YAACing
Storytime Meditation Exercises
Guerilla Storytime @ BCLA
Annotated Bibliography of Six Books Focusing on Aboriginal LanguageLearning
Summer 2014 yaacs
My Year of Crafts
newsletter of the Young Adult & Children’s Services Section of BCLA
1 Message from the Editors 1
news
YAACS Award Recipient: Judith Saltman 2 BCLC and YAACS Photobooth 3 Ukulele Storytime Workshops 5 Puppet Workshop 6 Summer Reading Club Update 7 Red Cedar Awards Update 10 Stellar Awards Update 12 Young Reader’s Choice Awards Update
contents
Message from the Chair
Summer 2014
13
columns
Kaitlyn’s Programming Corner: Pattern That Story! Expanding Your Flannel Story Collection by Kaitlyn Vardy 14 Teens Only | Teen Programs: Starting from Scratch by Amy Dawley 15 We’ll Link to That!: Where the Links At by Lindsey Krabbenhoft and Dana Horrocks 17 Who’s on the Felt Board?: What Shall We Do With the Boo Hoo Baby?, by Yesenia Ricardo and Natalie Rocheleau 20
Front cover and back image from display at stratford hall library by liza Capdecoume.
YAACS (Young Adults and Children’s Services) is a section of the British Columbia Library Association. Founded in 1980, our members include librarians, teacher-librarians and other library workers interested in services to youth in British Columbia. Our purpose is to promote the exchange of ideas among library personnel who work with Children and Young Adults. YAACING is published 4 times per year. Editors: A licia Cheng Stefania Alexandru Art Director: Liza Capdecoume If you are interested in submitting anything for publication, send it to Yaacing@gmail.com Next Deadline: September 15, 2014
features Guerilla Storytime @ BCLA by Lindsey Krabbenhoft and Dana Horrocks 24 Storytime Meditation Exercises by Christie Menzo 26 My Year of Crafts by Caroline Johnson 28 Annotated Bibliography of Six Books Focusing on Aboriginal LanguageLearning by Kaitie Warren 30 Book Review 32 Call for Submissions 33
message fr o m t he
message fr o m t he
chair
editors
Hello fellow YAACers!
Summer is just around the corner, and it marks the busiest time in public libraries. As you’re all
I am so excited to begin my term as your new
getting ready for Summer Reading Club, this
Chair! I will do my best to follow in Saara’s won-
issue’s YAACING has some new program ideas
derful footsteps. Many of you may not know
that may help with summer planning. And in
me, as I am fairly new to BCLA and new to the
case you missed the BCLA’s AGM where Judi
field of librarianship. I am currently employed
Saltman received the YAACS Award, her accep-
with the Fraser Valley Regional Libraries sys-
tance speech is published in this issue. Kaylea
tem and am starting soon with Surrey Public
Cormier, our new YAACS Chair, writes to us
Libraries as well. I am passionate about youth
about her experience at the BC Library Con-
librarianship and am keen to help promote and
ference and of the enthusiasm generated by the
enhance youth services through YAACS. I am
YAACS photobooth. We’d like to thank you all
so grateful for the support everyone has shown
for your continual support towards YAACING,
me already, and am excited to get to meet more
the YAACS Award, and other YAACS related
of you and hear your ideas during my time as
events. Lastly, don’t forget to email YAACING
Chair.
and tell us how your summer programs went. We’d love to hear from you. Happy reading!
Let the adventures begin!
Stefania Alexandru & Alicia Cheng YAACING Editors
Kaylea Prime
YAACS Chair, BCLA kayleancormier@gmail.com
Yaacing Summer 2014
yaacing@gmail.com
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news
Judith Saltman
YAACS Award Recipient
In
the third year of the YAACS Award, we honoured an individual who is known, loved, and respected by the library community, someone who exemplifies outstanding and exceptional dedication to librar y services to children, teens, and families. She has made an incomparable lasting impact on the quality of library services and literature for children and teens in British Columbia. For many years, she has taught and mentored innumerable graduate students who have gone on to be leaders and advocates in and for high quality library services for children and youth. It is with great pleasure that we presented this year’s YAACS Award recipient to Professor Judi Saltman at the British Columbia Library Conference. If you missed her acceptance speech, here it is in her own words:
“
“
Thank you to the BCLA Young Adult and Children’s Services Section and the YAACS Award Committee for honouring me with the 2014 YAACS Award recognizing exceptional service in children’s and teen librarianship in British Columbia. It is an honour to have been nominated—and I thank Janet Mumford and Philippa Brown who wrote letters of nomination and the 40 other individuals who wrote and gave their names in support.
This award created by YAACS is a strong recognition and reminder of the value of children’s and young adult services in public and school libraries—we know that the very essence and survival of our libraries is predicated on each generation of the young, and on
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those youth librarians on the front line of promotion of multiple literacies for the 21st century, access to information, and the programs and services that are significant in the creation of critical and imaginative thinkers, who will in their adult years be more likely to support libraries and participate in a democratic society. This is so meaningful to me as it comes from my peers and former students, and is a recognition of a life’s trajectory of 15 years as a children’s librarian in Toronto, Vancouver, New Westminster, and as coordinator of children’s services in West Vancouver and over 30 years as Professor at UBC’s School of Library, Archival and Information Studies, where I have taken great satisfaction in teaching over 3000 students (I counted late one night when I couldn’t sleep!), and of these, many became a generation of passionate, intelligent and committed public librarians, and more specifically, children’s and YA librarians. The award is a recognition of those who taught me to teach—the incomparable Lois Bewley and magnificent Sheila Egoff when I was a student at SLAIS—and as we are always taught by our students, the thirty years of students, now colleagues and friends. It has been a gift to educate so many young people of such intelligence and idealism, who filled classes with lively debate and creative energy. I am inspired by your careers and commitment to public libraries and youth services. Finally, I would like to thank my school’s faculty, who were supportive in my development of new courses and programs (from 5 courses when I entered SLAIS to 12 courses now in the youth area), including early literacy and new media, a Master of Arts in Children’s Literature, and were supportive in my search for adjuncts to teach those courses, and in the hiring of a second youth services faculty member, Professor Eric Meyers. When I retire in a year and a half or so, I am confident that my position will be filled with a new youth services specialist, who I can only hope will be as blessed as I have been to educate and work alongside such wonderful future librarians. Judi Saltman Professor, SLAIS, UBC Chair, Master of Arts in Children’s Literature, UBC
BCLC and YAACS Photobooth
news by Kaylea Prime YAACS Chair, BCLA
I found this year’s BCLA Conference inspiring, and I learned a lot from my colleagues who were presenting, as well as at from conversations th ion ss se took place in the discussions and outside of the sessions.
