Oregon City Public Library: The Disability Community in the Library

Bryce note: Long time, I know. I hope to catch y'all up at some point. I hope you're hanging in there. Black Lives Matter. Trans Women are Women. Healthcare is a Right. Access is Love.

This summer, I'm running my course "The Disability Community in the Library" through the UW-SLIS iSchool. If you want more information on what that would entail, here's a post I wrote  about what to expect. Register here to join me July 13-August 23!

This time, I thought I'd turn over my course announcement post to Jennifer Giovanetti at Oregon City Library, who has done A TON for the disability community since taking my course in the Fall of 2018.

OR library staff: if you're interested in this course, please look forward to an upcoming free professional development opportunity with the State Library of Oregon. 

And now, handing it over to Jen:




Oregon City Public Library: The Disability Community in the Library
B.A.M (Because Accessibility Matters)

The Oregon City Public Library is dedicated to serving its whole community as equitably and inclusively as possible. Our mission is to empower every Youth, Adult and Senior in our service area through:

• Innovative and varied resources and programs
• Responsive, well trained and personable staff
• Connections to other community resources and events
• Inclusive, accessible services to all
• Welcoming spaces to gather and build community

To this end the library has made sincere efforts to ensure that we are serving our whole community including those that are often most marginalized. When library staff noticed that there seemed to be a significant community of adults with disabilities that visited the library, we knew that we wanted to be more intentional about reaching out and serving this part of our library community. We also knew that the best way to do this was to start by educating ourselves about how to best serve this community. This is where Bryce’s class “The Disability Community in the Public Library” came in. After taking this class through the University of Wisconsin, Library staff member Jennifer Giovanetti, began making community connections and developing the B.A.M. (Because Accessibility Matters) program for the Oregon City Public Library to help better serve people with disabilities in the community. Below are some of the things that the Oregon City Library has implemented specifically with our disability community in mind:

• Creation of the Library Accessibility webpage https://www.orcity.org/library/accessibility

• Universal Design Building Considerations: Since our building was fairly recently renovated and an addition was added in 2016, ADA requirements and Universal Design considerations were implemented as part of the building process. The Oregon City library building, as a whole, is highly accessible and all staff are encouraged to keep aware of any building accessibility or safety issues and report them to management or the disability community liaison (ie. Jen).
• Some recent additions have been: Automatic bathroom doors, PAC accessibility station, and on-going evaluation of building accessibility.
• B.A.M Advisory Council: The formation of an advisory committee was key to learning (from the Disability Community itself) how the library could better serve its community members. The B.A.M. Advisory Council is comprised of members of Local Disability organizations, providers and caregivers who with serve people with disabilities, library Board member, staff, and people with disabilities from the local community.
• Council Mission: The mission of the B.A.M (Because Accessibility Matters) Advisory Council for People with Disabilities will be to serve as a resource to the Oregon City Library addressing accessibility issues, equal rights, removing barriers and promoting opportunities and programs for individuals with disabilities. What we envision is a community group where everyone understands the importance of equal participation and full inclusion of all citizens and is committed to making the Oregon City Library a more accessible place to visit and enjoy for people living with disabilities. 
• BAM Programming: We started with our highly popular Art Lab program. This was a program that had been designed for Kids and Families, but one that we knew the disability community had been attending and really enjoying. With this in mind, we decided to make an adult version designed especially for Adults with Disabilities and to have the program open to everyone! Starting with something we knew the community already enjoyed helped with the early success of the B.A.M. programming. Other programming ideas grew out of suggestions made by Advisory Council members and BAM program attendees. Below are the on-going B.A.M. programs that the library offers. Of course, much of this is now cancelled/on-hold until the Library re-opens but, we will be starting a new B.A.M. virtual program in June!
• B.A.M. Art Lab: Monthly Art Class https://www.orcity.org/library/bam-art-lab
• B.A.M. Lego Lab: Monthly open LEGO studio https://www.orcity.org/library/bam-lego-lab
• B.A.M. Academy: Monthly series of classes on topics of interest to the disability community (ASL, Emergency Preparedness, Self Determination, Container Gardening, etc.) https://www.orcity.org/library/bam-academy
• B.A.M. Make-it Together (coming in June!): Maker program using Creative Bug 
• On-going Education & Advocacy!

