Iowa - Programming

RE: Banned Books Week!

2009-09-24T19:36:07Z

Check out ALA's new Banned Books Week PSA featuring the puppets from “Crash Pad"!

http://www.alfocus.ala.org/videos/banned-books-week-puppet-book-banners

Watch as Chad, Rustle, and Mooch misinterpret the meaning of Banned Books Week and Herb comes to the rescue. Also available on YouTube and the OIF Blog.

One Book, One Community programs

2009-09-01T21:18:21Z

Just saw this great article come through Library Journal http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6677269.html One Book, One Community: One Great Idea.

And decided to look around WJ and elsewhere to see what folks are doing.

WJ-Illinois shares a comprehensive list with the Illinois Community Read Programs
WJ-Ohio shares the Choose to Read Ohio project
Library of Congress
A one book project on facebook with the George Mason University community.

What else have you heard about or done at your library? Please share!

And here are the places to download the Random House resource, One Book, One Community

From their website: http://www.randomhouse.biz/libraries/pdfs/onebook09.pdf
and on Issuu: http://issuu.com/deicke/docs/onebook09

RE: Banned Books Week!

2009-09-22T21:30:16Z

What if we observed this week not by reading banned books, but by simulating what it would be like if we didn't have access to books? That is, Don't read anything for a week!

I tried to do that sometime last year, and caved after about 5 days. The very idea of not being allowed to read a book made me desire them even more.

Banned Books Week!

2009-09-18T21:59:06Z

Another year, another Banned Books Week to celebrate!

Please review the links in the post above (all are still live...how's that for a timeless topic!) and tell us what your library is doing to celebrate!

Programs specifically to appeal to men

2009-07-07T01:41:26Z

I am trying to develop a list of programs that will appeal to men--mostly to those who do not already use the library. Of course we know that men have very assorted interests and that women will be interested in these programs as well--but that aside, I am looking for real DUDE programs that are realistic and achievable--any help is appreciated! This is the beginning of my list:

----Gadget programs where a place like radioshack brings in the latest gadgets and let's people look and touch (like the beginning pages of popular mechanics and popular science

---restoring classic cars

---home automation--how to get your computer to control more of your home

---hot rodding your car or whatever they call it nowadays

---sports memorabilia swap

---coaches' preseason talk about the players, season outlook etc.

---hunting classes

---astronomy at night

---how to set up a home theater

Programs we have done---lawns, flintknapping, outdoor christmas decorating, computer repair

RE: Programs for those looking for work

2009-06-26T01:25:14Z

Here's a PowerPoint we developed for a job seeking class as well as some handouts I've created. They are local to our area here in the Pacific Northwest but many of these things can be easily updated with the relevant places in your area and many of the resources are national in scope.

The idea for the handouts were taken from the King County Look to Your Library campaign...
http://www.kcls.org/looktoyourlibrary/

We also have curriculum for the following classes:
Intro to Computers, Intro to the Internet, Intermediate Inet, Word, Excel, Email, Beyond Google, Craigslist, and Ebay...

Sara Peté
Librarian Senior – Adult Services
Olympia Timberland Library
313 8th Ave SE
spete@trlib.org
(360) 352-0595

Programs for those looking for work

2009-03-20T21:18:42Z

Hello all,
We are going to develop programs for job seekers, including topics such as posting a resume online, signing up for free email, looking for work online, etc. Has anyone already done this? Would you be willing to share your materials? Thanks in advance.
Kathy Shields
Sr. Reference Librarian
Palo Alto City Library

Programs on Internet Safety for Adults and Children

2009-03-05T17:49:44Z

Do you know of any speakers that would present on the topic of Internet Safety targeting mainly adults and parents here in Illinois?

RE: Re: Film discussion group

2008-12-17T14:09:03Z

Here in Bibliotheca Alexandrina we do the same, we have a specail place for the Multimedia Library so the users can meet to discus different issues related to Films, Music, ...
Once a week we choose a Film and invite users to see then they meet to discus.
We make the announcement in the general information desk and on the library website, so the users can mark their calenders.

Re: Winter Needs and Giving Back

2007-11-22T01:18:29Z

In the vein of human services for patrons especially, it always seems like a good time to:
-Brush up on addresses of local shelters, venues/dates/times for free holiday dinners
-Reminder of hotlines for those dealing with depression or considering suicide
-Make sure you're participating as a drop off for local food and toy drives
-Think about any opportunities to bring staff together for any community volunteer opportunities (serving at a soup kitchen, story time in a family shelter).

The other thing that's come up for me as a parent of elementary aged kids, is the need for books and other resources to address questions coming up about homelessness. I found one called This Home We Have Made that was helpful. I'm wondering if anyone has strategies for engaging all ages in our library communities around homelessness and other health and human needs. Realizing that a display would be good at this time of year!