One of the main themes that came up again and again was that it’s all about working towards changing the image of the library through community engagement.
Andrea Brow
n, VPL
t to each ou nd r e w f I unity a r m m o c e th with ou t n e m i r y expe in a wa le, s m a r g peop pro inspire le to n a c t a th ay be ab e of m e w n som the ct with rs. e n n o c e e r -us the non PL man, NVD
Anna Red
Makersp ac through es, whether t echnolog creative arts wor y or kshops like craft in or paintin g or writing g embody t or building, communit his idea of and migh y empowerment t be a gr e to start at place .
I was als o powerful struck by how com and shar munication ing librarian between s can be.
nzo, VPL
Jean Allan, NVDPL
Christie Me
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This was my ce, first conferen y and I felt ver e inspired by th y unit sense of comm ns, ia between librar Rei Kitano, Kidbooks
S Past Chair
Saara Itkonen, YAAC
y ecificall p s e r o but m as inspired I w iscussion d by the rticipation and pa s I attended op a workshas the Guerillks such time (than nd Story d Lindsey!) a b lu n Dana ammer Reading Cl. the Su ssibility pane Acce
try ed to a r i p s her s in I wa put toget me for and Storyti , and ce illa Guer n workpla e more my ow love to se hops would ing works e can shar s where w best d hi like t tories an om s hear actices fr pr
each o will ins ther that p work a ire our own nd idea is a gr eat pr s. It oblemsolving t o o l, and I discove of our red that on e b as libr est resource arians s i other! s each
ildren’s Though the Cshessions and Youth ended that I att ing were all inspirthere and wonderful,many of weren’t thatope to see them, so I h t year’s more at nex ce! conferen
Kaylea Prime, YAACS Chair
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news
Ukulele Storytime Workshop
Image: YAACS Ukulele Workshop at Bob Prittie Metrotown Branch of the Burnaby Public Library UKULELES ON THE RISE
by Rachel Yaroshuk YAACS Continuing Education Coordinator Lower Mainland (with Caroline Johnson)
The Ukulele Storytime Workshop just completed its third round! Music adds pizazz to any storytime routine and children’s librarians around Metro Vancouver are learning how to jazz up their programs with kid friendly ukuleles. In the classes instructors Els Kushner and Suzy Arbor taught librarians the three simple chords that are key to playing numerous children’s songs. Suggestions were provided on how to introduce the ukulele to children and how to integrate actions into songs while playing. After completing the two-hour workshop, participants left with a tool kit of storytime songs to implement. Keep a look out for ukuleles in storytimes at your local library!
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news
Bringing
puppets e im t
t o y r li f e o A puppetry workshop st by Allison Taylor McBryde
!
yo ur
by Caroline Johnson YAACS Continuing Education Coordinator Lower Mainland (with Rachel Yaroshuk)
Puppetry Workshop
Want to add a little magic to your storytime? This two-hour workshop will go over tips and techniques to make your puppets come alive and delight your audience. Bring your favourite puppet to practice with!
When: Thursday October 2, 6:00–8:00pm Where: Tommy Douglas Branch, Burnaby Public Library Email to register: caroline.johnson@shaw.ca Cost: $20
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news
Summer Reading Club
by Cynthia Ford, BC Summer Reading Club Coordinator
Up d a t e
Highlights from BCLA Conference What a wonderful time we had at the BCLA Conference this year: amazing speakers, wonderful sessions, and, of course, the SRC booth at the Trade Show! Andrea Brown and Randi Robin got right into the spirit of this year’s SRC theme of Funny Business! They donned Groucho Marxstyle glasses to help set up the SRC booth in the lobby of the Renaissance Harbourside Hotel. Granted, they did get a few second looks, especially when they activated their mechanical eyebrows!
Something Funny is Going on Here: Randi Robin (SRC Past Chair) and Andrea Brown (SRC 2014 Chair) in disguise!
The 2014 SRC poster made its first live appearance of the year at the BCLA Conference. People commented on how exciting and dynamic the poster was and how appealing it will be to young patrons. Our amazing artist, Jeremy Tankard, chose to explore the theme of Funny Business by asking the timeless question: “Why did the chicken cross the road?” The result is an engaging Chicken, whose roadcrossing motivation is the humourfilled possibilities of a joke book (easily acquired by joining the Summer Reading Club, of course!). Our Chicken resides in a delightfully zany cartoonworld of appealing animals who improbably drive, ride, and fly a variety of vehicles.
Yaacing Summer 2014
Why did the Chicken Puppet attend the BCLA Conference? To be prized, of course!
SRC 2014 Poster and Artist (We confess! We added the moustache!)
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Conference attendees were thrilled by the opportunity to meet Jeremy Tankard—live and in-person—and receive a signed poster! And if that wasn’t fun enough, along with his signature, Jeremy also included a small drawing on each poster! (If you weren’t at Conference, have no fear, there will be chances to win a signed poster throughout the summer—watch for further details!) SRC 2014 artist, Authorstrator, Jeremy Tankard (see—no moustache!) Beverley Rintoul, 2014 SRC Community Story Award Winner, with Andrea Brown, 2014 SRC Chair
If you happened by the SRC booth or attended our Conference session, SRC: Inviting Accessibility, you may have had the pleasure of saying hello to the 2014 SRC Community Story Award Winner, Beverley Rintoul. Beverley is from Rossland Public Library and as the first-ever winner of the SRC Community story Award, she attended this year’s conference as a guest of rBC. the judges agreed that Beverley’s story perfectly captured not only the deep impact of the srC program, but also the commitment and care that library workers bring to their communities. Beverley was formally presented with the SRC Community Story Award by SRC Chair, Andrea Brown, at BCLA’s AGM on May 2, 2014 in Vancouver. She was also on-hand, along with BCLA Executive Director, Annette DeFaveri, and SRC Chair, Andrea Brown, to help BCLA accept RBC’s generous donation to the BC Summer Reading Club.
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BCLA, in partnership with RBC, introduced the SRC Community Story Award at the 2013 Conference in order to recognize and honour an individual whose story best demonstrates the impact of the SRC within their community. As the summer unfolds, be sure to share your stories of how the SRC impacts your community by emailing them to bcsrc@ bclibrary.ca with the subject line: SRC Community Story Award. More details are available on the SRC website.
