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From: "PUBYAC: PUBlic librarians serving Young Adults & Children" <pubyac@prairienet.org> To: "PUBYAC: PUBlic librarians serving Young Adults & Children" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 00:01:02 CST Subject: PUBYAC digest 21 PUBYAC Digest 21 Topics covered in this issue include: 1) Re: Collective biography index by Beverly Kirkendall <bkirkend@ci.hurst.tx.us> 2) Re: Gender Role titles by Mary Ann Gilpatrick <magilpat@walnet.walla-walla.wa.us> 3) Re: staff prep time by Ann Moore <SCP_MOORE@sals.edu> 4) historical fiction thanks (long) by "Kathleen Saxton" <ksaxton@wepl.lib.oh.us> 5) Re: toilet paper rolls by Carol Janoff <cjanoff@lib.ci.phoenix.az.us> 6) Harry Potter program ideas by Carol Hoke <hoke@crpl.cedar-rapids.lib.ia.us> 7) RE: book budget figures by jvandcar@park-ridge.lib.il.us 8) Accelerated Readers by Ada Demlow <demlowa@mail.bartow.public.lib.ga.us> 9) RE: staff prep time by "Denise P. Stout" <dpstout@ccls.org> 10) Re: staff prep time by "Heidi Hink" <HeidiH@bethel.alaska.edu> 11) Re: Lapsit by "Linda Dial" <ldial@slco.lib.ut.us> 12) RE: using teen volunteers by Beth Werking <bwerking@kokomo.lib.in.us> 13) RE: Limiting circulation by "Mary Johnson (amk)" <mjohnson@wlsmail.wls.lib.ny.us> 14) Re: using teen volunteers by hgrady.Ops.Staff.Main.ACPL@everest.acpl.lib.in.us 15) Re: Limiting circulation by Tina Cavanough <tcavanough@alicespringscouncil.nt.gov.au> 16) Tea Party Fiction? by "Children's Department" <child@rosenberg-library.org> 17) Gender Role and CDA (Long but worth it, I hope) by Andrew Finkbeiner <ANDREW@rockford.lib.il.us> 18) Re: Amnesity Week by Joyce McKenney <mckenney@ctel.net> 19) Re: book budget figures by "Earl and Kirsten Martindale" <earlmart@bellsouth.net> 20) Help with book discussions by Kim Flores <kimf@mail.orion.org> 21) 4yr old reading Ramona by Eric Norton <enorton@scls.lib.wi.us> 22) RE: shanachie stumper by MCCREIGHTB@charleston.lib.sc.us 23) RE: using teen volunteers by "lori" <lmorgan@jefferson.lib.in.us> 24) thank you, Shannon! by Carolyn Groves Winkler <cgroves@will.state.wy.us> 25) RE: Amnesity Week by "Judith K. Meyers" <meyersju@oplin.lib.oh.us> 26) Re: Job Notices by Lorie <odonnell@borg.com> 27) Re: Harry Potter party by "Tracy VanderPol" <tvanderpol@hotmail.com> 28) RE: Job postings by Aarene Storms <aarenex@earthlink.net> 29) Re: toilet paper rolls by "Linda Peterson" <lpeterson@bloomfield.lib.in.us> 30) Re: Amnesity Week by "Sarah Smith" <sesmith5@hotmail.com> 31) Re: Acc. Reader by Charles Schacht <schachtc@libcoop.net> 32) RE: Limiting circulation by "Sarah Smith" <sesmith5@hotmail.com> 33) Dial-a-Story by Martha Jordan <mjordan@ouachita.lib.la.us> 34) RE: book budget figures by "Watson, Sarah (LIB)" <SarahW@omaha.lib.ne.us> 35) RE: Page Productivity by "Watson, Sarah (LIB)" <SarahW@omaha.lib.ne.us> 36) Re: Job Notices by Julie Pfeiffer <JPFEIFFER@mail.mpl.lib.oh.us> 37) Re: book budget figures by Beverly Kirkendall <bkirkend@ci.hurst.tx.us> 38) web site concerns by Susan Dunn <sdunn@jefferson.lib.co.us> 39) AR and teen review groups by "Andrew Wooldridge (Orca Book Publishers)" <andrew.wooldridge@orcabook.com> 40) Re: staff prep time by "Janet E. Cashin" <jcashin@tln.lib.mi.us> 41) Re: Stumper by Beth Werking <bwerking@kokomo.lib.in.us> 42) Re: Page Productivity by "Janet E. Cashin" <jcashin@tln.lib.mi.us> 43) Re: Gender Role titles by "Nancy J. Hackett" <njhackett@htls.lib.il.us> 44) clocks with children's book characters? by steven engelfried <stevene@dpls.lib.or.us> 45) Re: book budget figures by Jill Patterson <jpatterson@ci.glendora.ca.us> 46) RE: book budget figures by "Look, Lin" <llook@city.newport-beach.ca.us> 47) RE: Book Budget figures by Julie Linneman <juliel@wichita.lib.ks.us> 48) Re: book budget figures / program budget by Simpson <jsimpson03@snet.net> 49) Harry Potter party by Carrie Eldridge <celdridge@sanjuan.lib.wa.us> 50) Re: Librarian as policeman by "Cameron Morley" <cmorley@ilanet.slnsw.gov.au> 51) Re: Limiting circulation by "Roseanne Skelly" <rskelly@mcls.rochester.lib.ny.us> 52) Re: chat room use by Rosalie Olds <rolds@kcls.org> 53) Re: Job Notices by Jennifer Longbrake <longbrj1@oplin.lib.oh.us> 54) Christmas Poem Stumper THANKS! by Melissa Foster <mfoster@post.bham.lib.al.us> 55) Re: shanachie stumper by Christine Hill <chill@willingboro.org> 56) BIB: 4yr old reading Ramona by "Heather" <heather@elgin.net> 57) Re: Job Openings by Mary Mura <mmura@wcnet.org> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Beverly Kirkendall <bkirkend@ci.hurst.tx.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Collective biography index MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 08:19:19 CST
Katherine Heylman wrote: > In response to Mindy Schafer's query about a collective biography index, > I'd like to suggest creating a computer program that would enable > individual libraries to create their own CB Index. This is exactly what we have done at the libraries at which I have worked. In fact, if there is a network computer that can be accessed by youth services as well as adult services, it is even better! I do not expect the adult department to make lists for their books (though maybe I should....), but if my list can help them, more power! It's called customer service, and if there is anything simple I can do to make things easier (for me, if not for the patron), hurrah for the effort! As we discover new collective bios in our collection, into the pot they go. Yes, it would be great if we could put it all in the catalog, but in the mean time, this is what works. Besides, if our cataloger wants to add the records, all she has to do is incorporate what we have already done. Good for all! Our little index has really come in handy on occasion. In a sense, it is better than the commercial index mentioned. Much as I would love an update of it, I hate to think of the number of times it was my main resource at my previous library. I would be so excited to see that there were 20 books that included some semi-obscure scientist only to discover that my library (and the branch, too) had only one of the sources which was, of course, checked out (often on a "permanent" basis). At least with our in-house index, though we cannot guarantee the availability of the book, we know we own it! Beverly Kirkendall Hurst Public Library ------------------------------ From: Mary Ann Gilpatrick <magilpat@walnet.walla-walla.wa.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Gender Role titles MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 08:38:31 CST This issue has come up before; the curriculum is used all over the country and we get student requests every year. When I figured it out, I prepared a bibliography. My big beef about it is that most of the requesters here are across a close state line, and they come here instead of using their own library because we are bigger. They tend to be what we used to call "non-traditional library users" and need a great deal of instruction to even use the book list. This is fine with me when people are my own customers; they will be working with children and I want them library trained and library friendly; putting this kind of time into people who are not in our service area is a real strain on my time. Cathy Chesher wrote: > We get that question in Michigan as well (along with books on divorce and > separation) After getting asked this question for about the 5th or 6th > time, I asked one of our patrons for more info. ------------------------------ From: Ann Moore <SCP_MOORE@sals.edu> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: staff prep time Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 08:54:33 CST One way to reduce staff time (and nerves) is to keep records of EVERYTHING! I have found this particularly useful in doing school visits when a teacher asks for a specific topic. It saves a lot of worry and hassle if I can go to my card file and see what I've done in the past. This works for storytimes and toddler times, too. So--at least keep track of book titles and, if possible, crafts, activities, and fingerplays as well. ------------------------------ From: "Kathleen Saxton" <ksaxton@wepl.lib.oh.