Re: Winter Needs and Giving Back

2007-11-28T17:55:50Z

In the spirit of caring for patrons in need during the winter, I just found this pertinent article on the Hunger, Homelessness & Poverty Task Force website (Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library Association)

Ten Things You Can Work on to Better Serve Low Income People in Your Library

Friday November 16, 2007

1. Treat all library users fairly, regardless of economic status.
2. Read and implement the American Library Association's Policy 61, Library Services for the Poor.
3. Learn about and establish contacts with local community groups and support agencies that provide services to and advocate for low income people.
4. Keep an updated list of temporary housing, educational and health facilities, family services, legal assistance and food pantries at all your reference desks.
5. Subscribe to and read your local street papers. Go here to find the one for your area.
6. Check out the Hunger, Homelessness, and Poverty Task Force's blog and ALA's Office for Literacy and Outreach Services' web site for the latest in news, links, and ideas.
7. Develop a sensitivity training to help staff understand and better assist low income users. (Toronto Public did it!)
8. Take another look at your library card registration policy to see that it does not exclude people living in temporary housing.
9. Bring library programs to a temporary housing facility. Storytimes, book discussions, and poetry readings are always popular outreach activities.
10. Make an effort to research other libraries' innovative programs and policies that serve the information and literacy needs of low income people. Also, don't forget to publicize and share your own.

RE: Re: Banned Books Week!

2008-09-25T19:45:06Z

Wow! There are so many things going on out there for Banned Books Week 2008!

I was a bookseller early in my career and I've always been pleased that this week brings libraries and booksellers and others together.

Here are some of the highlights in my search for BBW related events and opportunities:

A list of Library and Bookstore Events

ALA's BBW headquarters including a link to the video of Katie Couric talking about BBW (not to mention the other 83 videos on YouTube)

Banned Books Week on Facebook

Please share your ideas and materials related to banned books. Could be anything...pictures, flyers, or examples of they ways your library responds to challenges to library materials.

RE: Re: Banned Books Week!

2008-09-25T19:04:57Z

It's now 2008 and Banned Books Week has come around again. I was looking at the extensive list of suggested activites posted on ALA's website, plus some specific examples of how libraries implemented them.

Are you/your library participating in the event--or have you in the past? If so, what did you decide would be the most effective way to do so? Are you noticing any results?

Thanks,
Sharon

RE: book discussion groups for men

2008-08-28T15:22:09Z

We are having moderate success with the Foreign Policy Association's Great Decisions. The book has essays on foreign policy issue and each month we discuss a different issue. This is an annual book. There is also a DVD with a 20 minute segment on each topic. Some of this years topics are Iraq, Russia, US-China economic relations, and Latin America.

Some issues have been more successful than others. Iraq, of course, had the most attendance and also the most spirited discussion. The one on the EU was a flop.

RE: How many per month?

2008-08-28T15:14:56Z

I also have wondered how many adult programs other libraries are offering. We offer 10-12 adult programs, 24 ESL classes, and 15 computer classes a month. We are a 3 branch small-medium library system.

3 years ago, we were not offering ESL classes, only a couple programs, and 4 computer classes a month.

How does your library deal with Authors who request a venue?

2008-08-14T17:11:54Z

Our administrative secretary has asked for advice and I thought this might be a good place to post her question:

"Our problem is that we do not have a system for working with writers who knock on our door to present an author program. We have an application form for them to complete which allows us to learn about the book and who might be interested, but this is becoming too timid an approach when we have people calling in to say they will be in Huntsville in two days and have several hours available on a particular afternoon, etc., etc. They are organized and we are not!

We considered allowing them to use our conference rooms; to book it as though they were a community group who meets our criteria, filling out an application form, paying for the room and being responsible for all aspects of the event. The challenging part of this picture is do we allow the writer to sell their books? It seems likely that this is the expectation. Do they contribute a percentage of their sales to the library so that we can view this operation as a partnership? At present we do not allow a "for profit" group to use our meeting rooms. We do invite writers to come to speak by invitation ("Brown Bag Lunches" for example). They are allowed to sell their books and we do not receive any proceeds.

I may not have asked all the right questions. Hopefully, this might be a starting point."

Any thoughts on this?

Re: Readers Advisory / Bibliotherapy

2008-07-22T20:11:44Z

Barnes & Noble wouldn't do it if it didn't work! ;-)

I'll bet a lot of patrons would be happy to see lists exactly like those! It would be nice, for example, for someone suffering from grief to have some recommendation other than simply "Overcoming Grief."

Re: The Idea Exchange

2008-07-19T17:35:25Z

janieh,

I love the Socrates Cafe idea! I was not aware of this - thanks for the tip! It reminds me of the chapter in the Little House books ("The Rose Years") where the townfolk all turn out for the big entertainment of the season: a debate! Wouldn't it be great if a gathering of people these days could find something better to discuss than the latest round of "American Idol!"

Re: Circulating Laptop Computers

2008-07-18T13:35:32Z

Mike,
We are considering using AVG to replace our Symantec antivirus program. Are you happy with it, and its cost? Does anyone else have an antivirus suggestion?

Programming on Mother's Day

2008-05-12T13:41:40Z

For many years we avoided scheduling programs on Mother's Day. This year we purposely scheduled a program just to see what would happen... and (as we suspected) our theory about avoiding programs on this day was wrong. We had approx. 250 people turn out at 3 pm on a Mother's Day and it was a wonderful event.

We booked the Eric Mintel Quartet to do a tribute concert to Dave Brubeck -- and boy, did they cook. They got a standing ovation at the end from a very appreciative and very varied SRO audience. Of note is that we had two families of 3 generations in attendance, and we had several mother and daughter/son combinations in attendance as well. Several people commented to me that this was one of the best ideas they had seen in a long time -- 3 pm is between brunch and dinner and it gave them something special to do that did not break the bank.

Sometimes we have long-standing assumptions that need to be challenged and lately our programming team has been discovering many of our assumptions about when to schedule really need to evaluated.