Nusha Jalili*, Annette DeFaveri, Andrea Brown, Beverley Rintoul, Erna Tahir*, Laeya Tsirogiannis (RBC Branch Manager), Katherine Kim* (*RBC staff)
SRC Materials By now you will have received your Core Materials packages and, if you ordered them, your t-shirts and/or tattoos. This year’s interactive reading record offers young readers, artists and joke-writers (!) the opportunity to decide not only why the chicken crossed the road, but why the rabbit and the monkey and the dog and the tiger did, too! Children can write or draw their “answers” in the white circle on each panel, ultimately creating their very own joke book. In order to offer increased flexibility for children and libraries, this year’s Reading Log Panel features blank rectangles instead of author/title lines. Book titles may be listed, reading-time may be recorded, bar graphs may be coloured…options abound! The Sticker Panel features seven Tankard-characters, all in disguise! The matching sticker may be placed on top of each character to “reveal” their true identity or, for some extra silliness, mixed and matched! We’ve added some additional sticker sheets to each package to ensure that you’ll easily be able to accommodate summer visitors/travellers without jeopardizing your sticker supply! You might have noticed a few more posters in your package than usual. In keeping with our efforts to increase accessibility, we encourage you to give posters to local community centres, businesses (e.g. grocery stores, local newspapers), an RBC branch, the fire station, and of course, to give out as prizes, if you wish. Many thanks to our incredible content coordinators, and their staff: Fatima Ferreira (GVPL), Susan McCowan (TNRD), Kate Adams (RPL), Victor Or (SPL), Dana Ionson (FVRL) and, of course, our SRC Chair, Andrea Brown (VPL). They worked incredibly hard to create the wonderful booklists, activities, and program ideas available on the librarians’ website. And a special thanks to Neil Firkins, our web guy, for making all it accessible at http://kidssrc.bclibrary.ca/. Just a reminder that SRC is on Twitter (@BC_SRC)! We are more than happy to tweet/retweet your SRCrelated activities and events. We’ll also be posting photos and SRC news over at the Commons in the SRC Group. Let the summer fun begin!
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Red Cedar Awards
news
Up d a t e
by Noreen Ma, Secretary Young Readers’ Choice Awards Society of BC
Red Cedar Book Awards 2014
May 6, 2014 Vancouver, BC – Thousands of BC youth in Grades 4 to 7 across the province have chosen the 2014 Red Cedar Book Award winners after months of cracking spines and flipping pages in a “read-athon extraordinaire” of young adult literature. Students read at least 5 of the 12 to 15 shortlisted titles in each category to be eligible to vote by the deadline. The Young Readers’ Choice Awards Society of BC founded and administers this award to promote quality Canadian children’s literature, literacy, and to improve awareness of our nation’s literary talents. Now, after heated debate in classrooms, living rooms, libraries, bookstores and online forums from Victoria to Prince Rupert and the Queen Charlottes to Revelstoke, the zealous readers have spoken: Red Cedar Fiction Award Winner: Ungifted by Gordon Korman (Scholastic, 2012) Red Cedar Information Award Winner: The World in Your Lunchbox: The Wacky History and Weird Science of Everyday Foods by Claire Eamer (Annick, 2012) Thanks to everyone that participated this year – we appreciate the dedication of all the teachers, teacher-librarians, public librarians and especially the kids that continue to read and to vote! If you’re looking for some reading over the summer, check out next season’s nominees for the Red Cedar Book Awards.
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Red Cedar Book Award Fiction Nominees 2014/2015 Ultra by David Carroll The Metro Dogs of Moscow by Rachelle Delaney Home Ice Advantage by Tom Earle Poser by Alison Hughes The Spotted Dog Last Seen by Jessica Scott Kerrin September 17 by Amanda West Lewis The Hidden Agenda of Sigrid Sugden by Jill MacLean Athlete vs. Mathlete by W.C. Mack Pieces of the Past (Dear Canada series) by Carol Matas Amelia and Me by Heather Stemp Curse of the Dream Witch by Allan Stratton Enigma (Camp X series) by Eric Walters
Red Cedar Book Award— Information Book Nominees 2014/2015 Before the World was Ready: Stories of Daring Genius in Science by Claire Eamer; illustrated by Sa Boothroyd Bones Never Lie: How Forensics Helps Solve History’s Mysteries by Elizabeth MacLeod Cat Champions: Caring for Our Feline Friends by Rob Laidlaw Courageous Women Rebels (Women’s Hall of Fame series) by Joy Crysdale
Yaacing Summer 2014
Down to Earth: How Kids Help Feed the World by Nikki Tate
In Deep with the Octopus by Norma Dixon
Follow Your Money: Who Gets It, Who Spends It, Where Does It Go? by Kevin Sylvester & Michael Hlinka
Legends, Icons & Rebels: Music that Changed the World by Robbie Robertson, Jim Guerinot, Sebastian Robertson & Jared Levine
Great Bear Sea: Exploring the Marine Life of a Pacific Paradise by Ian McAllister & Nicholas Read Homophobia: Deal with It and Turn Prejudice into Pride by Steven Solomon; illustrated by Nick Johnson
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No Borders: Kigliqangittuq by Darla Evyagotailak & Mindy Willett; photography by Tessa Macintosh The Last Train: a Holocaust Story by Rona Arato
news
Stellar Awards Up d a t e
by Katherine Parker, Chair Stellar Award
The Young Reader’s Choice Award (YRCA) Committee is very pleased to announce the launch of the new Stellar Award website. This website has been the result of the hard work of volunteers, and couldn’t have been accomplished without the talents and energy of Neil Firkins, of
Voting is open from May 1 to July 31, and teens can vote by sending an email with their selection to redcedaraward@gmail.com. Teens are also invited to post reviews of this year’s nominated titles by registering at the website. Every two weeks a reviewer will be selected to be a lucky recipient of a Stellar-nominated book! To post reviews of this season’s nominees, teens need to register with a user name and email address. They can then click on a book in the current season and submit a review. The content of reviews will be read for approval prior to posting, and we reserve the right to reject reviews at our discretion.
BC Libraries Cooperative. A hearty thank you goes out to all volunteers on a job well done. The old website will be closed by the end of May, 2014.
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In order to vote, teens must have read at least five of the nominated books. Teens must be between the ages of 13 (by January 1, 2014) and 19. Note that this criteria is in place because many of the nominated titles deal with themes or issues that are not appropriate for a younger audience. The winner will be announced on August 5, 2014. Keep your eyes on the website on September 8 when next season’s nominated titles are revealed; groups of teens around BC have been diligently selecting the nominees for 2014/2015.
