One of the many reasons I love my boss and coworkers is that they are so generous about encouraging professional development. So when my partner in crime Children's Librarian (joking KP), suggested that I go to the Children's Services conference put on by our state's library federation, I was over the moon.
The challenge quickly became the embarrassment of riches that was the breakout session buffet. To many wonderful programs going on at once and not enough HoGL clones to attend them all. I have been promised handout files for the sessions I missed, but below are the highlights for what I was able to attend.
TOP 10 Highlights of #CYPD2014:
1. Adam Gidwitz , author of YHB book In a Glass Grimmly talked about the purpose and importance of fairy tales in children's literature. They create open box characters through which kids can experience their imaginations, emotions,dearest hopes, and greatest fears.
2. Picture book author and illustrator David Slonim, talked about how our creativity needs constraints to thrive.
3. The Librarian Fanatic, Sherry Gick, has now rekindled my interest in using Twitter as a professional development tool. (Thanks @LibraryFanatic! I'm totally #reinspired)
4. Suzanne Walker from our state library and Alison McLean from Elkhart Public Library showed us how playing the ukulele or guitar in story time can engage our young patron's minds, with rhythm and syntax learning, and be a lot of fun for all involved.
5. Keynote speaker Linda Braun talked about her tips for connecting to Generation Z (aka. Our baby-school age patrons) recognizing them for who they are and meeting them on their level in order to provide service. If we can key in to how these patrons see themselves and each other, we can better understand their needs.
6. Sherry Gick echoed this in her keynote speech when she showed us videos from her 8 year old son's Youtube channel where he filmed himself giving tutorials to other kids on building Lego figures. Our Gen Z patrons are technically advanced innovators who love to create and share their own content, even at a young age.
7. Deborah Reynolds and Sarah Schmidt from the Hancock County Public Library talked about preschool programs incorporating fine arts and the performing arts. Topics discussed included: practical tips for painting with kids, how fine arts develop fine motor skills, construction of props and costumes for theater programs, and collaborative narrative storytelling.
8. Alyssa Morgan from Morgan County Public Library talked about her school age book clubs, age breakdown, book choices, keeping kids accountable, and discussion vs activity time.
9. Will Smither from one of my system's branches discussed finding books for reluctant readers, particularly boys. He discussed challenges of listening to the child, not assuming that the parent automatically knows the child's interests, and suggested a reading list for topics popular with boys. Favorite quote "Underwear is funny!"
10. Favorite moment of the conference: Adam Gidwitz's rendition of the Grimm's Brothers' manuscript (1810) and first published (1812) editions of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. My favorite line was from the Evil Queen: "That little punk! I'm gonna kill 'er!" (as an aside, in the original, the Evil Queen was Snow White's REAL mom! Not her stepmother! Ick!)
Going forward from the conference I'm excited about trying out some art and theater story times for the new year. I think I'll try to gauge interest for the book clubs before jumping on that band wagon. And I will be asking my manager how she feels about me applying for a grant to get a ukulele.
As Tigger says TTFN!
