Check It Out Issue 14

SPRING 2014

Plan A LIBRARY Job Fair Help Both Patrons and Community Businesses

Host A DIGITAL Petting Zoo

Show How Tech Trends Work with Your Services

Share Seeds TO FEED YOUR Community Details behind the Free Seeds Movement

Celebrate YOUR Librarians Thank Your Staff This National Library Week $4.99 US

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Entertain adults with these action packed fan-favorites!

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Bring out the inner inventor in your kids with these fun book-to-movies!

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CHAIRMAN’S LETTER

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ith warmer temperatures here to stay, we’ve dedicated this issue to creative programming ideas that are both fun and promote community involvement. Don’t miss our summer reading programming ideas on page 12 as you plan your agenda for the summer season! The article “Share Seeds to Feed Your Community” on page 18 investigates how the current trend of seed libraries, which are sprouting up across the country, help encourage community sharing, nutrition and sustainability.

The article “Give Old Stuff a New Life: Host a Swap” on page 6 helps your patrons reduce waste and recycle items they may find throughout their spring cleaning efforts.

As both high schools and colleges hold graduation ceremonies in the coming weeks, many new grads will begin searching for employment. Your library can lend a helping hand to these new grads and other unemployed patrons by using the tips on page 10 to host your own career fair. This issue also includes an innovative idea on how to help your patrons navigate the latest tech gadgets by hosting a digital petting zoo on page 8.

As always, we hope this magazine gives you plenty of ideas to incorporate into your library. If there is something you’d like to see in a future issue or questions you’d like to ask, please don’t hesitate to contact your Movie Licensing Manager. Once again, thanks for reading and we appreciate your patronage.

Incipit C H AIR M AN

“I clasp the flask between my hands even though the warmth from the tea has long since leached into the frozen air.”

Catching Fire

By Suzanne Collins © Lions Gate Films, Inc.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

... .. ...

Share Seeds to Feed.your Community . . .. . . .

HOST a Digital PETTING Zoo TO TEST TECH TRENDS

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Celebrate Your Librarians This National Library Week Inexpensive ideas for celebrating your staff’s greatness

15 Self-Conscious about Self-Promotion?

An look at last year’s inspiring library project

6 Give Old Stuff a New Life: Host a Swap Help your patrons reduce and reuse with a swap event

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20 Are the New Goodreads Rules Censorship?

The big changes to the Goodreads user agreement

Host a Digital Petting Zoo to Test Tech Trends Teach patrons how the hottest tech items work with library services

10 An Ideal Library Job Fair How to host a career fair in your stacks 12 Summer Reading Activities for children, teens and adults using ALA’s 2014 science theme

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Share Seeds to Feed Your Community Details behind the homegrown trend that keeps on growing

22 Read it. See it. Love it.

The Giver

24 Library Spotlight

by Lois Lowry

25 Fun & Games

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NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK

Celebrate Your Librarians This National Library Week!

Since its founding in 1958, National Library Week is an annual national observance sponsored by the ALA and celebrated by libraries across the country. In addition to highlighting the contributions of libraries within their communities, these seven days also promote bookmobile services, teen literature and much, much more.

This year’s National Library Week takes place on April 13-19 with the theme Lives Change @ Your library.

Among all of the book-focused activities of National Library Week, what’s more important to libraries than the special booklovers who keep them running? One area that deserves extra emphasis is thanking those who keep the shelves stacked, the computers running smoothly and the programs

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creative and clever. This year, reward your fellow librarians in new ways with a few of the suggestions below. These ideas won’t cost your organization much and have been proven by organizations across the country to boost overall morale!

FREE PARKING – Do you have a prime parking spot that everyone wants?

Create an employee of the month reward system and let the month’s most popular nominee park in this spot for the next 30 days. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), representing more than 250,000 HR professionals in over 140 countries, recommends this practice for employee recognition and even provides guidelines on how to implement an incentive-based parking program at www.shrm.org.

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NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK

EMBRACE A HOBBY –

GET A LITTLE FLEXIBLE –

Reward your hard workers by nurturing a skill, adding to a personal collection or embracing a passion. For example, do you know an employee who likes to bake?

Surprise her with passes to a cake decorating class. Can you think of someone who loves Pixar movies? Surprise him with the latest blu-ray.

Other inexpensive ideas are magazine subscriptions, music downloads, gas gift cards, movie passes, concert tickets, theme park passes or even e-books by his or her favorite author.

Reward hard work with a few perks like casual dress days, flexible hours, a surprise half-day off of work or even an extra vacation day. To eliminate some of the stress caused by trying to achieve better work/life balance,

GIVE SOME GOODIES – Show your fellow coworkers that you appreciate them by appealing to their taste buds. Whether it’s a special breakfast, homemade sweets, an outdoor picnic or even takeout from a popular restaurant, food is always a welcome reward for a job well done.

If your library has a Friends of the Library group, they might be willing to help you create a special evening to thank your staff just like the Friends of the Fresno County Public Library in Fresno, CA, do. Together, they plan their annual Dinner in the Library event, pairing gourmet food and local wines with live musical entertainment or a movie.

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“Give a little latitude in determining work schedules and [allow employees] to take time for family or personal issues such as doctor’s appointment and banking errands,” advised Richard Martin, president of Alcera Consulting, Inc. “As long as the employee is deserving and doesn’t abuse the privilege, this can go a long way to building trusting and mature relationships with key workers.” By helping your staff relax and rejuvenate, they’ll stay motivated and engaged.