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: historical fiction thanks (long) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:01:53 CST Thanks to all who offered their ideas on what constitutes historical fiction. The responses are listed below. By the way, Marijo, I agree that what "we" term historical fiction is not as important as what the teacher who gave the assignment terms historical fiction, but I have yet to have a child come in here with anything that describes what the teacher terms is HF, which is INCREDIBLY frustrating. From what I can gather from these kids, they haven't even discussed it in class, it's just a genre that's listed on a general reading list they were given. AARRGGHH!! I know I'm not the only one this happens to! ;0) This listserv is a great resource for me and I thank you all for taking the time to respond to my queries! Here are the responses I received: My co-worker believes that for a book to be historical fiction, the setting and time period is interwoven with the rest of the book; that it becomes vital to the story. I think that's a good succint definition. Not very scientific but I use the criterion of anything set in a time period from prehistory to 50 years ago. That takes us through WWI and we're approaching the Korean Conflict (for American history -- the administration of Truman approaching Eisenhower). I know -- seems too recent to be "history" but it is for kids! In assigning historical labels, I have only three criteria: 1. The book is set in an identified past -- it is easy to know what year or at least decade the story takes place in. 2. Reasonably accurate historical details are prominent in the story. The reader comes away with a strong sense of the time. Books don't qualify if they're supposedly set in a certain period but actually could take place any time, to judge from the dialogue, etc. 3. The book doesn't fall more strongly into another genre. If it would be most appealing to horse lovers, for example, I'll put a horse label on it. If it's a very engaging mystery, I'll put a mystery label on it, and so on. I don't have any rule that the book had to have been written after the period it describes. I put historical labels on books that were written during the period they describe. I think in terms of what the reader is looking for in historical fiction, rather than any academic definition. When teaching about genre, I always defined historical fiction as: A story that ACCURATELY uses an actual historical event as a backdrop or setting. Actual historical people and events are in the story, either as actual characters or just being mentioned and discussed by the fictional characters, but having an impact on the fictional plot-line. One example of this is the movie Titanic. There was no Jack Dawson or Rose DeWitt Whatever-her-last-name-was, BUT there WAS a Molly Brown and a Captain Smith, and others who were portrayed in the movie. For my collection, I put historical stickers on all the fiction that had settings during or before the Viet Nam War. If you look at the subject headings inside the book, you can get an idea if the theme is historical. I'm taking a children's lit class and my textbook says that historical fiction "is generally written about a time period in which the author has not lived or no more recently than one generation before its composition." Basically we mark books with an HF sticker if they take place Vietnam era or before and the historic setting is both accurate and important to the plot. If the characters are facing issues or problems directly related to an event or time period like struggling to survive the Depression, or coping with an absent father/brother/boyfriend because of war, or the way a particular plot element is handled because of a prior time-period's social rules. At a previous library where I worked, we used an even less scientific approach: if it happened before the youngest children's librarian was born (which was 1971). It made sense to us because when I was in elementary school (starting in the mid-60s), I thought WWII was definitely history! And that ended only 15 years before I was born; Vietnam is farther back than that for kids in elementary school now..... It all depends on your perspective! Historical Fiction is fiction written about the past by a writer who was not living in the time period the story takes place. Technically speaking, if you write about world War II now, you are writing Historical Fiction, but a book about World War II written at the time it was actually happening, even though it is history for us now, is not considered Historical Fiction. I believe that the definition of historical fiction is that when the book was written it was written about a the past. So, a book written today about the Gulf War would be historical fiction. I believe that the above definition of historical fiction is missing a component, which is that the story reflects a culture and time substantially different from that of the author. So it would be arguable that a book written today about the Gulf War hardly qualifies as historical fiction. I personally define HF as any book where the time period is important to the plot, such as Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson. I usually recommend the Betsy-Tacy books because the descriptions of clothes etc really define the period. A book about a kid whose father is sent to the Gulf War would be historical fiction (in my world). A book that takes place during that same time period, that had little mention of events that place it in history would not be. Kathleen Saxton Willoughby Library Willoughby, OH ksaxton@wepl.lib.oh.us ------------------------------ From: Carol Janoff <cjanoff@lib.ci.phoenix.az.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: toilet paper rolls MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:05:10 CST When I needed rolls for a craft project, I just sent out an e-mail to our branch staff (35 people) and those rolls just poured in. I was amazed! In just a week I had enough for probably 3 programs. If you anticipated using them often, just ask your staff to always bring them in for you. If your staff is small, ask your storytime moms to save them for you. but no, I have never tried to purchase just the rolls. Carol Janoff cjanoff@lib.ci.phoenix.az.us Librarian I Mesquite Branch Library Phoenix, AZ On Mon, 13 Dec 1999, Michael Crosby wrote: > This is a strange request but then Children's Librarians are used to > strange requests. > > One of the most beloved materials in storytime crafts is the toilet > paper roll. I've been collecting rolls, I've put out the word for > rolls, and I've even looked in craft magazines for rolls. > > Does anyone know of a distributor of toilet rolls? > > Yours "TP'ed" > Michael Crosby > La Canada Flintridge Public Library > mdcrosby@earthlink.net > ------------------------------ From: Carol Hoke <hoke@crpl.cedar-rapids.lib.ia.us> To: PUBYAC@prairienet.org Subject: Harry Potter program ideas Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:08:11 CST Wow! This listserv is the greatest. Thanks to all of you who sent me ideas. I'm sure my problem will be choosing what to include for my proposal (I don't think I'm up to an all day party!) I'm going to start on it tonight and if the bank isn't impressed, well, maybe I'll hunt around in my budget and see if a few extra coins shake loose somewhere and do it anyway! Thanks again. Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season. Carol Hoke Children's Services Manager Cedar Rapids Public Library 500 1st St. SE Cedar Rapids, IA 52401 Hoke@crpl.cedar-rapids.lib.ia.us 319-398-5123 ------------------------------ From: jvandcar@park-ridge.lib.il.us To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: book budget figures Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:11:14 CST We serve children from birth through 6th grade and we receive 30% of the total book budget. Janet Van De Carr Park Ridge Public Library Park Ridge, IL ------------------------------ From: Ada Demlow <demlowa@mail.bartow.public.lib.ga.us> To: "'Pubyac@prairienet.org'" <Pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Accelerated Readers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:14:49 CST Hello PUBYacers!