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news
Young Reader’s Choice Award Up d a t e
by Noreen Ma, BC Representative PNLA YRCA
The Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young Reader’s Choice Award is the oldest children’s choice award in the U.S. and Canada. The award was established in 1940 by a Seattle bookseller, the late Harry Hartman, who believed every student should have an opportunity to select a book that gives him or her pleasure. The provinces and states included in the Pacific Northwest are Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, and Washington. The 2014 Young Reader’s Choice Award Winners Junior Division: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney Middle Division: The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan Senior Division: Divergent by Veronica Roth The next slate for the 2015 Young Reader’s Choice Award Nominees are as follows: Junior Division (Grades 4–6): Wonder by R.J. Palacio Ungifted by Gordon Korman The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate Chomp by Carl Hiaasen
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Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin Who Could That Be at This Hour? by Lemony Snicket Fairest of All by Sarah Mlynowski Intermediate Division (Grades 7–9): Drama by Raina Telgemeier The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen by Susin Nielsen-Fernlund Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo Son by Lois Lowry Liar and Spy by Rebecca Stead Bomb: The Race to Build-and-Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin Cinder by Marissa Meyer The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater Senior (Grades 10–12): The Fault in Our Stars by John Green Dodger by Terry Pratchett Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore Seraphina by Rachel Hartman The Selection by Kiera Cass Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers Annual voting takes place March 15 through April 15. Students must have read or listened to at least two of the nominated titles in order to vote. Only those in Grades 4 through 12 in the Pacific Northwest are eligible to vote. Let the reading begin!
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Kaitlyn’s Programming Corner
Pattern That Story! e xpa n d i n g y o u r f l a n n e l story collection
by Kaitlyn Vardy
I’m
excited to share with you a fun and easy storytelling trick that I’ve implemented into my storytimes. This trick is the art of patterning stories. Some of you may already be aware of this storytelling technique;
a Halloween storytime, an enormous Christmas tree for a Christmas storytime, or my personal favourite, an enormous sea weed to match an under the sea storytime. The possibilities are endless, and this technique really allows your creative juices to flow. Dog’s Colorful Day by Emma Dodd is a really good book to turn into a flannel story, and it’s also another good example for pattering stories, as the “Dog” can be changed to a cat, dinosaur, bear, etc. Here is an example of two flannel pieces I made, one being the Dog for Dog’s Colorful Day, as well as a dinosaur for my patterned and personalized Dinosaurs Colourful Day. I told Dinosaurs Colourful Day for my dinosaurthemed storytime. Here are a few other titles that work well for story patterning: Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman The character searching for their mother in this story could shift from being a bird to a turtle, dinosaur, snake, alligator, etc. Anything that hatches out of an egg would work. Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin Jr. A safari-themed storytime could replace the brown bear and his friends with a lion, zebra, giraffe, hippo, elephant, snake, etc. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen
however before I became a Children’s Librarian I had never really thought of such a brilliant idea until my co-worker shared with me how she turns one story into many. This technique is also very handy when expanding your flannel story collection. Patterning a story is essentially taking the main theme and storyline from an original story and changing the characters or a specific element of the story to match your storytime theme. For example, in the fairy tale, The Enormous Turnip, the “Turnip” is the element that can be interchanged and adapted to fit another storytime theme. The turnip can become an enormous pumpkin to match Yaacing Summer 2014
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I mainly use this book for an action/standing song. Change out the “bear” to go on a witch, wolf, dinosaur, etc. hunt. Make sure to ask the kids what they feel like hunting for! (The funniest suggestion I’ve received is to go on a pig hunt!) Let me know what stories you’ve patterned or want to pattern at kvardy@lib.pg.bc.ca. Happy storytelling! Kaitlyn Vardy is the Children’s Librarian at the Prince George Public Library.
teens only
Teen Programs S t a r t i n g f r o m Sc r a t c h
by Amy Dawley
I’d bet that many of you would agree that changes are afoot in libraries all across the province, and the Prince George Public Library is no exception! The latest expansion in teen services has been to concentrate on offering a regular suite of teen programs at our other branch location. This “starting from scratch” situation has given me the opportunity to re-live some of my early days as a teen librarian when I was building teen programs at the main branch from the ground up. What I’d like to share in this issue is some strategies I’ve used to launch teen programming at a new location, assuming that you’re starting with zero programs for teens and/or relatively few teens visiting the library or staying for any length of time other than studying during exam periods. Let’s get started!
Step 1: Identify your goals Why are you here? Why do you want teens in the library? What do you envision when you think of teens being in the library? What kinds of programs do you want to be known for? What is missing for the teens in your community? This is important because it will colour everything from here on in: if you want teens in your library in quiet writing workshops or book discussion groups, what you deliver will be much different than another library whose community is lacking in social opportunities for teens. My goals are always some variation on the following three core ideas: 1.
Promote the library as a community space where like-minded teens can socialize in a safe, welcoming environment
2.
To create excitement about reading and learning, and to promote the library’s collection and services
3.
Attract new and returning users to the library
Step 2: Talk to teens and get their ideas and feedback Teen consultation is key to building a successful program—I always start the conversation with a statement like, “The sky’s the limit!” and let their imaginations run wild. What could the library be for teens? What could we do? Once you gather that precious feedback, give them details about how you will try to make their dreams a reality (within your limited means). Another important aspect is to deliver on your promises in a timely manner and be sure to let them know if you can’t make it happen and why. If needed, go back to step one to adjust your own goals based on the needs and wants of the demographic you’re serving.
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Talking to teens is also important because it will help you identify the teen interest sub-groups in your community. Identifying these groups will give you a solid place to start to ensure that the programs you are creating will be of interest to at least somebody. Some ways to identify interest sub-groups include a good old-fashioned suggestion box (ours lives in the teen section on a shelf), talking to teens in person, visiting schools, and using social media and online surveys. In the early days of teen programs, I identified my sub-groups as the anime and manga enthusiasts, creative writers, leadership/volunteers, crafters, and gamers.
Step 3: Host a “tester program” These are “one offs” that require very little work on your part but are designed to get those teens in the door so you can ask them what they want in person. Be armed with surveys (and food) to get their feedback. As in step 2, tell them the sky’s the limit. Here are examples of my tester programs from the early days: •
“Anime Manga Mania” — Otakus for Life, and anime and manga club for teen enthusiasts
•
“Game On” — regular table top and video gaming programs
•
“Ductigami” and “Gocks” — regular craft programs
•
“Teen Writers Circle” — for the creative writing crowd
•
Youth Advisory Board info session — became a regular monthly YAB meeting. The YAB now meets twice a month and has a membership of 25 teens representing high schools from across the city. The YAB did exist with a small, core group of teens when I came on board and I worked with the youth to attract more members and to expand what they did from year to year.
Step 4: Be stubborn If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! When I started out, I hosted a ton of programs that had 0 to 5 attendees and now some of those same programs have blossomed to 15 to 30 participants depending on the program. Even if you get zero turn-out at first, buckle down and keep delivering those programs
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until word gets out and teens (and the people who love them) catch on. The trick is to be consistent with times and days for at least 3 months before you change them, unless there’s a very solid reason why a program time/day must change. And be sure to advertise, advertise, advertise!