BEST PRACTICES FOR EMPLOYEE REWARDS According to the ALA newsletter article “Staff Recognition Rewards: A Path to Motivated Employees or Engaged Employees” by John B. Harer, Ph.D., there are some common best practices to implement when motivating or rewarding employees.

1. Tailor praise to the person and the achievement. Compliments should be clear and specific, and the process should respect the employee’s personality and culture.

2. Allow employees to participate.

Employees should be included in the initial design of the process, have the chance to recommend and recognize their peers and participate in giving the awards.

3. Link awards to performance. Connecting an award to a performance serves as positive reinforcement for repeated excellence.

4. Reward nominators. This idea not only recognizes the nominator for his/her participation, but also builds bonds among staff.

5. Seek ways to visibly recognize the employee and his/her accomplishments.

Formal ceremonies, plaques and certificates increase the visibility of the accomplishment and add a sense of achievement to those recognized.

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NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK

LET THEM SHINE –

MAKE WORK FUN –

There are endless ways to publicly and privately recognize your staff’s superstars. Start a company wall of fame.

Provide a formal letter of appreciation and add it to their file. Create and frame an award for a job well done. Write and send a thank you note to his or her family about how this person’s contributions add to your library. These are just a few of the many possibilities.

Most work places celebrate birthdays, babies and weddings, but what about adding a little bit of excitement to regular work days? For example, Terri Levine, president of The Coaching Institute, decided to create a weekly, out-of-thebox activity when motivation was dragging and attitudes were tense. “We created a weekly event to boost morale.

One week we asked everyone to bring in a baby picture, post it on a wall, then pick which person matched each picture. Everyone was having fun and socializing while productivity went from 58 percent to 72 percent — all in the same week.”

Another idea is to have your patrons help you find out who’s doing a great job. Ocean Country Library in Ocean County, New Jersey, lets library-goers nominate librarians for the “Caught in the Act Award.” This award honors staff who show kindness, helpfulness and support toward patrons and other staff members in ways that are visible in the library and behind the scenes.

QUICK QUIZ: IS AN EMPLOYEE INCENTIVE THE ANSWER? Did you know more than half of America’s companies use incentives as a way to motivate employees? But, how do you know if an incentive is the right solution for you? If you answer yes to all of the questions below, an employee reward or recognition system might be the right move according to pre-paid solutions provider Intelispend.

• Is current performance a little sluggish?

• Would you like to promote or encourage a specific action?

• Is the cause motivation and not a lack of skills or training?

• Can you measure the performance you want and the performance you’re seeing now?

• Are your goals challenging, yet achievable?

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GIVE OLD STUFF A NEW LIFE

Give Old Stuff a New Life: Host a Swap The age-old saying “out with the old” is often heavily exercised through the art of spring cleaning as soon as the weather turns warm. As your patrons look around at their homes in an attempt to declutter after the winter, dozens of lightly used items with plenty of life left in them are often thrown away. Instead of creating more waste, it would be much more beneficial to your patrons, community and even the environment to provide an event to showcase these unwanted items, so others can take them home and give them a second life.

A swap party gives you and your patrons the opportunity to exchange items you want to get rid of for something gently used at little to no cost. You can host a swap for clothes, books, housewares, tools and even furniture. These events also provide the perfect opportunity for patrons to mingle, recycle gently used items and donate the rest to a charitable organization in your community.

TIPS FOR HOSTING A SWAP Stock the pond: As the host of this event, you want to make sure there’s enough of a selection of the types of items you’re featuring at your swap. A sparse table can be a disappointment to those who are looking to score some good deals, so be sure you have a way to stock the tables if need be. For example, if you’re hosting a book swap, you may want to be a little ruthless when weeding through your shelves. Another option is to pad your table by hitting a thrift store and picking up some cheap paperbacks.

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SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR HOSTING A NICHE SWAP If you’re interested in swapping more than books and movies, try a swap with one of these themes.

Clothing and accessories – You’ll need garment racks, a full length mirror, clotheslines and signs to mark sizes, seasons and types. On the invitation, remind guests to wear tights, tanks or modest undergarments to make trying on clothing less awkward.

Children’s items – Sorting is key here since you’ll want to make it easy for parents to find what they need. Group your donations by age group like baby, toddler, pre-k to 2nd grade and 3rd grade to 5th grade.

Housewares –

Any home related donations can be organized by what room in the house they belong in. For example, blenders and toasters go in the kitchen section, while throw pillows, rugs and art belong in the living room area.

Photo courtesy of http://www.notjustahousewife.net

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GIVE OLD STUFF A NEW LIFE

Invite lots of people and provide lots of space: Remember that the more people you invite, the wider the selection of items you’ll receive will be and the more variety patrons will have to choose from. Likewise, the more donations you receive, the more table space you will need to display all of the goods. Patrons will be more likely to linger when they can see what’s available instead of having to dig for possibly hidden treasures, so try to avoid stacking items on top of each other.

Propose the garage sale rule: Patrons coming to an event where things they no longer want are up for grabs might make for a sticky situation if someone sees something on a table that they once gave as a gift. That’s why it’s wise to note that donations are anonymous and any item’s resemblance to a gift a patron may have once given is purely coincidental.

Decide how your swap will work: Some swaps require more rules than others. For a simple swap, the rule of “trade one item, get one item” works well. Other swaps sell tickets for a $1 donation and have items priced at various ticket amounts. Specialty swaps might require a little more fairness than others and sometimes use a raffle system to even things out. For example, a beauty product swap featuring unused and new cosmetics might need a raffle method to ensure all of the best items aren’t chosen by the same individuals. With this method, for every product you donate, you would receive a raffle ticket. Then, all raffle tickets are tossed into a bowl and drawn for the chance to claim an item from the pile.