Zombie Dancemob in the Library! An All-Ages Event

This post is authored by Jennifer Johnson, BDP blog intern.

A group of zombie dancers do their best scary poses 

on the front steps of the library. (Thrill the World 2016)

Happy New Year everyone and thank you in advance for indulging my programming ramblings! I am super excited for my inaugural programming post to be this one in particular. There was a tease in my introductory post about my library’s Thrill the World programs and now you get to hear about it in full! We are headed to Zombieland, so remember rule #4: Seatbelts!



Before I tell you how I found out about Thrill the World, I want to direct you to their website so that you can see what exactly it is. I can’t explain it much better than they do themselves.



For me, this idea was born from the quirky, wonderful people of Cookeville, TN, my stomping ground. There was a group in 2008 that participated in Thrill the World, but sadly, I didn’t hear about it until after the fact.  However, I was determined that if they ever did it again, I would be right there dancing with them. I even began teaching myself the dance at home in anticipation! Now, to my knowledge, 2008 was the one and only year that Cookeville ever participated and my hope for zombie dancing glory dwindled.

When planning programs for Fall 2016,  one thing kept nagging at the back of my mind: You need to make Thrill the World happen. I knew that it was an annual event and that it happened on a certain date and time in October. And so, with the  of my supervisor and our teen librarian, I put it on the fall schedule that year.

PRE-PROGRAM PLANNING:

Get to Know My New Blogging Intern!

I'm pleased to introduce Jennifer Johnson, School Age Program Coordinator at Johnson City (TN) Public Library! Of her job, Jennifer says, "I have been serving the school age population of Johnson City for about two years now and loving every minute of it!"

Jennifer dressed in a red and gold tie, socks, and a white dress shirt
(cosplaying as Hermoine Granger) posing with a school-aged child
(Harry Potter celebration, June 2017)

Jennifer was game to answer some questions so we could all get to know her better.

What do you like best about working in a library? 
There are two things I love most about working in a library. The first is being able to help people. I love doing research and helping people find resources, especially when it’s something that’s more obscure. I love seeing their faces light up in appreciation when you are able to locate that super specific book or information that they need. It’s like a scavenger hunt and it helps people to see that they do still need the library and a librarian’s particular set of skills in today’s digital age. The second thing I love is geeking out with people about books that I love. It’s incredibly fulfilling to me to be able to share book recommendations with people and especially kids. When they come back and tell me that they loved the book and they want to talk about it and read more, there is no better feeling than that.

How do you approach library programming?
I really try to listen to what our patrons and our community express an interest in. Our library currently does not have a dedicated makerspace, but our families have expressed an interest in STEM programming, so I have begun a series of makerspace programs over the last year where we focus on a particular skill/material at each program, and have tried to incorporate it into other existing programs (coding with LEGOs, engineering challenges related to book club, etc.).

Besides patron input, I also try to pay attention to what’s relevant for the community at the time, especially when it comes to pop culture and other happenings. Right now, I am in the planning stages of a Star Wars Celebration for the release of The Last Jedi next week. This past summer, we were one of the libraries fortunate enough to receive eclipse glasses, and we had a couple of programs leading up to that. That was a huge event for our community even though we weren’t in the path of totality, but it was all everyone talked about for months.

Other than that, I just follow librarians on social media and look for ideas from them that I can adapt or tweak for my patrons. I love to see what others have successfully done and implement it for our patrons if there’s an interest.

Jennifer in a pink shirt with shooting start (cosplaying as Mabel Pines)
posing with a school-aged child. Child is giving the "thumbs up" sign.
(LibCon event, September 2017)

What is your favorite program you’ve ever done? 
Ooh, this is a really tough question. I have different programs that I love for different reasons. I guess if I had to choose it would be our annual Thrill the World events. For the past two years, starting in September, we have held practices to learn the dance moves to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and then on the last Saturday in October, we have a sort of flash mob performance of it at the front of the library. It’s part of a world record event that happens globally and everyone dresses up as zombies and has a great time!

