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This was a fun session put on by a group of librarians from the Chicago area who work with children and teens.  Their aim is to use technology to help patrons develop their creativity, collaboration, communication and critical thinking skills.  I attended this program with the hope of learning some cheap, easy, and fun tools to start some more tech-focused youth programming.  Success!

They discussed stop motion animation, pencil animation and a 90 second Newbery program.  Robotics  were discussed through the use of an artbot – a very cool drawing robot using a Solo cup and the motor from an electric toothbrush; WeDo, which is the most open-ended Lego robotic set; and of course Lego Mindstorms.  They finished out with an “Art meets Tech” program using light painting which seems so simple even I can do it!  So help your kids and teens build their digital literacy and STEAM skills with some of these fun ideas.  The presenters were kind enough to make their materials available online via the PLA website.

Erin Silva | Youth Services Librarian | Kalona Public Library

One of the fun parts about attending national conferences is the parties.  I had the exciting opportunity to have a party at my library last night.  The AWE Early Learning computer folks decided to use the beautiful historic Indiana State Library to have a fun and lively reception for #pla2014 attendees.  The evening included wine and champagne, fruit, and lots of sweet treats (including cream puffs with chocolate frosting.  Yes.  I had two.) and popular tours of our 1934 art nouveau building.

Unfortunately, I was too busy hobnobbing with Sammy, my interviewing Toucan puppet, to take any pictures of the place when it was full of people, but you can still get an idea of the general grandeur.  It was a great time and I was so happy to welcome PLA attendees to the Indiana State Library.

Children’s librarians do a lot of outreach. A lot!  But are you embedded within your community?  Embedded librarians are actively connected to community organizations. Instead of being “in front” of the table, you now become “part of” the table.  Are you infiltrating your community organizations or have you thought about making connections in this way?  Do you sit on the Chamber of Commerce board, the City Council, or the United Way?  By being part of these groups, librarians can endear themselves to their communities by offering insight, helping with reference type questions, or providing a new  solution to a community problem.

Some ideas that came from the brainstorming part of this session included: Going to the local farmer’s market, or be part of the organizing of the farmer’s market; become friendly with your local Tribal Council (if applicable); join your workforce investment board; chamber of commerce; school board or PTO; or even church boards. Don’t forget for-profit companies – they often have boards for community outreach or literacy programs.

So go ahead – blur the lines of traditional library boundaries and become a new model for non-passive librarianship!