Add an emotional element: For a little extra fun, let your patrons write what they did or didn’t enjoy about their donations on sticky notes. For books, CDs and DVDs, a “recommended if you like (title)” works well. As guests browse, they can write their comments on sticky notes placed near the items, making for some intriguing conversations.

Where to send leftover donations Goodwill – Contact your local Goodwill branch at 800-664-5577 or go to www.goodwill.org for more details.

The Salvation Army – For more information, dial 800.728.7825 or log on to www.satruck.org to find your nearest branch.

Dress for Success – This organization accepts women’s interview-appropriate attire. To learn more, head to www.dressforsuccess.org.

Newborns in Need – Gently used infant items, like rattles, blankets and clothing are always needed.

Go to www.newbornsinneed.org for location details.

Books for Soldiers – Ship a care package of books, CDs and DVDs to a soldier. Sign up at www.booksforsoldiers.com.

Reader to Reader – Help refresh school libraries with books. Head to www.readertoreader.org for details.

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HOST A DIGITAL PETTING ZOO

HOST a Digital PETTING Zoo TO TEST TECH TRENDS

As new upgrades, models and makes of technological items that are supposed to simplify our lives keep popping up on shelves, it’s easy to become overwhelmed if you don’t have the time to do your research.

Understanding the ins and outs of each product, how it can benefit one’s daily life and what device will best suit a specific need are just a few of the most common questions that can plague shoppers, as well as library patrons and staff.

Hosting a digital petting zoo is also another way to help According to nonpartisan, non-advocacy public opinion patrons overcome their apprehension of technology. As polling and demographic research organization Pew librarian Christina Dorman of Walker Memorial Library Research Center (www.pewinternet.org), “The number of in Westbrook, Maine, states, the library is “one of the last Americans ages 16 and older who own tablet computers has great equalizers for overcoming the grown to 35% and the share who own e-reading digital divide, or the gap between devices like Kindles and Nooks has grown to AMERICANS 16+ those who have access to information 24%. Overall, the number of people who have a technologies like the Internet and tablet or an e-book reader among those 16 and computers, and those who do not.” She older now stands at 43%.” As these numbers show, also mentions that while many patrons tablets and e-readers have rapidly gained a fan base still come to the library for traditional that shows no signs of stopping. By combining OWN TABLET resources like books and research your patrons’ love of technology with teaching COMPUTERS materials, services like computer access, them about what’s new in the technological computer classes, free Wi-Fi and tech product landscape, a digital petting zoo is an support troubleshooting are becoming interactive programming idea that helps patrons increasingly popular. test drive the latest products while learning how they work with your library’s services.

OWN E-READING By now, you may be sold on the idea DEVICES LIKE of hosting your own digital petting According to Janet McKenney, director of KINDLES AND zoo, but may be wondering how you’re library development for the Maine State Library NOOKS going to get your hands on all of in Augusta, Maine, digital petting zoos are these expensive toys. Take a tip from quickly becoming popular programs at national Douglas County Library in Castle Rock, and statewide libraries because they engage CO, who collaborated with a local library-goers in the ever-popular discussion of Best Buy to borrow some gadgets for technology. “There’s a big effort, both nationally their event. Their local Best Buy sent and in state, to do digital literacy training,” a knowledgeable staff member to the she states. Most digital petting zoos feature OWN A TABLET event with every type of e-reader the bestselling e-readers, tablets and audiobook OR AN E-BOOK store carried. Over 200 patrons attended devices like iPads, Kindles, Nooks and more. the event as the pluses and minuses of However, a library can also choose to feature each device were analyzed, Consumer popular video game consoles, fitness gadgets and Reports articles were discussed and the features of Douglas any other innovative item that just hit the market, while Country Library’s free e-book were programs explained. promoting library resources that compliment this item.

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A Whole ‘Nother Animal: Current Contenders in Tech

HOST A DIGITAL PETTING ZOO

Here are some of the most popular and recent best selling items you could feature in your digital petting zoo, according to the technology experts at CNET.

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Price: Starting at $119 Brighter, lighter and faster, this top of the line e-reader has a more responsive touch screen and an upgraded processor for fewer page flashes.

Google Nexus 7 Price: Starting at $229

Barnes and Noble Nook GlowLight Price: Starting at $119 Equipped with a lighter design than the Kindle Paperwhite, improved lighting, 4 GB of internal space, no page flashing and a silicone rubber protection frame, the Nook GlowLight is a top contender in the e-reader world.

iPad Mini with Retina Display

With the latest version of Android, a speedy processor, long battery life and a razor-sharp HD screen, the Google Nexus is one of the best Android tabs on the market.

Price: Starting at $399

Playstation 4

Xbox One

Price: Starting at $459

Price: Starting at $559

Awesome graphics, connected gaming and second screen features make this one of the hottest gaming consoles of 2014.

Along with stunning graphics and plenty of power, this new gaming system also serves as an all-in-one media center.

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Rivaling the iPad Air, the iPad Mini packs a zippy A7 processor, improved Wi-Fi connectivity and an impressive highresolution display.

However, it is pricier than most tablet competitors.