I love this program for so many reasons, but the biggest one is the feedback I get from the patrons who participate. Our dancers’ ages have ranged from 4 to 60 in the past, and particularly, the older participants always express a sense of pride and accomplishment at the end for seeing it through. We host hour-long practices over the course of five weeks and then our culminating event is two hours long, plus all the time they put in at home practicing, and “Thriller” is not an easy dance! I am always so proud of them for taking on something so physically demanding and owning it. And our young patrons love the dress up aspect of it. One mom told me last year that her little girls and several others who were participating had a big dress-up/makeup party at their house beforehand and it was like they were getting ready for prom!

Another reason I love this program is that it tends to get the library some positive press and attention. It shows the community that we are not just stuffy shushers and peddlers of books. We have a wild side and we are not afraid to get loud and have fun!

[Bryce note: Check back in January for a full write up of this program! ARE YOU PUMPED FOR THIS YET ARE YOU]

Tell us about your biggest program flop! 
This past spring I tried to put on a homeschool project fair at our library. We had had patrons asking for special programs for homeschoolers for so long and we thought that would be an easy way to see if they would actually come if we offered something just for them. We advertised it specifically to all of our homeschool families and seemed to have genuine interest, but when it came down to it, only one kid actually signed up to show his end-of-the-year project and we ended up cancelling the entire thing. I’m still not sure where I went wrong on that one. Maybe it wasn’t the type of programming our homeschooling families wanted or maybe I didn’t get the word out with enough time in advance. For whatever reason, it just did not take off. So back to the drawing board on that one.

If could have any superpower, what would you choose? Probably telekinesis because I can be super lazy sometimes and I’m short so it would help me reach things in tall places. Also it’s basically like using the Force! You want the TV remote but it’s all the way across the room? Don’t get up! Just float it over!

Describe yourself in a GIF or a meme.
Wholesome Memes are my jam. Below is one of my favorites. =)

Cat with a birthday hat and a wand, looking like a wizard
casting a spell.
Text reads "WOOSH, you have my love and support"

Join me in giving Jennifer a warm welcome!

Be My Blogging Intern!

Icon picture of a computer on an orange background.
Text reads, "Be my Blogging Intern!"

Those of you who have been readers for awhile know that BDP has had a variety of focuses. When I was a front-line staff member, my posts focused mostly on programming, and those posts continue to be useful to many.

Some of them are really old. And I know there are people out there who are doing awesome and innovative things in these areas and sure most of my stuff is perennial but I hate to see it get stale. I will forever appreciate the bloggers I've connected with but it was always my hope that that once we all moved into management or other roles that are not so easy to write "steal this idea" posts about, that a new group would take the reigns and add their experiences and ideas to the Internet Collective.

This is not to say that this isn't happening in other ways. There are great ideas being shared in Facebook groups everyday, but those are less easy to pin, bookmark or otherwise find later, judging by the amount of times the same questions are asked.

After months of lamenting this possible loss of information (and admittedly getting a salty about the nature of consumption and use of blog posts in youth services), I decided that there is something I can possibly do about it: start an internship program.

What I'm looking for:
-Commitment of 1 post per month for 6 months, with the option of continuing for another 6 months as you build your online presence.
-Posts that are how-tos about programming, displays, outreach, tours, and/or patron relations that can be easily replicated in a variety of public libraries for little to no money
-Programs can be based on existing blogposts/something you found on Pinterest but the program should be changed enough that a new post about it is warranted
-Post should be about something that has already been executed BY YOU in or on behalf of a library
- New to the field or to youth services are welcome to apply; veterans also welcome. Established bloggers who average at least 100 views per day need not apply.
-you don't have to have a blog of your own yet, but it's okay if you do

What you'll get:
-Mentoring and assistance throughout the writing process to help turn your programs into blogposts
-Full license to co-publish your post on your own platform; you retain ownership of your content. In the event you haven't yet created a blog, you are welcome to republish the posts you share here at a later date.
-Advice along the way to create and maintain your own blog
-Exposure to an audience it took me 6 years to build
-At the end of the internship, I'll gift you a custom logo or banner from Chris at On a Roll Designs. One of these will help you on your way to creating and maintaining your own blog and putting your own custom stamp on the youth services blogging community.
-Depending on our working relationship, I may be available as a professional reference for you in the future.