For most of the reasons that have been discussed so far, I do not like the accelerated reader program. I think the ARC brings out those same feelings librarians get when trying to help parents do their children's homework. We feel like the real purpose and fun in reading is lost when reduced to points, rules and other limits. However, it is helpful for us to pay close heed to those with positive feedback on the program. It helps keep the focus on providing good customer service. When complaining about the accelerated reading program to a friend of mine, she shared a different view based on her experience with her daughter, who is an excellent reader. She reads all of the time without encouragement, and has to be told to turn off the flashlight under the covers and go to sleep. When she was in elementary school she loved the ARC. The reason - it gave her an opportunity to be rewarded for something she loves and does well. It was a challenge for her to find books on the list that she had not already read, but she worked hard. Her school gave a trophy to the student with the most points. She earned the trophy in fifth grade and is very proud of it. Reading is not something usually awarded with points and trophies as sporting events are. So here is a case of a child who does not need ARC for reading encouragement - but still finds it to be a good program. At our library we provide the ARC lists and assist people as much as we can in locating books. We do not label the books, nor do we focus heavily on the lists when doing collection development. ARC has created a sometimes vocal demand that we divide our collection by grade level - an impractical request at best! It has also led to frustrated patrons who complain that we don't have the listed books. I consider these things a regular part of being in a public service position and try to minimize them with positive customer service. For me the best part of ARC is that I know it will, like most other educational programs, have its glory days and then slowly fade as a new reading program takes its place. Until then, it will be a thorn in my side at times - but I won't let it turn into kudzu that takes over our program! Ada Demlow Youth Services Librarian Bartow County Library System 429 West Main Street Cartersville, GA 30120 Phone: 770-382-42-3 Ext. 31 Fax: 770-386-3056 mailto:demlowa@mail.bartow.public.lib.ga.us http://www.innerx.com/~library ------------------------------ From: "Denise P. Stout" <dpstout@ccls.org> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: staff prep time MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:22:25 CST As a Youth Services Outreach Librarian, I do a lot of storytimes! (50+ a month!) It takes some time to prepare a storytime. Some folks are able to do this more quickly than others. Themes take a lot of time - hunting down just the right books to fit the theme, age range, readability, etc. I seem to one of those folks who can pull something together rather quickly, but others in my department take more time. The only difference I see is that we are very different in our appraoch, style, delivery, etc. Some folks need that time for their own confidence, as well. Storytimes are a kind of performance art, and it takes self confidence to be able to do one well. You can tell when the teller does not necessarily like what they are using. You have to like it, or the kids will know! I am also found many a time on our reference desk coloring, cutting, pasting, etc. It is part of the job, even if it does not look that "professional." Those flannel boards do not make themselves! I do all my prep on job time. I like my job. The reason I like my job is I go home and do different thngs! If I did it all on my own time, I don't believe my enthusiasm would last very long. My opinion too! Denise M. Pulgino Stout, Youth Services Outreach Librarian Chester County Public Library 450 Exton Square Parkway Exton PA 19341 610.280.2672 ------------------------------ From: "Heidi Hink" <HeidiH@bethel.alaska.edu> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Re: staff prep time Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Disposition: inline Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:26:39 CST Although I can't really give you a specific number of hours I spend preparing for any given story time, I can tell you that the more experience I've had, and the more familiar with our books I become, the less time-consuming prepping is. Our library serves a community of approx. 6000. I do 4 pre-school visits per week, along with one pre-school and one family story time per week. After Christmas, I'll also be doing a young reader's choice award program in conjunction with one elementary school's after-school program. And, of course, extra programs arise for special occasions. For my library story times, I spent a good chunk of time this fall planning general themes from Sept. through May. I chose themes that I knew we have books/fingerplays/songs/craft ideas to accompany, so when the time comes to pull the books and make more specific plans (2 weeks to one month ahead), I shouldn't have to spend too much time searching for things. I try to re-use and mix and match flannel board pieces I've made, so I'm not constantly making another dog/pig/horse/etc. for a new story, and I try to find crafts that involve as little prep as possible on my part. Planning does take lots of time, and it is definitely important, but these are some little things that help keep my planning within work hours. (Also, being in a small community means we might not always be as busy as staff in larger libraries, so sometimes I can sit at the front desk and do uninterrupted planning for a 30 - 60 min. stretch.) However, tomorrow we are decorating Christmas cookies with pre-! ! ! schoolers, and since we don't have an oven here, I'll be doing some baking at home this evening. After having been a teacher and putting in enough extra hours to add one or two more work days to every week - without pay, naturally - I really don't mind a few hours of baking on my own time every couple of months :-) Heidi Hink heidih@bethel.alaska.edu
------------------------------ From: "Linda Dial" <ldial@slco.lib.ut.us> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Re: Lapsit Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Disposition: inline Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:29:47 CST I do like "Two's Company" instead of toddlertime. But I prefer Baby 'N' Me for the 6 months to 2 1/2 year-olds Linda >>> "Elizabeth Buono" <ebuono73@hotmail.com> 12/10/99 10:31AM >>> We call our pre-walking babies' story time "Baby Time," our story time for walking babies under 24 months, "Mother Goose," and our two-year-old story time, "Two's Company." All of these programs more or less follow the format you described for your 18-30 month old program.
Elizabeth Buono Children's Librarian The Ferguson Library 1 Public Library Plaza Stamford, CT 06904 <ebuono73@hotmail.com> ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
------------------------------ From: Beth Werking <bwerking@kokomo.lib.in.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: using teen volunteers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:33:51 CST Strange that you should ask. We have a program called "Book Buddies" co-ordinated by a university staff member who conducts a Saturday afternoon program at the library. The co-ordinator recruits and trains the work/study students but she participates in the program as well. The library schedules an hour program for them which includes books and a craft for children between the ages of kindergarten and sixth grade. And yes, those are guidelines--we do get some preschoolers as well. This has been a wonderful co-operative venture. What we lack in staff and materials, they provide. We give them books, ideas and the space. This is a 12-week rather than around- the- year program. During January, February and March we have lots of parents looking for activities at the library. ------------------------------ From: "Mary Johnson (amk)" <mjohnson@wlsmail.wls.lib.ny.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: RE: Limiting circulation MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:37:19 CST Carolyn, we've been in that situation, too, and we have had to deal with angry parents who insist they should be able to take out everything on, say, the Revolutionary War. We still limit circulation when there is very heavy demand, and sometimes even put books on temporary reference. The rationale is that the information in the public library belongs to everybody, and we want to make it available to everybody. Some parents will not like it, but we do need to serve *all* our patrons. Hope this helps Mary Johnson, YA librarian, North Castle Library, Armonk, NY mjohnson@wls.lib.ny.us ------------------------------ From: hgrady.Ops.Staff.Main.ACPL@everest.acpl.lib.in.us To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: using teen volunteers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:40:49 CST We had a "Book Buddies" program last summer at my branch called BooKids. We had no trouble getting the teens. They would read 2-3 books and have a craft to do with the kids. It was drop in, the teens stayed around for about an hour and the smaller kids showed up when the could. Our problem was getting the parents to bring the younger kids. Although we had sign up ahead of time, (sheets were handed out when kids signed up for the summer reading program), most of these kids did not come on a regular basis. The original plan was to get day cares to come regularly. However, our area day cares are almost all without transportation. This made it tough. If you have nearby (within walking