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AN IDEAL LIBRARY JOB FAIR

Job Seeking Patrons +Local Businesses = An Ideal Library Job Fair

First Things First A career fair provides the perfect arena for jobseekers and employers to share job information, discuss career goals and consider employment changes. Likewise, a library serves as the ideal place to learn new skills, discover new opportunities and find ways to live a better life. Why not combine the two to help both library patrons and community organizations all under one roof?

Library job fairs may require a little bit of planning and preparation, but they offer a great way to help promote your free services and programs while shedding light on local career opportunities.

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When creating an event with this much coordination between businesses, your library and patrons, it’s crucial to lay the right groundwork. This includes establishing the date and time of your event, along with the theme, agenda, volunteer list, messaging and media strategy. You’ll want to identify and reach out to key community players who might be interested in participating in the event and create a letter to employers that includes all of the enticing details to drive involvement.

Next, consider your career fair’s format. Adding different components will create some variety in your event’s agenda. A popular career fair staple is an exhibit hall featuring representatives from each company, with each business at its own booth. Some organizations may come equipped with career opportunity literature and job applications, while others may participate by offering career guidance. More popular job fair features include a series of lectures with guest speakers from a variety of industries and workshops on select topics like resume writing and job seeking. Many job fairs choose to host a combination event with both exhibit hours and lecture sessions featuring speakers and Q&A sessions. Some career fairs even incorporate a fashion show featuring interview attire, suit options and business causal examples!

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AN IDEAL LIBRARY JOB FAIR

Attracting Job Seekers and Employers The key to a successful job fair is attracting a variety of candidates who are looking for employment and a plethora of businesses offering available opportunities, so don’t be shy about distributing your job fair’s promotional materials anywhere they might be noticed. High schools, colleges and community gathering places like coffee shops, grocery stores, gyms and civic centers are high traffic areas where your signs and flyers could attract a great amount of attention.

In terms of employers, any local company can be a part of your career fair. The Internet and the Yellow Pages may help you identify local companies to contact and the local chamber of commerce, banks, local retailers, utility companies and shopping centers might have some openings to promote. Personal contacts, local colleges and universities, job recruitment centers and human resource departments may also have resources available to provide extra help for presentations and workshops. You’ll want to follow up and confirm event details with all organizations that agree to participate and remind representatives of what to bring (a photo ID, several copies of their job applications, brochures with company information, etc.) before your big event.

Helpful Tips for a Smooth Event

Complimentary snacks and beverages are always an appreciated gesture for participating organizations, as is making rounds every 30 minutes to check on them. Finally, make sure to have your career fair evaluation forms ready for both jobseekers and employers to provide event feedback.

Jumbo Job Fair @ The New York Public Library The New York Public Library has held a massively successful job fair for the past four years. Their last job fair, held on September 18, 2013, received over 1,200 participants, including 60 employers and 30 community organizations. Along with workshops like “How to Land Your First Job in a Tough Economy” and classes on how to use the library’s resources for job seeking activities, the event also included one-onone counseling, resume workshops and prescreening activities for Bronx jobseekers. This job fair also provided 100 suits for male and female patrons courtesy of Dress for Success, Men’s Warehouse and World Changers organizations.

A few days before your career fair kicks off, take some time to plan out the different zones of your event. A designated check-in area can help manage the flow of attendees. You might also want to have a few quiet rooms set aside for any company looking to conduct on the spot interviews with qualified candidates. Each company may prefer to have a little privacy, so remember to leave some space between each employer table. Also, strategically placed signs throughout your event space will help attendees know where to go if they’re interested in attending a speaker session or a resume panel and a sign-in sheet can help with post-event correspondence.

Lastly, you might also want to prepare a packet complete with the details of participating companies, a list of businesses with current openings, a map of where each company’s booth is located and an agenda for the event.

Name tags are essential for networking and table tents are crucial for identifying employers, so make sure you have plenty of each available.

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SUMMER READING

Summer Reading!

2014 Programming Ideas for All Ages The month of March means it’s time to start brainstorming programming ideas for this summer’s

95% of public libraries offer summer reading programs for children

reading theme! According to the ALA, each year, more than 95% of public libraries offer summer reading programs for children. In addition, many libraries also offer special reading programs and activities for adults and teens during the summer months. No matter the age of a patron, summer reading programs encourage reading as a lifelong habit, one that benefits everyday life in numerous ways such as improving concentration, boosting intelligence, fostering creativity and much more.

This year’s CSLP theme focuses on science, so dust off

your beakers, grab your magnifying glasses and get ready to explore. On this page and the next, you’ll find ideas for every age group that embrace creativity, imagination and experimentation.

In partnership with the Collaborative Summer Library Program

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Children’s

SUMMER READING

Summer Reading Theme

Photos courtesy of: Photos courtesy of: Sarahgwidtphotography

ACTIVITY: Rock Candy Photos courtesy of: Bath Activities for kids.com

EXPERIMENT: Homemade Slime Easier to clean up than clay and way less messy, this kid friendly goo rolls right off of hands and countertops, while providing hours of squishy, not sticky fun.

Materials needed: • 1 medium sized bowl • 1 teaspoon of Borax laundry powder • 2 tall canisters or cups • Food coloring • 4 ounces of white glue • Measuring cup • Water Directions: Pour 4 ounces of glue into one of your canisters or cups. Stir in an equal amount of water and add in a few drops of your favorite food coloring.

Stir this mixture well and set aside. Next, dissolve a teaspoon of Borax laundry powder in ½ cup of water.

Take one teaspoon of the Borax solution and pour it into your empty bowl. Now, add the colored glue mix into the bowl with the Borax solution and stir well. Let the slime sit for about 30 seconds to cure, then start playing! To keep your slime from drying out, store it in a tightly closed plastic bag.