How to apply:
Email me at brycekozla at gmail dot com by December 1, 2017.
Email should include the following:
-Name
-Title and library
-a short bio to appear on this blog if you are a successful candidate
-Why you're interested in becoming a blog intern
-Description of a program you're excited to blog about. Ideally the successful candidate(s)' first blogposts will be published by the end of January, so the more you can tell me the better to jump start the process. Descriptions should be at least 100 words.
-Entries that do not follow the instructions above will not be considered.

I'm currently in search of 1-3 interns.

Decisions will be made by Friday, December 8. First cohort of interns will be announced on BDP on Tuesday, December 12 (Unless no one applies, which is a distinct possibility; then, you know, nevermind).

If you're not ready to make a commitment but would like to guest post, please also email me at brycekozla at gmail dot com!

Recently started a blog? Leave the link in the comments and I'll link you in an upcoming post.

The Social Model of Disability in the Children's Area: ALSC Blog

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Today I'm honored to introduce the community of readers at the ALSC blog to the social model of disability.  Framing your considerations with the social model of disability in mind can completely change the way we think about our space and service. I look forward to opportunities to dive in further in the future!

"There Goes Your Hero": An Accessibility Series Post

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Chris Frantz is the artistic mastermind behind my blog design and the Accessibility Series logo (check out her amazing business, On a Roll Designs). I've known Chris Frantz for 20 years, mostly as an acquaintance; but it wasn't until we reconnected on Facebook that we became closer. I found out over Facebook that she has cerebral palsy, like me-- or, as people with cerebral palsy on the Internet call it, we're both "ceeps"*. When I first thought of the Accessibility Series, the very first post I ever wanted was this one, originally published by her  on her personal website in November 2013.

 “What are you going to call me?”

I looked up, probably from reading celebrity gossip. “What’s that?”

“On the blog,” my husband clarified. “What are you going to call me?”

It was a fair question, and one I’d been posing to myself since I’d decided to start this project. See, in my years on LiveJournal he came to be known as Mr. Beets, a takeoff on my nom de pixels “Bears Eat Beets.” (FACT.) On Facebook I usually refer to him as “my better half,” “mah boo,” and other similarly corny titles. In real life he gets tagged with all sorts of affectionate nicknames, most of ‘em scatological in nature.

His query prompted all sorts of suggestions from both of us, and eventually devolved into us reciting the epic list of David Ryder’s many monikers from Mystery Science Theater 3000 (which tends to happen with more discussions in our house than it probably should HAHA IF THAT'S POSSIBLE).

By the end we still didn’t really have an answer. I couldn’t come up with anything good on my own, either.

I’m going to call him Brandon. Because that’s his name.

Brandon is a lot of things. He’s a dork of the highest order. He’s a pub trivia dream teammate. He’s a sabermetrics devotee. An engineer. A borderline socialist. He’s the owner of an insanely good head of hair and he’s our fat cat’s favorite cuddle buddy. He’s both a mature appreciator of meta humor and a giggly seven-year-old when it comes to fart jokes. For me personally, he’s a lover (as much as I hate that word), a protector, a fan, and a support. He’s a caretaker - I don't just mean he hugs me when I'm down or makes me soup when I’m  sick; my well-being and the fulfillment of just about every basic need is essentially in his hands. Most of all he’s the best best friend - he listens, he makes me laugh harder than anyone else, and he calls me on my shit.

What he is not is a hero. 

It's like the Ocean; You Can Learn the Currents: An Accessibility Series Post

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Lisa Cohn is a librarian in an urban public library. Her primary focus is genealogy research, but she's worn a variety of hats in her almost 20 years of library service including: interlibrary loan, programming, book displays, publicity and, of course, reference.

"The staff thinks you don’t like them.” The Director had taken me out to lunch to tell me this shortly before she left our urban public library.  Also that she got complaints about me once a month from patrons.  I should be nicer.  I should accept social invitations more often.    She was an introvert and her husband got panic attacks, so she understood, even if her Facebook feed was filled with parties and dinners out and so many friends.   And why was I still working here anyway (after 19 years).  I seem unhappy. Why hadn't I gone for a job where I didn't have to interact with  people so often?  I left that lunch shaking my head.  It took me a while to come around to the idea that just as I don’t always understand how “normal” people can socialize so easily, it must be hard for them to understand what it’s like to live with a Panic Disorder.