Step 5: Let go I would argue that this is the most important step in creating lasting and meaningful teen programming. Once you get those teens in the door, let them take ownership of the program. Let them name the gamer group, craft club, or writing group. Let them come up with a logo or look for posters, if possible. Ask them what events they’d like to do next time. Ask them what food they want to eat and what day works for them. Let them do all the brainstorming so you don’t have to. All you have to do is make their ideas a reality.
Step 6: Evaluate Program evaluation is key to making sure that the programs and services you’re offering are wanted, needed, effective, and relevant. A recent example from PGPL is that one of our programs, the anime/ manga club, took a complete dive in interest and attendance numbers. After evaluating and talking with our teens, we made the decision to stop delivering this program and instead are turning our attention to other opportunities. Instead of wondering why they aren’t coming, we acknowledged that this program had its time and that time has now passed. It’s okay to let it go and move on. I am very much looking forward to creating a suite of teen programs especially tailored to the teens who access library services in our smaller branch here at PGPL. Even though these principles are basic, I will be turning to this model to create, plan, and deliver a shiny new set of teen programs at the branch. I’ll let you know how it goes! Are you considering starting up a new program for teens at your library? I’d love to hear about it. Please drop me a line if you have any questions or just want to share! You can reach me via phone at 250-5639251 ext. 158 or via email at adawley@lib.pg.bc.ca. Amy Dawley is the Teen Librarian and Acting Public Service Manager at the Prince George Public Library.
We’ll link to that By Lindsey Krabbenhoft and Dana Horrocks
Awesome People Doing Awesome Things
We’ll Link to That! In this column, Jbrary creators Dana and Lindsey continue to share their favourite internet finds of the season. Learn about the amazing things Children and Teen Librarians are doing across the continent!
We love discovering awesome storytimers and love it even more when we find out we’re practically neighbours. Leah, a Children’s and Family Literacy Librarian from Victoria, BC is both of these and therefore our Storytimer of the Season! You can check her out her blog Time for Storytime, or peruse her amazing Pinterest Boards like the one she created for our Summer Reading Club theme Funny Business. We love a good joke but there ain’t nothing funny about solid professional development and these last couple of months have definitely delivered. If you have not yet read Amy’s piece on Professional Development in Youth Services we’ll wait. She follows this rallying cry with a presentation on Effective Advocacy for Youth Services which she delivered at PLA 2014. When it comes to advocating for what we do one of the best tools is information. The folks at CLEL can always be counted on
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for great information like this series of posts on Developmental Milestones. It never hurts to have articles like this one on the benefits of investing in preschool and NPR’s look at what constitutes “high-quality” preschool when talking to caregivers or library administration. Next up some quick and very cool early literacy goings on: Marge and Brooke talk about their Early Literacy Area and how it evolved here and here. We love how Ingrid posts early literacy tips behind her desk like “You don’t have to finish every book, you know.” And finally an early literacy section wouldn’t be complete without Lisa’s too-cute-for-words Early Literacy Kits she put together for families to take home. For a slightly older crowd Sara Bryce provides her usual dose of humour and smarts in this piece on differentiated programming (aka literacy for all) and Rebecca talks about the neato storytelling launchpad she
discovered in Storybird. Getting into some high tech talk we begin with LittleeLit’s article on Children’s Librarians as Digital Media Mentors. Lindsey and Ehlam share some of their research for your viewing pleasure in their look at App Collection Development in Public Libraries. Before starting to build an app collection be sure to consult LittleeLit’s ECRR App List and Claudia’s newest list of favourites. Already got a rocking digital collection but wondering how to market it? Look no further than ALSC’s blog post on the topic! We’ll leave you with a thinker, an article on how digital reading might better serve disadvantaged young ones. Onto the last area of all things professional development: books, books the wonderful things! Shaking things up when it comes to their collections Storytime Katie shared an update on her Picture Book City and Libraryland Lisa talked about revamping her library’s Parent-
We’ll Link to That!
Teacher collection. The success of a collection is often dependant on its access and there is a great post on the ALSC blog about adapting books for kids with disabilities. We love Beth’s Pop Culture reader’s advisory posts in which she takes The Big Bang Theory (for example) and then suggests lots of spinoff reads. For kids who are just a little too young for all the cool series Jean Little Library has put together a great list of readalikes. One of our new favourite places to hear about picture books that really work is Rebecca’s Reading Together posts which will melt your heart because she reviews them with her three-year-old daughter. Programming Resources First we’ll start by highlighting programming resources for the early years. Claudia at Never Shushed amazed us with two preschool storytimes about rabbits and moustaches that are jam packed with letter awareness activities, bubbles, creative craft projects, and a hysterical app. Elizabeth at Born Librarian rewrote her storytime rules into positive guidelines. We also loved this Boats Storytime by Anne’s Library Life because it perfectly models how an iPad can be one of many tools in your storytime toolbox. A new-to-us blog, Colored Construction Paper
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Scissors and Glue, wrote a perfect storytime to share on Earth Day about recycling. Want more science storytimes? Check out this series of STEAM storytimes called Wonderworks by Cultivate Wonder. And the award for cutest felt stories ever goes to the ladies at Library Village because every single one of them is amazing! We’re always looking for ways to incorporate early literacy tips for caregivers in storytime, so we were thrilled to find Cen of Little eLit singing the Talk Sing Read Write Play Song. Another person who reached out to daycare providers and caregivers is Marge from Tiny Tips for Library Fun who hosted an amazing book-based program encouraging creativity and innovation. At Jbrary we’ve been talking about planning multilingual storytimes and we loved this rhyme from the Philippines shared by Storytime Stuff that includes sign language. Even better is this Spanish/English storytime by The Loudest Librarian with both books and songs in both languages. And we are constantly wowed by Steve from Beyond the Book Storytimes who finds new and engaging ways to tell stories such as The Little Red Hen, Three Ways. To round out the storytime sphere, Katie at Storytime Secrets wrote up 10 Creative Ways to Share Nursery Rhymes at Storytime and shared how to use recorded
music in storytime. Not sure what to read at your next storytime? Lots of us have recommendations! Abby the Librarian shared her 5th post in the series What To Read at Babytime. We shared our favourite storytime picture books from 2013 which was inspired by Falling Flannelboards’ Perfect for Storytime series. If you’re looking for ways to reach preschool families outside of storytime, we recommend checking out Storytime Katie’s STEAM series called Explore the World starting with magnets. Or check out Miss Meg’s totally rockin’ Pete the Cat Party! Abby the Librarian is also on the STEAM train with her Preschool Lab series, such as the one she did on growing things. Lastly, Storytime Secrets is collecting all sorts of science and math ideas for you to try out with the young ones such as this Preschool Storytime Starter on Light and Electricity. On to school age programming resources! If you’re doing school age programming and you want to share it with others, please check out Thrive Thursday to participate in a weekly link round up. If you’re looking for research to support your afterschool programs, please read this report by the Afterschool Alliance. On the blog front, there were lots of ideas for springtime programs.