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Who knew crystals could be so sweet? This simple experiment teaches kids about solutions and precipitates.

Materials needed: • 1 pot • Water • 9 cups of sugar • Measuring glass • Bamboo skewers • Glass jars • Clothes pins • Food coloring Directions: Soak your bamboo skewers in water for 5 minutes, then roll them in sugar. Set them aside to dry. Next, dissolve 9 cups of sugar into 3 cups of water in a pot over medium high heat. Stir constantly until the mixture boils. Keep stirring until all of the sugar has dissolved (the liquid will be clear or straw-colored) and set aside to cool.

Once the mix has cooled, pour it into your glass jars (aim to fill them about halfway full) and add food coloring. Now, clip a clothes pin onto one of your skewer’s midway points and submerge the skewer in the jar, placing it so the skewer doesn’t touch the bottom or sides of the jar. Watch as your crystals grow on your skewers over the next 7 days.

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SUMMER READING

Teens

Summer Reading Theme

ACTIVITY: Create Rube Goldberg Machines Celebrate chain reactions based on the drawings of Rube Goldberg, a cartoonist made famous for depicting complex devices designed to complete a simple task. Building Rube Goldberg machines are a fascinating and creative way to explore cause and effect relationships and sharpen engineering skills, but there is no instruction book or step-by-step process for building one.

Each machine is completely different and tested by trial and error, so before you begin, show your patrons plenty of examples and encourage them to brainstorm their designs on paper.

Materials needed:

Adults

Summer Reading Theme

ACTIVITY: Intro to DIY Publishing Host a workshop on DIY (Do It Yourself) e-book publishing for aspiring authors. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the e-book self-publishing platforms available, such as Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), which allows writers to offer their work in the Kindle Lending Library (earning money each time someone “borrows” the writer’s work), or other options like Smashwords, Nook Press, Booktango, BookBaby or iBooks Author. Turn this event into a literary double feature by pairing your workshop with a showing of a writing-themed movie like Finding Forrester or Saving Mr. Banks.

• Examples of Rube Goldberg cartoons or YouTube clips featuring Rube Goldberg machines for inspiration • Anything that can be used to help create the machines, including paper towel or toilet paper tubes, marbles, rubber bands, string, blocks, balloons, etc.

• Lots of imagination Directions: First choose a task that you would like your patrons’ Rube Goldberg machines to complete. The main idea is to over-engineer a process to do something simple, like drop a ball into a cup. Next, show your patrons plenty of examples to get their creative gears spinning.

Now, let them start building, while you offer tips and encouragement along the way. Make sure you offer plenty of space to work, since some of these creations can get very large!

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© Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.

© 2014 Disney Enterprises, Inc.

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SHOW ME THE AWESOME

Self-Conscious about

Self-Promotion?

When you’re proud of your library, it can occasionally seem like there is a fine line between sharing your latest accomplishment and boasting.

Sometimes, “Self promotion can feel like a dirty word, because the purpose of librarianship is a call to service,” explains Sophie Brookover, program coordinator and social media manager for LibraryLinkNj, the New Jersey library cooperative. She believes that the need to promote and the need to serve can create a clash that leaves librarians “feeling that you can’t do both.” Librarians should feel free to openly discuss their achievements as the “Show Me the Awesome” campaign described below encourages.

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SHOW ME THE AWESOME

The “Show Me the Awesome” campaign (available on http://sophiebiblio.tumblr. com/awesome) came together during the American Library Association’s Midwinter meeting in 2013 by Brookover and fellow librarians Liz Burns and Kelly Jensen. As they discussed the topics of the conference, they agreed that librarians could use some use some improvement when it comes to promoting their achievements. With each of the three women already blogging on their own, Brookover at Sophiebiblio (http:// sophiebiblio.tumblr.com/awesome), Burns at SLJ’s A Chair a Fireplace and a Tea Cozy (http://blogs.slj.com/teacozy/) and Jensen at Stacked (http://www.stackedbooks. org/), they decided to run with the idea of advocating self-promotion among librarians and gave their colleagues a place to show off the great things they’ve been doing in their libraries.

That May, the “Show Me the Awesome”: 30 Days of Self-Promotion series was

“We can all benefit from seeing what’s going on.

The diversity of opinions and experience has been remarkable.”

born, consisting of a month-long online showcase where librarians of different specialties could highlight their accomplishments, share innovations and offer tips they’ve learned. Brookover, Burns and Jensen each advertised the series and asked fellow librarians for submissions on Twitter, Facebook and their individual blogs. In return, librarians had a lot to share. “We had participants from every corner of the English speaking world,” notes Brookover.

One entry even came all the way from library consultant Matthew Finch in Auckland, New Zealand.

According to Brookover, the response to “Show Me the Awesome” was so successful, there has been talk of doing a follow up campaign. “We can all benefit from seeing what’s going on. The diversity of opinions and experience has been remarkable.”

blogs

Here are a few of our favorite posts from this inspiring 30-day project.

Dawn Stahura Research Services Librarian Blog: http://illustratedlibrarian.wordpress.com Idea: Traveling Exhibits Category: Events In her submission to the project, Stahura advocates the benefits of using traveling exhibits to get patrons, in her library, excited about history, science and more.

She recommends searching the Programming Librarian’s page on the ALA Public Programs Office (http://tinyurl.com/mfluuzc), your state’s historical society and the U.S. National Library for Medicine (http://tinyurl.com/l7v7p8h) for information on how to host new traveling exhibits.