 I got my diagnoses from my family doctor in college when we had to cut short a vacation because of my symptoms. I remember the appointment as a series of   questions which I answered all as yes!  I was relieved that he seemed to know what was wrong with me.  I don't remember what the questions were, but they were probably similar to these from Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders:
-Do you have repeated or unexpected “attacks” during which you suddenly are overcome by intense fear or discomfort for no apparent reason?
-If yes, during an attack did you experience any of these symptoms?
--Pounding heart
--Sweating
--Trembling or shaking
--Shortness of breath
--Choking
--Chest pain
--Nausea or abdominal discomfort
--"Jelly" legs
--Dizziness
--Numbness or tingling sensations
--Chills or hot flushes
-As a result of these attacks have you experienced a fear of places or situations where getting help or escape might be difficult?
-As a result have you felt unable to travel without a companion?
-Have you felt persistent concern about having another attacks?
-Have you changed your behavior to accommodate the attacks?

I was given medication to help me cope and read every book on the topic I could find.   Workdays invariably, even after all these years, bring on some variety of symptoms.  After a while, I've even gotten to the point where dealing with symptoms is my normal.  I must hide it well, although I assume the symptoms manifest on the outside as unhappy, judging from my former boss’s comments. Everyday situations, standard patron interactions, etc, all can be difficult.

 I remember one Wednesday evening when I was helping two teenage boys look for a video. They were young, but still taller than me.  I brought them back into the stacks where we kept the videos they had asked about.  I was trapped between them.  Nothing happened, but I felt as if something was about to.  A flash flood of panic rushing through the stacks to sweep me away.  I made some excuse and fled and had to take my break early to gather myself.  After that, I tried to lead patrons into the stacks while still leaving myself some room to exit should the need arise.

When I first started here, I thought I'd be up to going to a staff holiday party one December. It was a crowded restaurant and service was slow.  The longer we waited, the louder everything seemed to be. Dishes and silverware clattered.  Voices rose and overlapped.  It wasn't long before my panic had risen to a level where I just couldn't stand it anymore.  I don't remember what excuse I gave but I fled for home.   I wasn't relieved to get out of there, but rather disgusted at myself for not even being able to go to a party.  I haven’t gone to many since, although I’ve tried a couple times over the years.
 
A few years ago, I went to  the state library association convention a couple of hours south by car with some fellow librarians.  I went to a few meetings on topics I was interested in and walked around the vendor room.  I was waiting for my colleagues around lunchtime when I started to panic.  I was about 2 hours from home and not there under my own transportation so I was trapped until everyone was done.  This time, however, I managed to successfully remember my coping techniques.  I went outside, took a walk near the shore, and remembered to breathe from the diaphragm.  I took  a Xanax and gave myself permission to just leave the situation for a while and I calmed down.  I haven’t gone to the state meeting since, or many meetings away from the building (thankfully, a lot are being offered as webinars now anyway).

I think some people equate panic attacks with a Panic Disorder and believe if you confront it, it'll go away.  But when it's chronic like this, it's not going to stop because you face your fear.  It's like the ocean.  You can learn the currents.  Know what your triggers are so you can avoid being swept under and drown in waves of fear, but the ocean isn't going to evaporate because you accepted a party invitation or did something you were afraid of.  It doesn't go away. You do have to keep trying though.  It might be easier to look for a job where I didn’t have to go to an occasional meeting or interact with people so much, but I know my world would shrink to the office walls around me. Interacting with a variety of people forces me to daily stretch my emotional muscles so I can keep swimming the ocean of my fears.   I may not have an active social life with lots of parties and dinners out, but I talk to a variety of people every day, with the express purpose of helping them in some small way.

I weigh situations like parties or meetings against my history of being able to deal with them and my current level of emotional balance and energy.  So, after 19 years, when the boss invites me out to an unexpected lunch, I take a Xanax to head off the flood of panic attacks.  I picked a restaurant that is within easy walking distance, not because I was planning to flee the restaurant (this time) but because knowing I could make me able to stay.  I asked the maitre'd  if we could eat in a quieter section.  I sit near the door.    I  know that some people won't understand me just as I sometimes don't understand people who can just go to or throw a party without calculating where it is, how they'll get there, how many people will be there and who.   Just as I have people who understand and accept me for who I am and value the time I can spend with them and forgive me for the times when I just can't.  And those who understand that I'm not anti-social or unhappy, that my Panic Disorder tends to consume a lot of my energy.