distance) daycares, this makes it much easier. Use them as your base and get the others to drop in as they want. We had a core of about 5 young adults. We went over the hows of reading to little ones and the staff picked out the books ahead of time to make sure they would be appropriate. (Although its good to go over all that with them.) It would have been nice to have a theme and used that for the books and craft. Our crafts were picked rather haphazardly and we had to do things with what we had on hand. So plan ahead! We offered three different times and never had more than 6 or 7 kids, with 3 being about average. We'll have to rethink what we did next year. Hope all of this helps. Let me know if you need more. Heather Allen County Public Library Fort Wayne, IN ------------------------------ From: Tina Cavanough <tcavanough@alicespringscouncil.nt.gov.au> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Limiting circulation MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:44:00 CST I work in Children's and Youth Services at the Alice springs Public Library in Central Australia. We are the only public library in a town of 27 500 people, so when school assignments come up there is often fierce competition for our resources. While our funding is quite good, it would be silly to buy 20 copies of the one book all the kids need. So....we limit borrowing to 2 books per subject all the time, on all subjects. As you mentioned, we do still get parents who demand to take more, but we stand firm, show them our policy manual, and explain to them the reasons for this decision. And generally it works. My biggest frustration is with the teaching staff in the local schools who set assignments that their school library can't provide resources for, then send the kids to us. It really is a matter of first in first served, so the kids who leave the assignment to the last minute get the message pretty quickly. I wish it weren't like this, but what can you do? We have tried asking teachers to warn us of big assignments, but I'm sorry to say, we're pretty low on their list of priorities. Tina Cavanough Children's and Youth Services Technical Co-ordinator Alice Springs Public Library Northern Territory Australia ------------------------------ From: "Children's Department" <child@rosenberg-library.org> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Tea Party Fiction? Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:46:53 CST January is National Hot Tea Month! We would like to do a story time on tea with stories, songs and finger plays. Have looked in Best Books for Children, Books Kids Will Sit Still For and A to Zoo, and can only find Ms. Spider's Tea Party and Mr. Putter and Tabby Pour the Tea. Any other ideas, comments or suggestion would be appreciated! Reply directly to achavarria@rosenberg-library.org or bbriceno@rosenberg-library.org. Thanks! ------------------------------ From: Andrew Finkbeiner <ANDREW@rockford.lib.il.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Gender Role and CDA (Long but worth it, I hope) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:50:12 CST Julie, Cathy, and other interested people: Ever have one of those questions where you ask the child, "Can I see your assignment sheet?" Guess what? I got the assignment sheet for the gender identity question AND the music question (below)! Cathy, you were right. They ARE related. And the spirit of your explanation of how someone gets certified is right on. Let me add. My friends at our local Child Care Resource and Referral told me today that candidates for the Child Development Associate (CDA) have to put together a portfolio that includes a "Resource Collection" of about 17 items. Resource Collections will vary by the type of CDA the candidate is applying for: Infants & Toddlers, Preschooler, Family Child Care or Home Visitors. Our question comes from Competency Goals 2 and 3. Goal 3 is "To support social and emotional develoment and to provide positive guidance." There are actually three questions under this goal that apply to our work, so I've provided them all. This is taken from "Child Development Associate Assessment System and Competency Standards: Family Child Care Providers" (Council for Early Childhood Professional Recognition, 1997). "6. Provide the titles, authors, publishers and the copyright dates of five children's books (appropriate for the age group with which the Candidate is currently working) that support development of gender identity by portraying males and females in diverse roles. The copyright dates should be within the past 10 years. "7. Provide the titles, authors, publishers and the copyright dates of two picture books that deal with children with disabling conditions. The copyright dates should be within the past 10 years. "8. Provide the titles, authors, publishers and the copyright dates of three children's books that deal with separation, divorce, remarriage, or blended families. The books for parents may either be children's books or adult's books. The copyright dates should be within the past 10 years." The music question comes from Competency Goal 2, "To advance physical and intellectual competence": "4. Select four songs, including two from other cultures. Provide the music and the words." I would be happy to fax the complete list of CDA competency goals to anyone interested (3 pages). Be aware that it's for Family Child Care, and those working in the other areas listed above may have different questions. For those who want more information, the Council for Early Childhood Recognition has a toll-free number: 1-800-424-4310. Their website is at http://www.cdacouncil.org. (BTW, I found this info using Associations Unlimited, an online resource by the Gale Group.) Warmest regards! Andrew Finkbeiner Rockford (IL) Public Library andrew@rockford.lib.il.us Visit our website at http://www.rpl.rockford.org ------------------------------ From: Joyce McKenney <mckenney@ctel.net> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Amnesity Week MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:53:28 CST Our library always has an amnesty month...February, tied in with Valentine's Day, love your library, etc. We just want the books back, the heck with the fines. Oftentimes people will make a donation when they have found a pile of books under a bed or couch. What did you need to troubleshoot?? This month we decided to give away books, up to 10 per person, from our discard stash which is overcrowding a small annex to our library. We usually have book sales outdoors in the summer and fall, and allow people to browse one Saturday a month, but we keep having books donated faster than we can sell them. So, we came up with a Holiday Giveaway...and we got space in the local newspapers. Any good PR is a plus for us. Many people have come to take books. We still have many left. So far so good. Joyce McKenney Linda Peterson wrote: > This is not strictly a children's question, but we are going to have an = > amnesty week in January and are trying to troubleshoot a little. Does = > anyone have any advice or warnings from your experiences? > > Linda Peterson > lpeterson@bloomfield.lib.in.us > Bloomfield-Eastern Greene County Public Library > Bloomfield, IN ------------------------------ From: "Earl and Kirsten Martindale" <earlmart@bellsouth.net> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org>, <minero@aol.com> Subject: Re: book budget figures MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:56:27 CST Maggie, I once had a director who allocated the same percentage of the budget to children's services as the circulation statistics reflected. We consistently circulated fifty percent of the materials, so we received fifty percent of the budget. Adult service librarians did not always appreciate this concept, but they couldn't argue with the facts. From what I hear, the concept of children's services receiving a proportionate amount of the budget (for both staff and acquisitions) is unusual. It sure made a difference in our level of service and morale. Directors...are you listening? Kirsten Martindale Buford, GA Would you be willing to share with me the total > amount of money allotted to your general book budget versus how much of that > money is dedicated just to children's/YA book needs? ------------------------------ From: Kim Flores <kimf@mail.orion.org> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Help with book discussions MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 09:59:33 CST I am doing a program for my colleagues in early January. I will be discussing book groups for children and I would love to hear your innovative and successful ideas for hosting/presenting book clubs. I offered a mother-daughter book club in November and had only two families; a lot of interest and questions but not a high attendance. Personally, I helped start a book club for women six years ago and we are still meeting monthly. My 11 yr old son is a great reader and has expressed interest in forming a group but sadly, his friends don't read (or so he tells me). What has worked for you? Please e-mail me directly and I'll post my results. Thanks, Kim Flores kimf@mail.orion.org ------------------------------ From: Eric Norton <enorton@scls.lib.wi.us> To: Kidslist@scls.lib.wi.us, pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: 4yr old reading Ramona Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 10:02:32 CST Fellow librarians, my daughter has just finished reading the first three Ramona novels by Cleary and now we are looking for something else for her to read. She just turned four and we live a relatively peaceful and TV-free life so she isn't really ready for books that feature anything too scary or with any sort of violence. Any suggestions?