These exhibits usually require a small payment to cover shipping, but stay in your library for 6 to 8 weeks and are relatively easy to set up and take down.

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SHOW ME THE AWESOME

Katie Salo Youth Services Manager Blog: http://storytimekatie.com Idea: Ways to Keep Story Time Fresh Category: Activities When Salo began planning her story times, consistency and routine were key ingredients. However, once her preschoolers figured out what happens next, they became a little restless. In her submission to the project, Salo offered tips on how to successfully mix things up during story hours so little audiences stay engaged. She included ideas on bringing in surprises for quick pick-me-ups, the steps behind trying something new, why taking a break to recharge can help create better story times and ways to add in elements that you love like flannel boards, actions and songs to keep story time fresh for both librarians and their patrons.

Angie Manfredi Head of Youth Services Blog: http://www.fatgirlreading.com Idea: Stop Calling Your Awesomeness Self-promotion Category: Promotion

Rachel Keeler Children’s Librarian Blog: http://readingrachel.wordpress.com Idea: How to Improve Reporting Category: Administration

Manfredi encourages librarians to banish the word selfpromotion from their vocabularies because it can give off the connotation that a librarian is only interested in his or her library. Furthermore, she asked the question, “If a library’s program were any good, wouldn’t someone else be doing the promotion for you?” Instead, she encourages librarians to approach promotion as simply having a conversation to share what work was put into a project, the results that were achieved and the feedback patrons gave. She advises that libraries should take all of these little conversations – at the grocery store, on the phone with family, at community events – and treat them as what they really are: opportunities to tell your story.

In her submission, Keeler insists that writing a monthly report doesn’t have to be painful. Instead, she believes that librarians should look at report writing as a way to showcase their skills, especially if they’re in a low profile position within the library. When supervisors rarely see you in action, a report is a great way to help shape impressions of you and your work. The best reports are a mix of numbers, Want to read more submissions from quotes, goals and more, so she urges librarians to use all of their tools available, Show Me the Awesome project? like spreadsheet statistics, calendars, to-do Head to http://sophiebiblio.tumblr.com/awesome. lists and pictures, when creating a report.

Read More!

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the

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SHARE SEEDS

.. . . . . . .

Share Seeds to Feed.your Community . . .. .. .

Lend more than just knowledge this

Earth Day with a unique idea that

combines community, food, the environment and sustainability. By starting an actual seed lending library where one can check out free seeds just like one can check out free books, your library can help patrons eat healthier, support their community through sharing and save money.

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SHARE SEEDS

Where it Started One of the first seed lending libraries blossomed at the Richmond Library in Richmond, CA, in May of 2010 with the goal to promote a culture of self-reliance, abundance and community involvement. The Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library is a free, self-sustaining urban seed project that lets patrons borrow seeds and encourages them to bring seeds back from their own harvests. As the idea of the Richmond Grows program spread to other libraries, dozens more have created their own seed lending programs and banded together to create Seed Libraries, a support organization for both sprouting and already blooming seed libraries.

How They Benefit the Community Locally grown food is rapidly gaining popularity and most of the seeds that are contributed to seed libraries are free from pesticides and other chemicals, making them more desirable to organic eaters. By using heirloom seeds (seeds from local growers) rather than seeds from commerciallygrown vegetables (which are often bred for easy shipping and uniform appearance), fruits and vegetables taste better, meaning more may be consumed, leading to a healthier diet. Plus, gardening is affordable for low-income families, meaning lower grocery bills and a better variety of nutritious foods to choose from.

How to Create Your Own Let’s say you’re interested in creating your own seed library. How do you know which seeds to offer? What’s the best organizational process for the seeds you receive?

How can you create interest in this program among your community? The Richmond Grows program offers plenty of advice on their website www.richmondgrowsseeds.org on how to get started. They recommend gathering community support and seeds to start out with through groups and businesses like local garden clubs, master gardeners, sister libraries and passionate gardening patrons.

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Next, Richmond Grows suggests choosing a popular community venue that’s widely used for your seed library and procuring one or more sturdy wooden cabinets for seed storage.

You’ll want to find cabinets with drawers around 6” in height (tall enough to accommodate the size of a seed packet) and enough space to add dividers to organize your seeds.

Actually, Richmond Grows has four cabinets: one for edible plants with seeds for fruits, vegetables and other edibles; one for ornamental plants containing non-edible flowers; a third cabinet for California native plants and ornamental plants like gourds and pumpkins; and a final cabinet for herbs. You’ll also need a few organizational systems for classifying seeds, detailing their growing specifications and checking seeds in and out. Envelopes help transport seeds from the library to a patron’s garden and marketing materials like signs and pamphlets will help you spread the word about this program.

Many libraries have seen major success with their own seed libraries, which can be found in more than 20 states. There’s even a seed library social network on www.seedlibraries.org, which can help you learn more about seed libraries from those who already have one in their library. It’s even possible for your seed library to sprout into other side projects. Take the Hudson Valley Seed Library, for example.

It actually started out as a program by then librarian Ken Greene in 2004 while working at the Gardiner Public Library in Gardiner, New York. After four years of running the program in the library, he actually turned the seed library into a mission-driven, homestead-based small business with over 300 seed varieties!

Don’t forget, Earth Day is on nd

April 22

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19

GOODREADS RULES CENSORSHIP

Are the new

oodreads

Rules Censorship?