Looking for more on accessibility?
Click here for more in the accessibility series.

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Click here to read about submitting a post to the Accessibility Series.

"A Lot of Librarians Are Spoonies": An Accessibility Series Post

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Jessica Schomberg is one of my first collaborators on this blog series, and I'm excited to learn more from them as we explore this topic. 

Jessica is currently serving as Library Services Department Chair at Minnesota State University, Mankato, where their other hats include Media Cataloger and Assessment Coordinator. Jessica tweets as @schomj.

It wasn’t until I read Susan Wendell’s The Rejected Body last year that I started really recognizing and internalizing the idea that I am a person with disabilities. I grew up with Type 1 diabetes, have had thyroid disorders for a few decades, and was recently diagnosed with general anxiety disorder and depression.

When I first joined Twitter (in 2009!), I primarily followed librarians and people with diabetes. I initially lurked during #critlib (critical librarianship) and #dsma (diabetes social media advocacy) chats and followed a lot of people who talked about things that resonated with me. Over time, I began participating in those chats and started to realize that my diabetes and my work life actually do intersect a lot -- and that it’s okay. I also heard about the term spoonie and began interacting with other members of the spoonie community. Through these opportunities, I learned that a lot of librarians are spoonies. And a lot of librarians live with mental illness. Talking with others like me gave me the confidence to seek out support for depression when I needed it.

Summer Reading Tic-Tac-Toe: A guest post by Katie Gatten

Poodles dancing in leotards

Katie Gatten is the Branch and Youth Services Administrator for the Mansfield/Richland County Library in Mansfield, OH, located directly between Columbus and Cleveland. There are 75,000 cardholders in their diverse county. For more information on their Summer Library Program, contact Katie a kgatten at mrcpl dot org.

This post will be decorated with GIFs of cute animals dancing because we all need that in our lives right now.

We decided to change up our Summer Library Program this year, having done the same program for many years.  It wasn’t a bad program, but we just wanted to try something fresh.  We had been giving the kids reading records to complete with 7 images to check off that represented 15 minutes of reading time.  When they turned in a completed record they got to pick a prize.  This was the classic Rhode Island Novelty stuff that was cheap quality yet costly, and fell apart soon after the kids received it.  Once the child completed 5 records and visited the library five times, they would also receive a final prize of a new paperback book of their choice.

YA Reading Bingo: A Passive Program Guest Post by Amy Gregory

In my first few months at my current job, I visited every member library to get a feel about how they serve their particular community. I found that every library is doing great things to respond to their community needs. With winter reading on my mind, I was enamored by this teen passive program I had never seen before at Forest Grove Library! Amy Gregory is an Adult Services Librarian in Forest Grove who also focuses on teen services. I asked if she would share her process of creating this awesome teen passive program at her library so others might as well. She even added her own GIFs!

Take it away, Amy: 

I became the teen librarian less than a year ago at the Forest Grove City Library. We have a dedicated physical space for our teens, but they are rarely in the library and we have very little teen participation. Over the year I have been here, I have been trying to find ways to attract teens into the library and encourage participation.

Libraries and the ACE Study: an Iron Fist Joint Post with Anna Donaldson, MSW

Anna Donaldson is a Departmental Analyst with the State of Michigan Division of Continuous Quality Improvement (DCQI) which monitors child welfare compliance and quality across the state. In the near future, she will be joining the clinical research team as Research Coordinator at the Momentous Institute in Dallas, TX as she as recently relocated with her husband to the Dallas/Fort Worth area. This new opportunity at the Momentous Institute will allow Anna to work with the team to gather and analyze data surrounding children's social/emotional growth and how the role of education can positively impact a child's ability to self-regulate, self-aware, and increase educational outcomes for at-risk children. Anna's main areas of interest are child welfare, specifically the impact of trauma on children and families, and improving quality of services provide to this population.

Bryce is Bryce, Anna's sibling, who obviously did not write Anna's bio.