We’ll Link to That!
Head outside and paint a pair of shoes as Rebecca models with her daughter on Sturdy for Common Things. Angie at Fat Girl Reading shared a character scavenger hunt and a poet-tree program for all the kids dropping by on spring break. Looking to go stealth? Head over to Bryce Don’t Play and check out her Spring Break Selfies. Anne at So Tomorrow shared the Dr. Seuss Celebration she hosted in March which includes a “roll a Lorax” game and a “One Fish, Two Fish” fishing game (and if you want something for the little ones, try this Rhyming Storytime by Fairy Twins Book Time). And the STEAM Queen, Amy from The Show Me Librarian, showed us how to combine art and money in one program. One of our favourites was this Peep-A-Palooza! by Getting Giggles featuring peep dioramas made by kids of all ages. Not surprisingly, National Poetry Month was well promoted at libraries this year! Mel encouraged kids and families to write their own poem with an amazing display. Amy shared two easy programs to pull off in a dash— blackout poems and book spine poetry. Over on Hushlander you can find this 1st Grade Storytime promoting National Poetry Month, while Intentional Storytime had her mother-daughter book club write false apologies in the form of poems. In
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time for Easter Abby the Librarian explains how to hold a Poetry Egg Hunt. Folks are already looking ahead to the summer! Claudia at Never Hushed breaks down how to do a summer reading outreach visit, while Marge at Tiny Tips for Library Fun celebrates the end of weekly prizes during SRP. Lastly, we’d like to highlight some of our favourite school-age programs we spotted this season. Lisa at Thrive After Three wrote about a 4-week Geronimo Stilton program that gets kids playing, creating, and reading! Another book-based program comes from Librarian Out Loud who shared her Fancy Nancy program for her K–2 book club. Laura at Literacious also drew on a popular character and threw a Fly Guy Party. We think Life Size Chutes and Ladders by Anna at Future Librarian Superhero would be an excellent way to host an intergenerational program. And we love how Piper Loves the Library got her local Starbucks to donate materials for these Reading Super Stars wrist cuffs. On the tech front, Storytiming tells you why you shouldn’t be afraid to learn how to code and gives you the tools to run a coding program. To wrap up, Lisa at Libraryland shared her Kindergarten Literacy Night featuring a very familiar pigeon!
In Teen Land, libraries across the continent participated in Rock the Drop in honour of Support Teen Literature Day. Some lucky teens got to attend a life size Angry Birds program run by Allison’s Library. Storytime Katie wrote a recap of her presentation at PLA that encourages teen librarians to go Beyond Duct Tape Wallets. Another way to connect with teens—host a Super Smash Brothers Tournament like Literary Commentary. We all know teens love food, so Librarian Out Loud put a twist on her manga club and developed a Teen Anime Cafe. Looking ahead to summer, there are so many great passive programs for teens such as a Post-It Note Art Show and a Periodic Table Word Generator thanks to From the Liberry Of… We think it’s safe to say that there has been no shortage of passion, dedication, and innovation in children’s and teen programming these past few months! Thank you so much to everyone for blogging about these wonderful programs! Have you seen something on the internet that knocked your socks off? Give us a shout at jbrary@gmail. com. Dana Horrocks and Lindsey Krabbenhoft are a triple threat duo working as On Call Children’s Librarians at West Vancouver Memorial Library, the Vancouver Public Library, and Surrey Libraries.
Who’s on the Felt Board
What Shall We Do W i t h t h e B o o H o o B aby ?
Adapted by Yesenia Ricardo and Natalie Rocheleau
Bilingual Flannel Story adapted by Yesenia Ricardo and Natalie Rocheleau. Based on the book ¿Qué Vamos a Hacer con el Bebé Ñeñé? / What Shall We Do with the Boo Hoo Baby? by Cressida Cowell and Ingrid Godon. What Shall We Do with the Boo Hoo Baby? is a very simple story appropriate for toddlers and/or preschool-age children that contains much repetition, thus, it works perfectly for a bilingual storytime. The repetitive structure allows the children to anticipate what comes next and focus on the new vocabulary they are learning. The story also contains loud animal noises and crying sounds from the baby, which will help capture and hold their interest while providing a means of introducing Spanish vocabulary. Conveniently, this book is published in 21 languages, which allows you to modify it according to your library users’ predominant language. The purpose of adapting What Shall We Do with the Boo Hoo Baby? into a bilingual Spanish–En-
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glish felt story was to celebrate the National Hispanic Heritage Month. The commemoration takes place on a yearly basis (September 15 to October 15) to celebrate the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. September 15 is the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Mexico’s is September 16 and Chile’s, September 18. Also, Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, which is October 12, falls within this 30-day period. The observation started in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson and was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15 and ending on October 15. It was enacted into law on August 17, 1988 (Library of Congress). Yesenia Ricardo is a recent MLIS graduate who works as an Auxiliary Librarian at Surrey Libraries. Natalie Rocheleau is a graduate of the dual MLIS/MAS program at SLAIS.
Who’s on the Felt Board
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Who’s on the Felt Board
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Who’s on the Felt Board
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a t b c lc 20 1 4 By Lindsey Krabbenhoft and Dana Horrocks
storytime Guerilla Storytime is an idea that originated in the United States from a group of librarians who founded the site Storytime Underground. At its most basic a Guerilla Storytime is an openmic style session in which facilitators pose challenging questions relating to storytime and the everyday work children’s librarians undertake. Participants share things like their favourite fingerplay, their best song to get the wiggles out, or how they deal with chatty parents. It is a way for library staff serving children and families to come together to share experiences, techniques, and tools. It is part training—we can learn from each other because everyone has
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expertise to share. It’s also part advocacy— we do way more than just read to kids and we want non-YS folks to know it! At its best a Guerilla Storytime is a room full of youth service librarians celebrating the work they do, learning hard skills, and developing new professional strategies.
Fruit Salad Watermelon, watermelon, (big circle with hands) Pa-pa-ya, pa-pa-ya, (chop air in front of body on each syllable) Ba-a-a-a-nana, ba-a-a-a-nana, (swing arms down like rocking a baby) Fruuuuit salad, fruuuuit salad! (dance it out!) You are my little panda bear, little panda bear,
Here are some of our favourite songs, rhymes, and early literacy tips people shared at our session. If you want a full recap, please head over to our Guerilla Storytime post.