CHANGES AFTER THE AMAZON BUYOUT It’s been several months since online commerce giant Amazon.com acquired the social media site for readers Goodreads and both parties have received plenty of criticism over the deal and its newly implemented policies. While both sites have famously helped expand reading around the world, exposed readers to new authors, helped books find a wider audience and given writers an avenue to make a better living, many loyal Goodreads fans were apprehensive that the site would lose its authentic reader contributed voice in favor of acting as another advertising space run by a corporate retailer.

Goodreads has found a huge online niche concerning all things books since its founding in 2007. Goodreads now boasts more than 20 million members who collectively add an average of more than 4 books per second to their “want to read” shelves. As Amazon’s purchase of the site became public knowledge in the spring of 2013, Amazon’s vice president of Kindle Content Russ Grandinetti was quoted as saying both Amazon and Goodreads “share a passion for reinventing reading.”

Amazon’s plan is to use the popular platform to delight readers and authors in new ways and “move faster in bringing the Goodreads experience to millions of readers

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around the web,” according to Grandinetti. However, many readers and authors reacted negatively to news of the acquisition. American writers organization, The Authors’ Guild called the acquisition a “truly devastating act of vertical integration” and expressed concern that “Amazon’s control of online bookselling [is approaching] the insurmountable.”

Goodreads users also shared plenty of negative concerns, claiming that this new acquisition would interfere with Goodread’s neutral experience or try to profit from those volunteers who contribute.

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GOODREADS RULES CENSORSHIP

On the flip side, some users were optimistic, thinking that the algorithms that suggest additional titles based on the titles you’ve read or have selected for your bookshelves will get better, social networks will get stronger and those who love reading will continue to help in the fight to get the right titles into the hands of willing readers.

“A textbook example of how modern Internet monopolies can be built.”

– Scott Turow, President of The Guild

According to the online article “Amazon’s Purchase of Goodreads Stuns Book Industry” by The Guardian, bestselling legal thriller author Scott Turow, president of The Guild, said it was “a textbook example of how modern Internet monopolies can be built. The key is to eliminate or absorb competitors before they pose a serious threat,” he stated. Turow believes that Goodreads stood a good chance at becoming a competing online book retailer and Amazon had to control the site that was quickly becoming the most visited place to discuss books and read reviews.

Reactions of the acquisition aside, new changes to Goodreads have now gone into effect. One of the biggest adjustments is the new ban on criticism that narrows in on reviews relating to an author’s behavior, rather than the published work itself. Goodreads will now remove negative reviews from a member’s profile, delete shelves and eliminate lists of books that negatively discuss an author’s behavior. This was a big change since Goodreads has been largely unmoderated, despite terms of service stating, “You agree not to post user content that [...] contains any information or content that we deem to be unlawful, harmful, abusive, racially or ethnically offensive, defamatory, infringing, invasive of personal privacy or publicity rights, harassing, humiliating to other people (publicly or otherwise), libelous, threatening, profane, or otherwise objectionable,” and reserves the rights to remove any post violating those standards.

Why do these policy changes matter so much? They are the result of a significant dynamic shift in the relationship between authors and their readers, which has two main causes: the boom in self-publishing and the rise of social networking. While many readers use Goodreads to keep

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track of their books and reading lists, authors, especially those who selfpublish, view it as one of the largest venues to promote their works and to network with others.

This is why authors sometimes clash with users and verbally lash out via comments when one of their works is given a half of a star rating or placed on a user’s “Worst Reads” list or on a bookshelf titled “Could Not Finish.” The users who are giving the author’s work a low rating could directly influence the amount of money the author makes from this work. The new policy is meant to eradicate these kinds of negative actions, but some users counter that the policy allows certain authors to keep misbehaving. Plus, banning all negative feedback from Goodreads would be of little interest to those who truly want to find out about a book, causing the site to lose its influence.

According to Alexandra Petri’s Washington Post article “Is Goodreads’ New Policy Really Censorship?” she states, “If you’re getting a service you love without paying for it, you aren’t the consumer. You’re the product. Goodreads’ reviewers seem to be learning that the hard way.” In addition, the Inc. Magazine article titled “Goodreads to Take a Page from Amazon” by Jill Krasny makes the point that the site now faces an uphill battle in keeping veteran users happy while promoting the authors who keep the company in business.

To counter this problem, Goodreads may take a page from its owner Amazon and allow users to vote others’ reviews as “helpful” or “not helpful.” Theoretically, this would allow the best comments rise to the top while giving users another way to engage. As more reviews are added, the worst reviews would drop from the site. Only time will tell how Amazon’s influence and the policy changes of Goodreads will affect the popularity of the site once referred to as “the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations.”

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BOOK - TO - MOVIE

READ IT. SEE IT. L VE IT. START A BOOK-TO-MOVIE CLUB AT YOUR LIBRARY! ENCOURAGE PATRONS TO READ A SELECTED BOOK, THEN PLAN A MOVIE EVENT AROUND THE MATCHING FILM. THIS PROGRAM WORKS WITH ANY AGE GROUP

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© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Hoot Based on Hoot by Carl Hiaasen Rated PG

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Based on The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares; Rated PG

© 2014 Universal Studios

Nanny McPhee Returns Based on the Nurse Matilda stories

by Christianna Brand; Rated PG

© 2014 Disney Enterprises, Inc.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Based on The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien; Rated PG-13

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

CHILDREN

Curious George Based on the Curious George series by H.A. Ray; Rated G

YOUNG ADULTS

© 2014 Universal Studios

AND OFFERS A CHANCE TO DISCUSS SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO.

