staff.
GOT MY TOOTHPASTE
Got my toothpaste, got my brush
(hold up one pointer finger, then the other)
I won't hurry, I won't rush
(Shake head)
Making sure my teeth are clean
(Show teeth in a smile)
Front and back and in-between
(point as indicated)
When I brush for quite a while
(pretend to brush teeth)
I have such a happy smile!
(Smile!)
A TOOTHBRUSH
Of all the things around the town
A toothbrush is just right!
(hold up pointer finger)
Brush up and down and all around
(make brushing movements with finger)
To keep your teeth so white!
(show teeth in a smile)
We are also going to sing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front
Teeth" - the old classic.
Here are the ideas I received from Pubyakkers. They are ALL great, and I
will try to do as many as possible!
1. Make "Button, Button, who's got the button?" into "Tooth,
tooth, who's
got the loose tooth?" Make a tooth or use a tooth-shaped button or eraser
for the game.
2. Use the Raffi song "Brush Your Teeth." It can be found on his
SINGABLE SONGS FOR THE VERY YOUNG and RAFFI ON BROADWAY.
3. Use an oversized toothbrush during the above song.
4. Get a local dentist's office to donated child-sized toothbrushes.
5. Play "Pin the Tooth in the Mouth" using a wide mouth with one
missing
tooth.
6. Hide paper teeth around the room for children to find.
7. Do a variation on the gossip game. Sit in a circle and start the
gossip with "I lost my tooth at__________" (fill in a place, such as
the
library, etc.)
8. Get about 10 kids up to the front and have them sit facing the
audience. Put a grocery bag with a head hole cut out and drape a pink
sheet over their legs. Tell the the audience that these are the
"teeth"
we need to floss. "Floss" with a jumprope! Borrow a giant toothbrush
from city health dept. or novelty store to brush the teeth. Then turn all
the bags around. Have white paper glued on the back for bright, white,
clean teeth!
9. A back issue of Copycat magazine may have a pattern for making tooth
pockets with cut & folded paper.
Isn't PUBYAC great???!!!! Thanks again for all the fun ideas!
Elaine Williams
Youth Librarian
Lynchburg, OH <williael@oplin.lib.oh.us>
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1998 16:13:54 -0500
From: Rebecca OConnell <oconnellr@clpgh.org>
Subject: Fall Festival --Pittsburgh, PA
The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh presents The Fall Festival of Children's
Books, (a program for adults interested in children's books.)
Friday, October 23, 1998 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Carnegie Music Hall,
4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA (Oakland)
Featured speakers are RUSSELL FREEDMAN, SHIRLEY HUGHES, and DAVID WISNIEWSKI.
The program is free; luncheon is $15.00. Please register in advance for
luncheon.
Program of Events: Coffee 8:30-9:30
Speakers 9:30-11:45
Luncheon 12:00-1:00
Panel Discussion 1:15-2:30
Autographing 2:30
For more information, please see our website
http://www.clpgh.org/clp/Childrens/ff/ff98.html
or call Amy kellman, Festival Coordinator at (412) 731-5145
Books will be on sale at the festival.
To pre-register for the luncheon, please send $15.00 per person and a
self-addressed, stamped envelope to Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Outreach
Services, Allegheny Regional Branch Library, 5 Allegheny Square, Pittsburgh, PA
15212. Checks payable to Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Reservations needed
by October 16. Please indicate your choice of pasta with grilled chicken or
vegetarian pasta. Please include a daytime phone number.
------------------------------
End of pubyac V1 #424
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