And all the funny things you do, I love you, yes I do, You are my little panda bear, panda bears are rare, Yes it’s true, there’s only a few,
Songs and Rhymes
And there’s no other one like you,
Gilly Gilly Gilly Good Morning
I love you, yes I do.
Gilly gilly gilly good morning, good morning, good morning
Early Literacy Tips
Gilly gilly gilly good morning, good morning to you.
• Turn baby around to face you so baby can watch your lips move
Mini mack mini mack mini mini mini mack Mini mack mini mack mini morning
• Run finger along text while you read
Mini mack mini mack mini mini mini mack
• Introduce upper case AND lower case letters
Mini mack mini mack mini morning.
• Importance of having books around for babies to explore and learn how they function and that they are to be enjoyed
Gilly gilly gilly good morning, good morning, good morning Gilly gilly gilly good morning, good morning to you.
• Emphasize the importance of crafts to help develop fine motor skills which in turn contribute to the ability to write later on
Well Hello Everybody, Can You… Well hello everybody can you touch your nose, touch your nose, touch your nose? Well hello everybody can you touch your nose, touch your nose? Well hello everybody can you touch your toes, touch your toes, touch your toes? Well hello everybody can you touch your toes, touch your toes? (Pat your head, rub your tummy…)
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I love you, yes I do,
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• Have caregivers trace letters on children’s hands and vice versa • Play sound games: put up felt pieces on a felt board and have kids help you decide which pictures contain a certain sound. I did this for the “V” sound and put up pictures of a vehicle, vase, violin, glove, dove, etc. Dana Horrocks and Lindsey Krabbenhoft are a triple threat duo working as On Call Children’s Librarians at West Vancouver Memorial Library, the Vancouver Public Library, and Surrey Libraries.
Thoughts on Storytime, Meditation, and Self-Regulation By Christie Menzo
When chatting with fellow children’s librarians from Newfoundland to Vancouver, I’m always thrilled to learn about successful storytimes and youth programs. In fact, I’m lucky to work in a profession where so many of my colleagues go above and beyond in their efforts to inspire youth and their parents to partake in the joys of literacy-based activities. Even with all our best efforts, however, storytimes can sometimes include unforeseen difficulties. Indeed, I’m sure many of us can think back to a group storytime experience, past or present, which included hiccups and distractions beyond our control or know-how. What do we do? Better yet, how can we come to proactively meet these storytime challenges?
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W
hile there is no one-size-fits-all approach to program challenges, various practitioners, researchers, students, and ECE professionals have shared their solutions to disruptions, distractions, and other ad-hoc concerns during storytime. Some recommendations have come in the form of journal articles and book publications on the topic of handling difficult behaviour, such as Carrie Rogers-Whitehead and Jennifer Fay’s helpful article “Managing Children’s Behaviour in Storytime.” Many more have come in the form of blogs, websites, and other informal articles posted by children’s librarians online. Suggestions have ranged from asking questions during storytime to keep children’s attention, to integrating movement activities to help kids release energy, and all have been helpful at one time or another. To our ever-expanding storytime toolkit I would like to add another little secret that I have found particularly useful: meditation. For adults, meditation is often a vehicle for transcendence, relaxation, or unwinding after a particularly stressful day. However, for children, meditation can function as a productive way to refocus or regain control over emotions and attention. It doesn’t matter if you are an expert yogi or regular practitioner of meditation; even the simplest of exercises can effectively engage children in storytimes and help to level out unmanageable shifts in energy. Here are two examples that I’ve found worked well: 1.
Bees in a Bee Hive: This activity revolves around the idea of the storytime group becoming a group of buzzing bees in a hive. I have the kids place their hands on their heads, close their eyes, and imagine that they are part of a honey bee hive together. I start making the “bee sound”—buzzzzz— and tell the kids to join in. As we continue, I lead the kids in getting louder or quieter.
2.
The Wavy Sea: Similar to the bee exercise, this activity encourages the kids to imagine that they are waves on an ocean. We place our hands on our knees, rock side to side, and say together “whooshh” “whooshh.” If possible, I have the group close their eyes as we rock.
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Benefits: In addition to simply calming the group down and recapturing attention, these simple meditation exercises complement a growing focus on social/ emotional competencies including self-awareness and self-regulation. Self-regulation is the ability for children to manage their emotions, and maintain focus and attention, while self-awareness is the child’s cognition of their feelings and how to manage them. Both skills are cornerstones of early childhood development, and the incorporation of easy, accessible meditation activities in storytimes can arguably assist in developing the self-awareness and self-regulation necessary for school and life-success. At the very least, however, I have these found meditation exercises in storytimes to be a fun, easy, and beneficial way to regain children’s attention and refocus attention when energy levels have become high or unmanageable. Enjoy! Some excellent texts for additional yoga/meditation ideas for storytime:
Little Yoga: A Toddler’s First Book of Yoga by Rebecca Whitford
You are a Lion! And Other Fun Yoga Poses by Taeeun Yoo Christie Menzo is a Children’s Librarian at Vancouver Public Library.
My Year of 52 Weeks of Creative Middle-Years Programming at the Cloverdale Library By Caroline Johnson
In
August of 2012, I was hired to do the Terrific Tuesdays program at the Cloverdale Library in Surrey. Cloverdale and Clayton Heights are the fastest growing area of Surrey, and the library created this special weekly program for the middle years children of the area. The Terrific Tuesday program parameters were pretty loose—crafts, activities, games, whatever would be fun for the kids and encourage creativity and social development. This was quite the creative challenge, and of course, my budget was quite limited. What was a crafty, resourceful librarian to do?
At first I did tried and true creative programs that had worked in previous programs, and then after a few months, I sat down and brainstormed a dozen crafts that could be made of found objects, recycled goods, or office supplies. And of course, I consulted the crafts section of the Children’s Collection! While I already knew that kids loved to create, I also discovered that kids especially love to make something that they can then interact with. The paper airplane contest, the hexaflexes and the Star Wars Origami were all very popular. Over time, as more kids started coming and got to know one another, I started introducing board games and Lego contests once a month (the library found money for Lego and a board games collection). The Lego contests and the science programs were the most popular, closely followed by the window painting program. The kids were so proud to show their parents their flower or butterfly as they came in and out of the library! When I introduced the sharpie batik, one of the moms said that I had raised the bar for the program. So for anyone looking for ideas for a creative program, here are some that worked for me. Enjoy!