Eric Norton enorton@scls.lib.wi.us Head of Children's Services McMillan Memorial Library 490 E. Grand Ave. Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin 54494
------------------------------ From: MCCREIGHTB@charleston.lib.sc.us To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: RE: shanachie stumper Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 10:05:37 CST ...and being not originated in the English language, but often (mis)spelled by English language speakers/writers... shanachie (English) seanchai' (Irish Gaelic) you can try any variant spelling that gets a hit, but they should all refer to the honorable tradition of Storytelling in the Emerald Isle. Have you read Ruth Sawyer's "The Way of the Storyteller"? Therein you'll find a good breakdown of the definition for a Seanchai. slan agat, (good luck to ye!) Brian McCreight, Childrens Librarian, Charleston County Library (resident storyteller) & Yarnspinner, with no strings attached! mccreightb@ccpl.org ------------------------------ From: "lori" <lmorgan@jefferson.lib.in.us> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: using teen volunteers Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:07:07 CST My name is Lori Morgan from the Jeffersonville Township Public Library, IN. One of the Middle Schools in the area offers a class called "Book Buddies." I go into the class 3 or 4 times and talk about different kinds of books like popup books, picture books, books with a gimmic, etc. We work with puppets, flannel board, hand plays, etc. Later, the class comes and does several storytime sessions and helpout with programs durning the summer months. ------------------------------ From: Carolyn Groves Winkler <cgroves@will.state.wy.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: thank you, Shannon! MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:13:47 CST A huge pat on the back to Shannon VanHemert for all of her efforts keeping PUBYAC alive! I love the new "index" at the beginning of the digest -- it's VERY helpful! Hope your holidays are bright -- thanks, Shannon, for sharing your talents with us! Carolyn Groves Winkler, MLS Teton Coutny Library Jackson, WY ------------------------------ From: "Judith K. Meyers" <meyersju@oplin.lib.oh.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: Amnesity Week Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:15:29 CST Linda, My advise is to think twice about it. All communities are different so you may very well find that amnesty days will work well for you. However, in this community it became apparent that many people were keeping their overdue books waiting for the next amnesty day to return them. After I shared information with the Board on how many and which (often, the newest) titles were involved over a couple of years, they decided there will be no more amnesty days. We now simply follow our overdue procedure, which eventually results in turning some accounts over to the county prosecutor for collection. It's really much more effective. Once they receive a letter from the county prosecutor, the delinquent patrons return the books quickly. Judith K. Meyers, Director Wilmington Public Library 268 North South Street Wilmington, Ohio 45177 Phone: 937-382-2417 Fax:937-382-1692 Learn from the mistakes of others, for you don't have enough time to make them all yourself! Anonymous
-----Original Message----- From: Linda Peterson [SMTP:lpeterson@bloomfield.lib.in.us] Sent: Tuesday, December 14, 1999 11:52 AM To: PUBYAC Subject: Amnesity Week This is not strictly a children's question, but we are going to have an = amnesty week in January and are trying to troubleshoot a little. Does = anyone have any advice or warnings from your experiences? Linda Peterson lpeterson@bloomfield.lib.in.us Bloomfield-Eastern Greene County Public Library Bloomfield, IN ------------------------------ From: Lorie <odonnell@borg.com> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Job Notices Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:17:09 CST Diane, and all, Actually, I really like the full notices posted here. I am not actively searching for a new position, but one never knows when the job you've always been looking for will pop up. I enjoy reading and doing some comparisons between jobs that are open and my own position. It always disappoints me a bit when there's no real info about the k=job posted, just a contact. Just my two cents. Lorie *************** Lorie J. O'Donnell odonnell@borg.com "All that is comes from the mind; it is based on the mind, it is fashioned by the mind. " from The Pali Canon ------------------------------ From: "Tracy VanderPol" <tvanderpol@hotmail.com> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Harry Potter party Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:18:57 CST You go girl! I had a party and it was wonderful. We even received a letter to editor of the local newspaper praising our work. We sorted with a hat. Used a Microphone to make it sound cool. Had a contest to sing the school song, did trivia, played library quidditch, and had a feast. They kids loved it. Had a 60 kids with a waiting list that was just as long. Be creative, and have a good time. It is great to see kids so excited about books! :) Tracy ------------------------------ From: Aarene Storms <aarenex@earthlink.net> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: RE: Job postings Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:20:42 CST I agree with Andrea and others who asked that job announcements be posted--in their complete form. I've been a lurker on Pubyac for years, and am always interested in the employment news from around the country. "Hmmm, so that's how much they pay in Florida, huh? And they want a 30-hour a week person in Montana...or Texas...or New Jersey or whatever." And a Plea from the Peanut Gallery as well: When posting a job announcement, please include your STATE! Even I, an active job seeker, will skip over announcements for positions that are located 2,000 miles from where I want to be. Back to lurking, Aarene Storms Mukilteo Library, WA
**************************************************** Most of my life, I've spent reading books and riding horses. The rest, I've just wasted. **************************************************** Aarene Storms aarenex@earthlink.net aarenex@excite.com http://home.earthlink.net/~aarenex ------------------------------ From: "Linda Peterson" <lpeterson@bloomfield.lib.in.us> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Re: toilet paper rolls Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:22:56 CST Our Friends group put out a bimonthly newsletter and we always have a Chlidren's Department wish list in it. I have collected shoe boxes, T.P. and paper towels rolls, junk CD's, old costume jewelry, cereal boxes, etc. Many of our patrons are elderly and on a fixed income so they can't support us in other ways but they love it when they can save these kind of items for us. It not only helps us but makes them feel good about helping us out. Linda Peterson lpeterson@bloomfield.lib.in.us ------------------------------ From: "Sarah Smith" <sesmith5@hotmail.com> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Amnesity Week Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:24:42 CST We have an amnesty period after Thanksgiving until the week before Christmas. In exchange for canned goods or other nonperishable food items, we forgive $1.00 in fines per item. We make sure that our promotional newspaper articles and fliers state that lost materials and lost library cards are not included, only overdue fines. When we send out overdue notices during this period, we attach a little note that says their fines will be forgiven if they bring canned goods in. The food is then donated to Angel Tree families. Sarah Smith Harrison, Michigan ------------------------------ From: Charles Schacht <schachtc@libcoop.net> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Acc. Reader MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:26:19 CST Merideth - I not long ago wrote a letter to SLJ, which they were kind enough to publish, on this very subject, citing a number of cases where the reading levels assigned by Acc. Reader made about as much sense as a parrot holding forth on Spinoza. My main point was that if they feel as though they must assign levels they should at least have the comomon decency to have the assigning done by professionals who have actually read the books, so that both vocabulary and subject matter can be taken into account.. But I guess that would be too much to expect... Chuck Schacht Romeo District Library Romeo, MI. ------------------------------ From: "Sarah Smith" <sesmith5@hotmail.com> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: RE: Limiting circulation Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:28:14 CST We also pull books if we know that a certain topic has been assigned. We typically charge for copies, but for regular reference materials and these "temporary" materials, we allow up to ten free copies front to back so that's really 20 pages, which is often more than they need. The free copies kind of eases parents' frustration with us. ------------------------------ From: Martha Jordan <mjordan@ouachita.lib.la.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Dial-a-Story MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:29:56 CST I am considering purchase of an answering machine which will provide recorded stories for the children in our service area. Most of these require a dedicated phone line. Some include pre-recorded stories; others are recorded by library staff. Do any of you have information on such systems or names of companies I can contact? Thanks for any information you can send me. Martha Jordan Ouachita Parish Public Library 1800 Stubbs Ave. Monroe, LA 71201 Telephone: (318)327-1490 FAX: (318)327-1373 ------------------------------ From: "Watson, Sarah (LIB)" <SarahW@omaha.lib.ne.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: book budget figures Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:31:39 CST The children's and YA budgets get approximately 18-19% of the total book budget. We also get some money for cassettes, videos, etc. One of the justifications for not having more is that the children/YAs use the resources that are purchased with standing order funds. Magazines is less clear as each branch determines what is ordered for that location. Some are heavier in business magazines so there is less money for children's & YAs. I would guess though that each location has approximately 15 children's magazines and 10-12 YA magazines. Hope this helps, Sarah Watson Children's Collection Manager Omaha Public Library sarahw@omaha.lib.ne.us ------------------------------ From: "Watson, Sarah (LIB)" <SarahW@omaha.lib.ne.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: Page Productivity Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:33:45 CST We designed a general test for the system which includes alphabetizing words on a list, numbers on a list, call numbers in a list, and some general questions. The last question is "write a paragraph explaining why you want a job in the library." We have some small cards that have titles and authors that they are to put in order as well. I don't think you can test for speed before you hire because it is an acquired skill to shelve. (at least that's how we approach it here). We do work plans at the branch and have set a time limit (very generous) with the pages for shelving in different areas (picture books take less time than adult nonfiction for instance). Sarah Watson Omaha Public Library sarahw@omaha.lib.ne.us ------------------------------ From: Julie Pfeiffer <JPFEIFFER@mail.mpl.lib.oh.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Job Notices Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Disposition: inline Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:35:38 CST I don't mind the information so much, but would like it if the city and state were included in the subject line. Such as: Job posting- Dayton, OH or even Job posting-OH. >>> <Diane_Tuccillo@ci.mesa.az.us> 12/14 11:57 AM >>> While we are on the subject of postings, I wish those who have job openings would just post the very basic information about the job and where to contact someone for details/application information. We don't need all the specifics here. I think this is a great place to promote youth services jobs, but briefly. What do you all think? Diane Tuccillo Senior Librarian/YA Coordinator Mesa Public Library, AZ Diane_Tuccillo@ci.mesa.az.us ! ! !