No One Cares How Prepared You Are: A Guest Post By Kelsey

The Aftermath: a Still Life

Today's guest post comes from my lovely new coworker, Kelsey Johnson-Kaiser, about the time when she had just started but I dragged her to help me with something I had never done before: Boy Scout Camp! It was... interesting. I still can't believe we pulled it off. Here's Kelsey with the details, and, of course, me with the GIFs:

Back in August, when I was just three weeks in at my new job with the library, we were tasked with leading an all day program at a nearby Boy Scout camp. It was a tall order – seven groups of twenty-five boys, forty minutes per group, and a bunch of science experiments using candy – but we were ready for the challenge. Or so we thought.

Pete the Cat Field Trip for Second Graders: A Guest Post by Brytani Fraser

Brytani Fraser is a first-year librarian in western NC where she provides programs for all ages in two small branches and advocates for small-town and rural libraries.

 Bryce Don't Play is going as Brytani's blog, The Neighborhood Librarian, for Halloween but adding GIFs because, well.  Here's her guest post:

I've used Sara’s ideas for field trip scripts a few times now and I give them an enthusiastic thumbs up. Since my library is small and my visitors are often in the Prek-2^nd grade range, the one that gets the most use is The Pete the Cat plan. Just today, I had 110 second graders visit the library and used the Pete the Cat adventure once again. Allow me to regale you with this real life instance of a scripted, themed tour saving my sanity.

Field Trip Adventure Time! with Bryce and Erin

GET IT?

If not please immediately read this post

And learn more about Adventure Time.

FOR THE CHILDREN.

I'm so happy to have this [GIFs and commentary by me] guest post by Erin, a Twitter friend and a student of Marge's CE class. I snagged her when she mentioned me in a tweet about scripting library tours FIELD TRIP ADVENTURES! I was on vacation, and was completely stoked to see her write up in my inbox when I got home! 

And remember, if you'd like try your hand at blogging or if you want to share your version of something you found here (like Erin and Ariel and Julia), please email me at brycedontplay at gmail! I would love to have you create my content so I don't have to.


This guest post is by Erin Davison, Library Assistant II in the Youth Services Department in Holland MI, where she lives with her husband Peter and cat Charles Simic. She used the phrase "done borrowed" in reference to my script idea-- correctly, I might add-- so of course she grabbed the attention of this former Southerner.  Hit her up on Twitter: @erinisinire.

My name is Erin and I was a Lurker [Bryce Note: Hi, Erin.]. My feedly is chock full of smart, creative people's blogs. I joined Twitter almost 2 years ago primarily to follow smart, creative librarians. Last summer, I had the chance to attend ALA and Guerrilla Storytime where I first had the inkling these librarians "rock stars" were actually PEOPLE. I recently had the opportunity to attend MIKidLib14-an unconference planned by Lisa Mulvenna, Anne Clark and Andrea Vernola-and it was at that conference I realized I might be a smart, creative person who had ideas and could help other people. And when Amy Koester wrote the "There is Something Rotten in the State of YS Professional Development" post I felt like it was written for me. I just want to thank all of those blogging, tweeting, Tumblring, Facebookgroup librarians who've been of immeasurable help to me professionally. I WAS a Lurker. I won't be any longer.

[Anyway, back to Erin]
I follow Marge on Twitter and she mentioned something about a class she was going to be teaching online through University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension on Power Children's Programming on a Budget (aside: I do not have my MLS. I've spent the last 13 years thinking that SOMEDAY I would do it, but I just didn't want to commit. In addition to knowing this class would be invaluable to our department, I also figured it would be a good opportunity for me to see if I was capable of keeping up with an online class while working and if online learning was even a good fit for me. University of Wisconsin has, of late, become my first choice school if and when I finally decide to take the leap!).

This.class.has.been.amazing. There have been so many ideas and so many practical ways to implement these ideas regardless of the size or budget of a library.

Week 5 introduced us to Preschool Programming and that's when serendipity really hit. Our department was in the process of revamping our preschool tours-having something that was consistent regardless of who was giving the tours-and when I read the 3 blog posts Marge highlighted, I knew it was exactly the direction we needed to go.

That was last Saturday. Less than a week later, I went for it. 

