Female Veterans Art Therapy Program
Sacramento Public Library held a virtual art therapy program for female veterans in partnership with Women Veterans Alliance. This four-week program met once a week for an hour.
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Inspiration Place: Spring Fantasy Hybrid Art Program
Inspiration Place is an adult craft series that met exclusively on Zoom from May 2020 to January 2022 and averaged 15 attendees per session. April 2022 was the first time a hybrid option was offered, allowing patrons the choice of attending on Zoom or in-person. Out of the 20 registered, 3 attended in-person and 17 virtually.
Exploring Hybrid Programs
During the pandemic, online programming allowed libraries to reach new audiences — including, in some cases, people who had never come in person to the library before. But virtual programming fell short in meeting the needs of patrons without a reliable internet connection.
Authors Speak: Drawing as a Sacred Activity
Authors Speak is a new virtual program at Madison Public Library for older adults that features a book talk and four or five workshops taught by a local author.
For the first workshop, Heather Williams presented her book “Drawing as a Sacred Activity” and then taught a five-week drawing basics workshop.
Mindfulness Story Time
I developed a mindfulness story time curriculum during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, drawing from my own experience using yoga as a coping mechanism, and based on my work as a children’s librarian.
I knew we were seeing unprecedented levels of stress among children, and while mindfulness webinars proliferated for staff and working adults, I wanted to think about ways in which I could bring concepts of mindfulness to existing children’s programming.
The Library Didn’t Forget You: Staying Connected with an Isolated Community
“Residents were used to being out and about; they came into the library for programs and read-alouds, they had off-campus jobs, they went to the movies and the pool. […] Unfortunately, once the pandemic came around, they became one of the most isolated groups in our community,” says Jolene Poore, director of Ada Public Library in Ada, Oklahoma.
COVID Research to Homework Help: Town with Little Internet Looks to the Library
"Wi-Fi hotspots have been a Godsend for our community,” says Brenda Cervantes, grants and special projects administrator at Yuma County Public Library in Arizona. “With no coffee shops or large shopping centers, there are essentially no spaces in the community that provide free Wi-Fi or internet service outside of the libraries.”
Ensuring Access: Continuing ESL in a Pandemic
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, many public libraries had to find a way to reconnect with immigrants and new Americans who relied on their ESL classes, citizenship preparation and other resources.
Books & Baking
Books and Baking is a pre-recorded read-aloud program followed by hands-on learning (using a take-and-make kit) in attendees' home kitchens. The goal is for families to participate in everyday STEM, tied in with literacy, to learn the science behind baking.Â
Building Technological Capacity for Small and Rural Libraries
Libraries provide educational programming, a welcoming space, and access to computers and internet connection. This last point has become increasingly important during the pandemic, especially for libraries serving rural areas. In order to safely continue serving their communities, they have faced both the obstacles of switching to virtual programming and ensuring people can access it, on what is often a tiny budget.
Products To Create High-Quality Livestreams and Virtual Programs
Do you want your livestreams to look more professional? Whether you’re using Zoom, Facebook Live or YouTube, these tech products are relatively affordable, easy to use, and can greatly improve your virtual content.
Matt Mazur, co-founder and director of Turtle Dance Music, shares tech products in a 10-minute video, or scroll below to view highlights.
Going Virtual: Programs and Insights from a Time of Crisis
In “Going Virtual: Programs and Insights from a Time of Crisis” (ALA Editions, 2021) ALA’s Public Programs Office (PPO) presents a handpicked cross-section of successful programs from library workers who met a host of challenges in the wake of COVID-19. Join us for this free webinar to learn about five of the programs featured in the “Going Virtual” book.
Where Do We Go from Here? Financial Literacy Programming in the 'New Normal'
A year and a half into the pandemic, I’m contemplating a fall semester that might be more like fall 2019 than fall 2020, though the COVID-19 delta variant continues to loom like a specter over my financial literacy programming plans.
Through it all, I’m mostly thinking about what to keep from a fully remote year and how to most effectively prepare for a potential pivot back to remote delivery or other unexpected changes.
No Fancy Tech Needed: 7 Ways to Make Your Virtual Story Times Engaging
You don’t need expensive gadgets or software to make your virtual story times a hit. What makes your story times really shine are the low-tech ways you connect with your audience, says Matt Mazur, a children’s entertainer with a graduate degree in autism intervention and early childhood development, and co-founder and director of Turtle Dance Music.
Read on for seven low-tech ways to make your virtual story times engaging, or watch Matt’s full 15-minute video below.
Evaluating Your Virtual Programs
Evaluating programs' success is an important part of a programming librarian's work. Knowing what worked — and having information to back up your claims — can help you explain your successes to bosses and board members, apply for grants, and plan programs that serve your community even better in the future.
Virtual Programs for Money Smart Week 2021
Money Smart Week is a national public education program coordinated by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and delivered by a network of supporters that empowers people with the knowledge and skills to make better-informed personal financial decisions.
This year, like so many other things, Money Smart Week has gone virtual.
Evaluating Program Success in a World Gone Virtual
With COVID-19, libraries quickly pivoted to move their programs and events online. The early months were about figuring out "the how" and getting new routines in place; now it is time to find meaningful ways to evaluate and assess the success of what we are offering.
Just counting attendance will never tell a holistic story of whether a program succeeded or failed. There is so much more data that we can collect to tell a complete story about library programming to funders and board members, to prepare to apply for grants, and to plan for the future.
Using Influencer Marketing in Videos, National Library Week and Beyond
Your community is full of influencers who are fantastic advocates for public library services at many different levels, including elected officials, business leaders, local celebrities, and power users from your own patrons. We decided to cash in on this market and help use their personalities and library passion to advocate and promote our library for National Library Week 2020.
5 Creative Aging Programs You Can Do Virtually
Most in-person programs for older adults have been put to a halt for the better part of a year. No worries, however! They can still be done online or by phone, says Jon Kay, director of Traditional Arts Indiana and associate professor of folklore and ethnomusicology at Indiana University Bloomington.
Start with Staff: 6 Ways to Invest in Financial Education
Communities thrive when their members understand how money works, know who they can talk to about specific financial topics, and have access to quality, consumer-friendly learning materials.
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