------------------------------ From: Beverly Kirkendall <bkirkend@ci.hurst.tx.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: book budget figures MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:37:22 CST
Earl and Kirsten Martindale wrote: <<I once had a director who allocated the same percentage of the budget to children's services as the circulation statistics reflected. We consistently circulated fifty percent of the materials, so we received fifty percent of the budget. Adult service librarians did not always appreciate this concept, but they couldn't argue with the facts. From what I hear, the concept of children's services receiving a proportionate amount of the budget (for both staff and acquisitions) is unusual. It sure made a difference in our level of service and morale. Directors...are you listening?>> Sorry to include the whole statement here, but when I started to edit, I couldn't without losing something that is related to my comment. At the risk of sounding like a traitor to the youth department, I do not think that the budget should be decided proportional to circulation. Even though I am not an adult services librarian, I know the cost of fiction, nonfiction, and especially references materials for adults is much more expensive than for kids. The cost of business references alone is astounding! I am definitely not saying that children's departments should be slighted funds; unlike the adult section, we have to buy for a range of ages with very different reading/understanding/interest levels. Even so, I think we can usually get two or three times the number of books that adult services can for the same price. We also have fewer items that must be replaced annually (how many kids have to have the latest medical news, legal updates or most current financial information?). Granted, kids need updated info for school (25 year old books about any country are not acceptable, of course, but a five year old book ususally is), and yes, we have the Internet for some of the updated info adults need. Given these two concessions, it is still more expensive to maintain an adult collection. If you are strictly going by circ stats, then the amount budgeted for each department should be broken down by circulation, too. Following that logic, I should be spending the majority of my money on board books since their circ stats top 700%, the highest by far in my department (though almost everything is well above 100% with several sections topping 200%). I would almost have to surrender my young adult budget (though good weeding in that area will help my stats there greatly! It's amazing how dead wood in a library not only doesn't float but sinks like lead!). I do realize that I am fortunate in that I have a budget sufficient (most of the time!) for my needs and wants. But it is less than that of the adult department. Our breakdown is 60/40 and it seems to work just fine (for me, anyway!). I do understand that there are some libraries that include juvenile materials as an afterthought; that, too, should not be, of course, because since circulation most certainly indicates the need for children's materials, a decent and fair amount needs to be allocated to the kids! Directors do need to listen. Fortunately, mine does (but then she used to be a children's librarian). Adult, youth, and circ departments need to communicate as well (yes, I think the circ staff is important to consider in collection development, too; they see what goes out and hear about what we don't have from the patrons who sometimes don't talk to those of us in the departments that make the buying decisions). I know of one library that just had a material budget that was not designated at all--first come, first served. One year the children's librarian spent almost the whole budget; retaliation by the adult services the next year was brutal from what I understand. Needless to say, the library now designates a materials budget for all media for both departments. Beverly Kirkendall ------------------------------ From: Susan Dunn <sdunn@jefferson.lib.co.us> To: "'PUBYAC'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: web site concerns MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:38:59 CST Dear Pubyackers, I am part of a group that is currently updating and improving our library system's YA web page. One of the concerns that came up at our first meeting is that feel we need to have some sort of written collection development policy for web sites just as we do for books. This is both to help us decide what types of links are appropriate, and also to help us defend ourselves if we receive any challenges or complaints about a particular link. I'm sure that this has already been done by someone out there. Would you be willing to share? Susan Dunn Children's Librarian Columbine Library, JCPL sdunn@jefferson.lib.co.us ------------------------------ From: "Andrew Wooldridge (Orca Book Publishers)" <andrew.wooldridge@orcabook.com> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: AR and teen review groups MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:40:35 CST I am not sure if it is OK for a publisher to post to this list - I wanted to ask a couple of questions. If this is inappropriate please let me know and I will resume lurking! We have had a bunch of our titles put on the AR list. We have never paid to have them listed - they seem to be pulled from reviews etc. Does anyone have experience with Scholastic Reading Counts? They seem to have the same kind of program. Also, I would appreciate some feedback re: Teen Review Groups. At the moment we send a lot of advance books to consortiums and individual libraries and have had recent requests for books to be sent to teen review groups. I would like to supply books to a few groups in return for some teen feedback to help guide our publishing program. Does anyone run such a program? and if so would you be willing to discuss how you run things, how many books you use etc? Thanks very much. Andrew **************************************************** Andrew Wooldridge / Orca Book Publishers 1-800-210-5277 Fax 250/380-1892 Alone at Ninety Foot by Katherine Holubitsky BBYA and Quick Pick 2000 nominee *************************************************** ------------------------------ From: "Janet E. Cashin" <jcashin@tln.lib.mi.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: staff prep time MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:42:34 CST Prep time can never be "too much". To be successful and prepared you have to have prep. I've been a youth librarian for 20 years and I still need prep time especially if I am developing a new theme. Even hauling out an old favorite time is needed to pull books, find replacement titles and practice fingerplays etc. Also who does the name tags, the flyers the other publicity? It all takes time from 6 hours on up! Janet Cashin | email: jcashin@tln.lib.mi.us Bacon Memorial District Library | voice: 734-246-8357 45 Vinewood | FAX: 734-282-1540 Wyandotte MI 48192 | url: www.wyandotte.lib.mi.us NEW: Bacon Library's Wyandotte Community Information Center http://info.wyandotte.lib.mi.us/cic1.htm "A different drummer beats a new tattoo." ------------------------------ From: Beth Werking <bwerking@kokomo.lib.in.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Re: Stumper MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:45:22 CST A project that would be worth its weight in gold is an index to Christmas stories. My quest is for a story that may have appeared in an anthology about a poor little girl and her grandmother. The little girl hopes that when the rich children receive their toys at Christmas, perhaps they will give her the old ones. Her grandmother says that is unlikely to happen. The little girl still believes that perhaps the angels might bring her a gift and puts her shoe outside the door on Christmas eve. The next morning she finds a baby bird nestled inside. Our patron says that she used this story "years ago" and would like to find it again. Any clues? ------------------------------ From: "Janet E. Cashin" <jcashin@tln.lib.mi.