We decided to go with the "Dog's Colorful Day" idea as we had 10 areas of the department and library we wanted to highlight. I put together a rough "script," printed Dog on card stock (and on the reverse side I printed our upcoming Elephant and Piggie Spring Break programming schedule), scrounged the library for any colored dot stickers I could find (note: preschoolers WILL ask if you don't have a purple sticker. Like the book. Because they're smart like that!), printed BIG dots and hung them in the areas we wanted to highlight with containers of cut up dot stickers and away we went!

We started in the storytime room where I straight up cribbed Sara's opening question about who owns the library: "The librarians! The books own the library! Important people!" Their mouths literally dropped open when I said "Actually EVERYONE in Holland owns the library! YOU do too!" [Bryce Note: This is actually Marge's line] That was the moment I knew things were going to be just fine. We went on to talk about sharing and taking turns and I showed them examples of materials that were damaged by other people. The sadness in the room was palpable when I held up a copy of Gregory the Terrible Eater in pieces. They vowed to always take care of library materials, we read through Dog's Colorful Day and off we went on our library adventure. 

Things I learned: 

• Yes, taking a sticker off the backing with our fingers is great way to help develop fine motor skills. It's also not exactly the most efficient way to hand out stickers to 23 3-5 year olds on a 45 minute schedule. One of our awesome aides was a huge help as were the teacher and parents. Next time? I will hand teachers/parents strips of ALL of the colors at the beginning to peel off at each station and hand out to kids.

• There are so many exciting things in the library! The AWE stations! The puzzles! The wooden carousel! The CONVEYOR BELT! Next time, as we approach our next station, I'm going to have everyone hold their hands in the air when they see the big dot and keep it up until everyone's hands are in the air to help keep focus. I can't fathom the awesomeness  horror [edit by Bryce] of an enormous wooden boat in the department. Our small carousel quickly turned into a jungle gym. I feel your pain.

• The "backstage tour" part where we got to see the conveyor belt was a big hit. Maybe too big of a hit. Next time we'll have a big strip of yellow tape and instruct everyone to not.cross.the.line. 

We used to do a short "storytime" and then a tour through the department (we didn't go downstairs to see where we get library cards or the book drop conveyor). I really really really believe this format is so much more meaningful for preschool aged children. There is something repetitive and concrete they do at each highlighted area. They go home with something from the library. It's tied to a BOOK. And it's developmentally appropriate.

[Bryce Note: For an idea that solves the sticker problem, check out Dinosaur vs. the Library over at Reading with Red]

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Passive Programming: guest post by Ariel Cummins

Behold, a Boredom Buster!

Ariel Cummins started her career as a teen librarian, but quickly decided there was far too much drooling with teens and switched to the under 13 set. She writes about her (sometimes bumbling) exploration of what it means to be a children's librarian at http://hushlander.wordpress.com/ and frequently Tweets about authors, librarianship, and ridiculous things at https://twitter.com/hushlander. She works at San Antonio Public Library, and will probably never leave Central Texas because: breakfast tacos.

When I transitioned from teen programming to children’s programming, I also transitioned from a very busy neighborhood branch to a huge Central Library located in a downtown area. While the collection at our Central Library is huge, it was really, really hard to get people to actually attend programs on a regular basis. It was more of a “tourists drop in on vacation” or “residents come once a year to get books for reports” kind of place, rather than a “part of families’ weekly routines” kind of place. We tried programming in the mornings, in the evenings, on the weekends, and on weekdays, with varying success.

The Mission: A Guest Post by Miss Julia in OH

Have you ever seen something cool to do in a library and thought, "well, okay, but I can't do that with MY resources?" Welcome to Librarians Don't Play: what I hope to be a series of guest posts about implementing programs/field trip adventures/story action pods I post on my blog in varying libraries across the country, each librarian putting their own spin on it, or simply being inspired by something that they see here and turning it into something all their own.  

Or, you know, anything, really. I'm not the do-all-end-all of kid's programming, and I'm acutely aware that this is the case. If you want to share an awesome program you've done and you want to try blogging about it, you can contact me, too. 

If you want to give it a try, please e-mail me at brycedontplay at gmail dot com. 

This post is by Miss Julia, a Youth Services Librarian in Ohio, based on my write-up for a Spyology program. Please feel free to email her here and check out her new library-related blog, Laughter and Literacy. All links inside the post are hers.