Dropping In On: Virtual Programs on the Climate Crisis
Do you ever wish you could be a fly on a wall for another library's programs? You're in luck. Dropping in on other libraries' events is easy in our current virtual programming reality.
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Free Online Games to Make Financial Literacy Fun for Kids
ALA, in partnership with the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, has released a collection of free online games to teach children basic financial skills related to earning, saving and spending money.
The four interactive games — part of a series called Thinking Money for Kids and available at tm4k.ala.org — are designed for children ages 7 to 11 but are appropriate for other ages as well.
Reimagining Stories in ASL: Wisconsin’s Second Deaf Storyslam
Deaf Storyslam is a free community event, created in 2019, in which Deaf individuals of varying backgrounds share personal stories and experiences with the broader community. The 2nd Annual Deaf StorySlam happened in September 2020 with new tellers and stories but with a virtual twist.
The 2020 Deaf Storyslam included storytelling coaching for Deaf community members and three free virtual public ASL storytelling workshops leading up to the Storyslam.
Apply Now: Sara Jaffarian School Library Program Award
School librarians are invited to apply for a $5,000 award recognizing outstanding humanities programming in kindergarten through eighth grade.
5 Films to Discuss the Climate Crisis
Film discussions can bring communities together to engage in meaningful conversations about climate change and resilience. The film can help people examine local concerns related to the environment; seeing other communities’ experiences depicted in the films can spark reflections on how to be resilient when facing a crisis.
Here are five films we recommend for discussing the climate crisis; do any seem llke a match for your community? If you have other recommendations, please share them in the comments.
Financial Literacy: Partnerships and Pivoting to Virtual Programming in a Pandemic
Partnerships with community organizations can often enhance the financial literacy programming that libraries can offer their patrons themselves.
Virtual Physician Lecture: Hearing and Hearing Disturbances
Dr. Maja Svrakic, board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology, of Northwell Health discussed hearing loss and options with our older patrons through Zoom.
The library has had previous physicians lectures before. Because of COVID, they are now interactive virtual sessions.Â
Pedaling Through History: Pedal PV at Palos Verdes Library
For the past four years, Monique Sugimoto has commuted to her job at the Palos Verdes Library District on an electric bike — a scenic ride along the cliffs in her coastal California town. As she rode, her librarian brain was hard at work.
“When I came across historic locations, I would devise these little tours in my head,” Sugimoto says. “When the pandemic struck, I thought, how great would it be if I could bring these tours out of my head and into people’s homes?” And that is exactly what she did.
The Presidential Election, Pandemic and Polling
The 2020 presidential election brought into sharp focus the public's unease with the accuracy of polls. From underestimating sizable differences, to overstating levels of support, the role of public opinion polls in our democracy goes far beyond simply predicting the outcome of a race.Â
Fall for Fine Arts
For over six years before the pandemic, our branch offered successful hands-on arts/crafts/DIY programs for families on Thursdays at 4 p.m. During the pandemic, I continued these types of programs in innovative ways online.
STEAM Club at Home: Fossil Dig
The STEAM Club at Home, which focuses on science, technology, engineering, art and math, offers enrichment activities for kids in grades K-5.
This month, I created "fossil bricks" by mixing a plaster and adding real fossils that I purchased online. Participants picked up the bricks and other materials in advance, and we met virtually to learn about fossils and excavate the fossils from their bricks.
Tips for Virtual Author Events in Public Libraries
Since COVID-19 struck, many libraries, like mine, have moved their author visits to virtual spaces. Cuyahoga County Public Library in Ohio has hosted about 50 virtual events since April, about three per week on average.
These have included major ticketed events for Hank Green, Jodi Picoult, Christopher Paolini and Connie Schultz and dozens of events for bestselling and award-winning authors such as Ibram X. Kendi, Jason Reynolds, Karin Slaughter and Meg Cabot, just to name a few.
Here are a few things I've learned in the process.Â
Librarians On: Marketing Virtual Humanities Programs
As 2020 begins to wind down, we can reflect on all that we’ve learned about virtual programming. Many of us entered the year as novices, but we're leaving it with some serious skills — whether from wrangling a boisterous virtual book club or shifting a cultural heritage festival from stage to screen.
But have you mastered the art of marketing your virtual programs? Or are you still struggling to get people to log in?
Tips for Facilitating a Virtual Group Conversation
Over the past six months or so, library workers have bravely plowed into the world of virtual programming. Along the way, you’ve probably picked up more skills than you even realize. (Remember those awkward early attempts at leading a Zoom meeting or recording a story time with your phone?)
Junior Virtual Art Show
Prior to COVID-19, we talked about creating a junior art show that would be shown in our library's community room. Unfortunately, all of our community rooms closed to the public for safety reasons and we could no longer use them for programming.Â
I found that the most appropriate and safest way to display the talents of our young artists was through a virtual art show!
The kids would get recognition and get to display their art in a safe virtual environment that mimics a real gallery experience.
STEAM-y Wonderful Wednesday
STEAM-Y Wonderful Wednesday is a video series posted on the Los Angeles Public Library's North Hollywood Regional Branch's Facebook page every Wednesday.
The videos show fun science experiments using everyday household items. Kids and their parents are strongly encouraged to follow along with the videos. We have been posting these videos for 14 weeks!
Virtual Tales & Travel Adventures
Tales & Travel Adventures is an online adaptation of the original Tales & Travel Memories program, which was designed to actively engage persons living with dementia in literacy activities. This is an ongoing series of excursions to US and global destinations, currently including Chicago, Italy and California.
Total Request Live: BPL Piano Show (Virtual)
BPL Piano Show is an all-request musical performance streamed every Thursday night on Facebook Live. It features Kaleen Dolan, a born-and-raised Chicagoan who has played at the top piano bars nationally and internationally. We began the program on May 7, 2020, and plan to continue offering it at least into August 2020.
Cooking Matters® Pop-up Grocery Store Tour: Online!
Ellsworth Public Library and the local community health nonprofit Healthy Acadia partnered to present an online grocery store tour to share helpful tips about shopping healthy on a budget.
Nicole Gurerri, a Maine SNAP-Ed nutrition educator from Healthy Acadia, took participants on a virtual tour through a PowerPoint presentation, covering each food group and including tips for how to choose healthy options while saving money.
Virtual Art Show
Since it's become clear that we won't be having in-person events at our library this summer, I wanted to find a way for the library to uplift community spirit from a distance.
The Spring 2020 Art Show is a digital display of art presentening works by Boyertown community members, open to all ages and media, inclusive of all ages and abilities. The art show can serve as a reminder to the community that, even under challenging conditions, we are capable of creativity, a hopeful spirit and uplifting one another.Â
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