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Page Productivity MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:48:41 CST Pages certainly appear to have slowed down their time and motivation. We expect a page to have sorted and shelved a cart of at 150 books, put away magazines, cd's tapes etc and done shelfreading in a 2 hour time period. I can certaunly sort a cart in 10 minutes, but a non professional took 20 to 25 minutes the first times around some pages have taken 30 to 40 minutes sorting an average adult cart. Childrens carts can have 300 books and obviously may take more sorting time because of all the different labels/sections but we shelve J Easy just by author letter and shouldn't take long to put away. It seems that the pages spend more time looking at the clock and meandering back and forth with only a few items in hand than actually working! Janet Cashin | email: jcashin@tln.lib.mi.us Bacon Memorial District Library | voice: 734-246-8357 45 Vinewood | FAX: 734-282-1540 Wyandotte MI 48192 | url: www.wyandotte.lib.mi.us NEW: Bacon Library's Wyandotte Community Information Center http://info.wyandotte.lib.mi.us/cic1.htm "A different drummer beats a new tattoo." ------------------------------ From: "Nancy J. Hackett" <njhackett@htls.lib.il.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Gender Role titles MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:50:40 CST When looking for gender role books, try some of the career books. When I taught Children's Lit, I searched for books on police and fire departments that showed women doing the traditionally male roles, NOT just being shown as a secretary. There are others that show male nurses and secretaries also. ------------------------------ From: steven engelfried <stevene@dpls.lib.or.us> To: "PUBYAC (E-mail)" <PUBYAC@prairienet.org> Subject: clocks with children's book characters? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:52:35 CST We have boring clocks in our kids room and want to replace them with something fun. I've seen Disney and Looney Toons clocks, but has anyone ever seen a clock with characters from children's books? I'm picturing Max or the Cat in the Hat, but I'd even settle for Arthur.... - Steven Engelfried, Children's Librarian Deschutes Public Library System, Bend Branch 601 NW Wall Street Bend, OR 97701 ph: 541-617-7072 fax: 541-617-7073 e-mail: stevene@dpls.lib.or.us ------------------------------ From: Jill Patterson <jpatterson@ci.glendora.ca.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: book budget figures Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:55:01 CST I like this approach, but I think it should be weighted by the average cost of books in each collection. Usually, children's fiction and non-fiction cost less than adult materials. Jill Patterson jpatterson@ci.glendora.ca.us Glendora Public Library 140 S. Glendora Ave. Glendora, CA 91741 Tel: 626/852-4896 FAX: 626/852-4899 ------------------------------ From: "Look, Lin" <llook@city.newport-beach.ca.us> To: "'pubyac@prairienet.org'" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: RE: book budget figures MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:57:16 CST Kirsten wrote: >>I once had a director who allocated the same percentage of the budget to children's services as the circulation statistics reflected. We consistently circulated fifty percent of the materials, so we received fifty percent of the budget. Adult service librarians did not always appreciate this concept, but they couldn't argue with the facts<< Hear, hear! And how about programs? How many libraries have adult programs that draw as many total attendees as the children's programs? I'm sure some of the big urban libraries that can get blockbuster speakers have higher audience numbers, but from my experience, you'll get a lot more participants for a storytime than for a guest lecture. >>From what I hear, the concept of children's services receiving a proportionate amount of the budget (for both staff and acquisitions) is unusual.<< I would venture a guess that the directors who do this have spent a considerable amount of time as children's librarians (or are just very astute people!) Lin Look llook@city.newport-beach.ca.us ------------------------------ From: Julie Linneman <juliel@wichita.lib.ks.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: RE: Book Budget figures MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:59:42 CST Caveat: beware of basing your budgetary figures (which are expressed in dollars) on your circulation figures (which are expressed in units). It's easy to feel slighted that adult collections generally get higher dollar amounts than juvenile collections, but remember that their books usually cost more as well. If it's possible to get figures from your tech services staff on the number of titles added per year (adult and juvenile) or to figure an average cost per item (I believe Bowker's Annual publishes the gross national price averages, including separate averages for J nonfiction, J picture book, and J fiction, as well as adult breakdowns--but these may be different at your library when discounts and other factors are considered), these will help in making good comparisons. Also, usage may be deceptive as well. Some libraries have lots of adults making use of printed reference materials (possibly reflected in in-house use and number of copies on the copy machine), but less use of circulating items, while children's departments may have little use of print reference sources and high use of circulating items. Both are getting used, but one doesn't get credit when only the circulation is considered. Just a thought--good luck on your budget presentation.
Julie Linneman juliel@wichita.lib.ks.us ------------------------------ From: Simpson <jsimpson03@snet.net> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: book budget figures / program budget MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:01:53 CST The director of our library (who just retired) had the same theory about the program budget - and thus gave more for adult programs than to Children's. My argument is, if we had more money, we could do more programs, and thus would get larger attendance. That thought wasn't shared by Admin. So we just had two incredible summer reading programs in a row, reaching (for us) very high program attendance, circ, and activity stats - in spite of a $400 annual budget ( we asked lots of businesses for donations, and got them) and Admin rewarded us by raising this year's annual program budget to a huge $600. Don't get me started on our book budget. Still, we do a LOT with what we have, and the patrons appreciate it. I'm hoping the new Administration will be more generous. Martha Simpson
Earl and Kirsten Martindale wrote: > > Maggie, > > I once had a director who allocated the same percentage of the budget to > children's services as the circulation statistics reflected. We consistently > circulated fifty percent of the materials, so we received fifty percent of > the budget. Adult service librarians did not always appreciate this concept, > but they couldn't argue with the facts. From what I hear, the concept of > children's services receiving a proportionate amount of the budget (for both > staff and acquisitions) is unusual. It sure made a difference in our level > of service and morale. Directors...are you listening? > > Kirsten Martindale > Buford, GA > > Would you be willing to share with me the total > > amount of money allotted to your general book budget versus how much of > that > > money is dedicated just to children's/YA book needs? ------------------------------ From: Carrie Eldridge <celdridge@sanjuan.lib.wa.us> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Harry Potter party Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:04:12 CST I am also planning a Harry Potter program. I realize that people have posted their ideas already - but unfortunately the archives are not accessible. Anyone like to share their ideas for programs? Thanks in advance!!!