Holes Based on Holes by Louis Sachar Rated PG

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Ender’s Game Based on Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card; Rated PG-13

Hunger Games: Catching Fire was the highest grossing film of 2013 in North America, with a total gross of over $423 million.

Cloud Atlas Based on Cloud Atlas: A Novel

by David Mitchell; Rated R

© 2014 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.

© 2013 Summit Entertainment, LLC..

Lincoln Based on Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin; Rated PG-13

Hunger Games - Catching Fire Based on Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins Rated PG-13

DID YOU KNOW?

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

© 2014 Dreamworks II Distribution LLC & Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

© 2013 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. & Screen Gems Inc. All Rights Resrved

Carrie Based on Carrie by Stephen King Rated R

© Lions Gate Films, Inc.

NEW RELEASES

ADULTS

BOOK - TO - MOVIE

Captain Phillips Based on A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALs, and Dangerous Days at Sea by Richard Phillips and Stephan Talty; Rated PG-13

THESE MOVIES WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR SPRING PROGRAMMING! For more information, programming ideas and to view additional ideas for your book-to-movie club, visit www.library@movlic.com.

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COMMUNITY

LIBR A RY SPOTL GHT WHETHER IT’S BIG OR SMALL, RURAL OR URBAN, NO TWO LIBRARIES ARE QUITE THE SAME. HERE WE INTERVIEW LIBRARY WORKERS TO FIND OUT WHAT PROGRAMS, SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES THEY ARE PROUD TO PROVIDE.

ANTELOPE LENDING LIBRARY - IOWA CITY, IA How does your library get funding?

We’ve done online fundraising through indiegogo and also received several grants for specific projects.

Cassandra Elton – Library Director Number of Cardholders? 178 Number of Books in Circulation? 1,000 What was your library’s best program or event?

We did a haunted bookmobile for Halloween that was great!

We took it to one of the local farmers’ markets and to a local elementary school after-school program. It was a hit at both sites!

Do you attract volunteers? What programs have they helped with?

Our library is run completely on volunteer power. Our core group of volunteers are library science students from the University of Iowa. We also have volunteers from our partner the Iowa Youth Writing Project, who are often English or Writing Workshop undergraduates. We also have volunteers from the neighborhoods we serve who saw us in their park and asked how they could get involved. It’s been really great to make all these connections in our community and to receive such warm support. These volunteers do everything from catalog books to check out to programming to even driving the bookmobile! We are so lucky to have such an amazing group of dedicated volunteers who really believe in our library.

What is your most requested title for checkout right now?

Titanic: The Ship of Dreams by Crosbie, Duncan. It’s a popup book and we could hardly keep it on the shelf: every time it came back it was immediately checked out again.

How does your library create community?

Our library is unique in our area in that it literally goes out into the community. We are solely a bookmobile based library, so everywhere we go our library comes with us. It’s been really fun to go out to our local parks, farmers’ markets and educational summer programs to promote literacy and learning activities in a fun, accessible way during the summer months. We do storytimes in the parks and other special activities and we’ve been able to reach out to a whole range of community members in this way. We’ve also discovered quite a few “bookmobile groupies” in our travels, people who remember bookmobiles from their childhoods and come in to tell us about them. It’s incredible the effect that these bookmobiles had on so many people, that they are remembered so specifically and so fondly so many years later.

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ENTERTAINMENT

FUN, GAMES & C NTESTS Book-to-Movie Word Search Can you find these popular book-to-movie titles within the puzzle?

Breaking Dawn

Word Search Puzzle The Great Gatsby

Beautiful Creatures

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Anna Karenina

Eat Pray Love

The Hunger Games

http://puzzlemaker.disc

Gone with the Wind

TM & © 2014 Lions Gate Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved

© 2014 Summit Entertainment, LLC.

Holes

© 2014 Walt Disney Enterprises Inc.

My Sister’s Keeper

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Atonement

B O Y D J G Z V H W E D J C V T D N

Q E O L L P A G I Y S N E P R H T W

O P A J T L F Z B C G I F E U E Q A

Y N A U N R T Q B E N W P V N H B D

P B E N T L W A O N S E U E C U G G

D O W D I I S W U X E H A A A N G N

G J A V A N F W G K C T P T L G S I

© 2014 Focus Features LLC

M Z X B K Y E U S S P H F O E E L K

W C X C Y Q H R L R D T G N W R S A

H O L E S A E X A C S I N E B G I E

© Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.

U D F J S T Y Y I K R W X M V A Q R

F L X O S K L M N Y A E W E V M T B

D G S I N O B Z S K R N A N R E W H

T V S D V F C K M U P O N T J S C E

T Y P E F V M A U O R G S A U E Y W

M L E S M I S E R A B L E S R R G B

© Lions Gate Films, Inc.

T S Y B S T A G T A E R G E H T E L

S O M E T H I N G B O R R O W E D S

©Turner/MGM

Something Borrowed

© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Les Miserables

© 2014 Universal Studios.

One Day

Did you know?

ANNAKARENINA ATONEMENT You can rent any one of © 2014 Universal Studios.

BEAUTIFULCREATURES these titles today with BREAKINGDAWN EATPRAYLOVE your Annual License from GONEWITHTHEWIND Movie Licensing USA! HOLES LESMISERABLES MYSISTERSKEEPER ONEDAY SOMETHINGBORROWED LIBRARY.MOVLIC.COM/MAGAZINE THEGREATGATSBY

© 2014 Focus Features LLC.

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10795 Watson Rd. St. Louis, MO 63127

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© Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.