Carrie Eldridge San Juan Island Library District Friday Harbor, WA 98250 360-378-2798 360-378-2706 celdridge@sanjuan.lib.wa.us
"I eat words wherever I find them but am no wiser. Keep your books under lock and key or they'll be devoured by me!" what am I? -from "Riddle Road: puzzles in poems and pictures" illustrated by Erik Blegvad ------------------------------ From: "Cameron Morley" <cmorley@ilanet.slnsw.gov.au> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: Librarian as policeman Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:06:29 CST Paula, Surely the responsibility rests solely with the person himself - would you stop the guy making a call from a public phone in the library, if you knew he was calling his kids? Law enforcement by librarians? - dangerous ground I think. Cameron Morley cmorley@slnsw.gov.au Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 00:01:05 CST Reply-to: pubyac@prairienet.org From: "PUBYAC: PUBlic librarians serving Young Adults & Children" <pubyac@prairienet.org> To: "PUBYAC: PUBlic librarians serving Young Adults & Children" <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: PUBYAC digest 20 Just adding my two cents to this discussion of email use with a question. And it may take a lawyer to answer this, but here goes. We had a situation in which a parent had an order of protection placed against him. Part of this legal order said he was not to contact his children. The father wanted the library to allow email so he could send messages to his children. If we allowed him to use email, knowing what we knew, would the library be held liable in some way for breaking the law? I understand and agree with the concept of not looking over our patrons shoulders, but, I beleive, in this instance, our policy of not allowing the use of email or chat rooms (to anyone, we did not single him out) was correct. Paula Lopatic paulal@rpls.lib.il.us Vespasian Warner Public Library 310 N. Quincy St. Clinton, IL 61727 217/935-5174 fax 217/935-4425 ------------------------------ From: "Roseanne Skelly" <rskelly@mcls.rochester.lib.ny.us> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: Re: Limiting circulation Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:08:40 CST Carolyn, My library has a small non-fiction section. If there is an assignment we put the materials on temporary reference (providing we hear about the assignment early on - before the books are all charged out). Roseanne ------------------------------ From: Rosalie Olds <rolds@kcls.org> To: Dawn Sardes <dsardes@clsn1269.cumberland.lib.nc.us> Subject: Re: chat room use MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:13:11 CST Dawn, I agree very strongly with your point. Anytime we get into judging what people spend their time doing on the computer we change the whole focus of what we do. Everyone should have access and people should not be allowed to "hog" terminals. A straight, equal time limit for everyone is the most equitable way to provide the source. Rosalie Olds King County Library System On Wed, 8 Dec 1999, Dawn Sardes wrote: > I am a relatively new librarian (just graduated this past May), so please > forgive me if this has been addressed before. Also, I am not criticizing, > but truly wish to understand the rationale behind the various positions. > The chat room & e-mail use issue is most interesting. > > Why are those systems which are not allowing chat room & e-mail on public > terminals doing so? Chat rooms are not all sleazy pick-up joints. There > are professional ones, support group ones that are moderated (much like > this listserv). Someone could be using a public terminal to contact ones > spouse who is serving our country overseas. I guess I just don't > understand why such arbitrary value judgements are being made in such a > blanket fashion. A very close family member pays to have access to a > moderated chat support group to help her with her battle with anorexia. > It is moderated by a mental health professional. > > Patrons pay to have access to all library resources--electronic as well as > print. They are taxpayers. > > As a former teacher, I have had students interview scientists, authors, & > politicians via e-mail to complete assignments. If one of my students had > ever come to me and told me that their public library had stood in the way > of their educational endeavors, I would have raised a stink and not given > in until that policy was changed. It is not fair that only those wealthy > few who had home computers could have access to these media. > > IMHO, we should not be in the business of denying access to various > informational media based on value judgements we make. Also, it seems a > bit hypocritical to deny our patrons access to the same technology that we > are obviously utilizing so fully. > > > Dawn Sardes > Teen Services Librarian I > ------------------------------ From: Jennifer Longbrake <longbrj1@oplin.lib.oh.us> To: Diane_Tuccillo@ci.mesa.az.us Subject: Re: Job Notices MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:17:49 CST
I really like seeing all of the information on job postings. I am not in a position that I am actively looking for a job, however I enjoy comparing my position and pay to what others are looking for. Jennifer Berning Longbrake Amelia Branch Library Amelia, OH ------------------------------ From: Melissa Foster <mfoster@post.bham.lib.al.us> To: PUBYAC <PUBYAC@prairienet.org> Subject: Christmas Poem Stumper THANKS! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:19:49 CST Thank you so much to all of you who sent me the Christmas poem I was searching for. It was Annie & Willie's Prayer by Sophia Snow. You guys are great! Melissa:-) ------------------------------ From: Christine Hill <chill@willingboro.org> To: pubyac@prairienet.org Subject: Re: shanachie stumper MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:21:34 CST Thanks. Several people suggested Sawyer and the patron was satisfied with it. Christine MCCREIGHTB@charleston.lib.sc.us wrote: > ...and being not originated in the English language, but often (mis)spelled > by English language speakers/writers... > > shanachie (English) seanchai' (Irish Gaelic) > > you can try any variant spelling that gets a hit, but they should all refer > to the honorable tradition of Storytelling in the Emerald Isle. > > Have you read Ruth Sawyer's "The Way of the Storyteller"? Therein you'll > find a good breakdown of the definition for a Seanchai. > > slan agat, (good luck to ye!) > Brian McCreight, Childrens Librarian, Charleston County Library > (resident storyteller) & Yarnspinner, with no strings attached! > > mccreightb@ccpl.org ------------------------------ From: "Heather" <heather@elgin.net> To: <pubyac@prairienet.org> Subject: BIB: 4yr old reading Ramona Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:24:02 CST Hi Eric! We have a booklist called "What's Next After Ramona?" I thought I'd just send the list and you can pick and choose as you like. The criteria for the choice of these books was strong female, funny. Hope this helps. Brink, Carol Ryrie. The Bad Times of Irma Baumlein Cleaver, Vera and Bill. Hazel Rye Clifford, Eth. Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library Dahl, Roald. Matilda Danziger, Paula Amber Brown series Fitzhugh, Louise. Harriet the Spy Greenwald, Sheila. Mariah Delany's Author of the Month Club Hunter, Bernice Thurman. Booky series Klein, Norma. Naomi in the Middle Konigsburg, E.L. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler Levy, Elizabeth. Something Queer books Lindbergh, Anne. Three Lives to Live Lowry, Lois Anastasia Krupnik MacLachlan, Patricia. Sarah, Plain and Tall Seven Kisses in a Row Montgomery, L.M. Anne of Green Gables series Emily of New Moon series Paterson, Katherine. The Great Gilly Hopkins Pinkwater, Jill. Buffalo Brenda Twohill, Maggie. Jeeter Mason and the Magic Headset Heather Robinson St. Thomas Public Library, St. Thomas, Ontario. heather@elgin.net -----Original Message----- From: Eric Norton <enorton@scls.lib.wi.us> To: Kidslist@scls.lib.wi.us <Kidslist@scls.lib.wi.us>; pubyac@prairienet.org <pubyac@prairienet.org> Date: Wednesday, December 15, 1999 10:46 AM Subject: 4yr old reading Ramona
>Fellow librarians, >my daughter has just finished reading the first three Ramona novels by >Cleary and now we are looking for something else for her to read. She just >turned four and we live a relatively peaceful and TV-free life so she isn't >really ready for books that feature anything too scary or with any sort of >violence. Any suggestions? > > >Eric Norton >enorton@scls.lib.wi.us >Head of Children's Services >McMillan Memorial Library >490 E. Grand Ave. >Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin 54494 > > ------------------------------ From: Mary Mura <mmura@wcnet.org> To: Bobbi Ludwig <bjludwig@co.douglas.or.us> Subject: Re: Job Openings MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 19:26:05 CST I think it would be very helpful in the subject line to put "job posting/location". I'm not looking for a job, but I like to compare my position with other salary levels!! I've noticed that often the location of the job is at the very bottom or sometimes not even given!! If I were looking for a job, location would be the primary factor. I also think that putting stumper, job posting, or bib in the subject allows me to hit the delete key if I'm in a hurry or not in the mood... Mary Mura Bowling Green, OH Work: Rossford Public Library 720 Dixie Highway Rossford, OH 43460 email: marymura@www.rossford.lib.oh.us ------------------------------ End of PUBYAC Digest 21 *********************** |
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