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Treasure boxes
Vampire Lollipops
Create, Update, Remake
Window painting (spring flowers)
Candy Cane Reindeer
by Canadian Living
Paper crafts: 12
Creative Recycling
3D Snowflakes
by Oliver Samonte
Basket Weaving
Martha Stewart Magazine - Kids
Bookmarks
Rock Your Room by Laura Torres
Book-eating Monsters
The Crafts:
Flipbooks
Standbys: 6
Gliders
Board games
Hexaflexes
Scrabble Madness
Name Bugs
Monopoly Madness
Paper Beads
Bingo
Paper Airplane Contest
Lego Contest
Polyhedrons
Lego Creationary
Origami: (water bomb, crane, Yoda, Christmas trees, boats)
Crafts: 16
Science projects: 7
Apple Suncatchers
Crystal Snowflakes
Binderclip Monsters
Soap-making
CD Suncatchers
Liquid Magnets
Clothespin Butterflies Paper Mache Lanterns Painted Rocks (pencil crayons) Paperclip Art Pinecone Turkeys Pipecleaner Animals Pop-up Groundhogs Rainbow Sleighs (popsicle sticks) Sharpie Batik Sharpie Stained Glass Tin Can Pencil Holders
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Yarn crafts: 5
Your Beanstalk Grow Own (includes making a plant pot from newspaper)
Ojos de Dios
Candy Chromatography
Worry Dolls
Invisible Ink
Friendship Bracelets
Glow in the Dark Silly Putty
Cereal Box Weaving
Tech: 1
Yarn Pictures
Stop Motion AnimationÂ
Candy/Food crafts: 5
Caroline Johnson is a Community Outreach Librarian (Youth Services) at Surrey Libraries.
Bagel Birdfeeders Cupcake/cookie decorating Valentine Hearts
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Image: Sharpie Batik
Sources:
Annotated Bibliography of Six Books Focusing on Aboriginal Language Learning By Kaitie Warren
Canadian Aboriginal children’s books are being published in various forms and genres, and for many ages. Why is this topic so important for children’s books? Language learning as a child is the most impactful and the most essential element to the survival of a language. Most of these books also emphasize that language is one of the most important pieces of culture. The selections outlined below are all books for children rather than teenagers, and it seems that as books rise in age level, they decrease in explicit language content. This speaks to the importance of learning language at a young age. Within this topic, it is important to note that Aboriginal oral storytelling is traditionally more important than learning from print. These books can be seen, in a way, as a replacement for the best way of learning Aboriginal language: out loud. Interestingly, many of these books include audio CDs. This gives children an opportunity to learn their language in the context of traditional storytelling. These six books represent a variety of age levels, a range of focus on language, and a diversity of First Peoples from across Canada.
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Manuel, Margaret. I See Me. Penticton: Theytus Books, 2009.
Illustrated by Neepin Auger. Toronto: Rocky Mountain Books, 2013.
I See Me is a board book showing photos of a baby doing daily activities. On each page, the action is described, and below the English sentence is a line for parents to write in their own language. The book aims to “help parents educate their babies in their formative years”. One example of the Okanagan Sylix language is included, and the publisher’s site has full translations for Sylix and Dene. The book does not assume that parents know
Another board book, Discovering Words is a playful little book written in three languages: English, French, and Cree. Words are given for simple objects in each of the three languages through the alphabet. Each page is unique and includes the author’s colourful paintings full of texture.
the words in their language, and seems to give parents just as much opportunity to learn for themselves. This is a clear illustration of the power of language learning for kids to benefit older generations in need of positive cultural learning. As in many other Aboriginal children’s books, there is only a small amount of explicit Aboriginal content. The book strives to help babies see themselves, quite literally, and includes a drum and a cradle board, as well as activities every baby does. Auger, Neepin. Discovering Words.
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Most of the words are not specifically Aboriginal, and aim simply to teach kids words for things that they know. A is for apple, for example, Z is for zigzag, and M is for moccasin. The three words on each page have different fonts: French in bold and Cree in italics. English is in normal font, and always comes first, giving the impression that this book is for children whose primary language is English. French and Cree, however, are simply there without extra pronunciation tips, so the reader needs some background in all three languages. The format and illustration of this book are clearly targeted at very young children. This is a work that gives children of any background a way to start to learn other languages and to identify words familiar to their culture. The inclusion of three languages rather than only two gives me a feeling that the author values a national Canadian exchange of understanding. It contributes a clear, simple message of the significance of ‘discovering words’! The partner to this title is Neepin Auger’s Discovering Numbers. Flett, Julie. Owls See Clearly at Night: A Michif Alphabet; Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer: L’Alfabet
di Michif. Illustrated by Julie Flett: Simply Read Books, 2010. This is another alphabet book, bilingual in Michif and English. The elegant style, format, and artwork target an older audience, even adults. The author clearly intended this book to be used for serious language learning for Métis people. An introduction and language resources make this book much more than a simple children’s book. The author discusses language as “the very essence of a culture” and gives an overview of the Métis culture and Michif language. A pronunciation guide gives many more examples of words and general instructions for Michif pronunciation. Finally, a list of resources connects readers to organizations and books on Michif language.
Unlike
the approach in Discovering Words, the Michif comes first in this book, in larger, coloured font. It is also the Michif rather than English word that follows the alphabet (excluding q, as there are no q sounds in Michif). The choice of words also reflects a clearer cultural identity, in comparison, and where words are general, the illustration is distinct. Of these titles, this is the most directly and explicitly supportive of Aboriginal language learning, not only for children but for all readers. Nicholson, Caitlin Dale, with Leona Morin-Neilson. Niwechihaw/ I Help. Illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson. Text in Cree and English. Toronto: Groundwood Books/ House of Anansi Press, 2008. This primer picture book is a story of a boy and his grandmother. It is written in English and Cree. Like Owls See Clearly at Night, the Cree comes first, and like I See Me, simple statements describe an action on each page. Each page describes what the grandmother (Kôhkom) is doing,
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and the other side repeats the same action in first person, just like the title. This repetition of terms on pages next to each other makes the grammar differences easy to see. It could be used to study reading, or to practice pronunciation. The repetition feels like a language learning technique making it clear that older kids can use this book too. The boy is about five, but the sophisticated illustrations appeal to all ages. The earthy-coloured scenes depict modern, everyday activities, including some traditions like berry picking (there is a recipe for rosehip tea in the back). This title is unique because it seems equally valuable for learning English as for learning Cree. Campbell, Nicola I. Shin-chi’s Canoe. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. Toronto: Groundwood Books, 2008. This book is a sequel to Shi-shietko and tells the story of Shi-shietko’s second year at residential school, her little brother’s first. It focuses on the days leading up to their departure, and the wait to return home to their parents and grandparents. Kim LaFave’s illustrations are in warm earth tones and reds, but scenes at the residential school are drab and shadowy. There is clear description of the unhappy things that happen at residential school. The brother and sister are not allowed to talk to each other at school, and are not allowed to speak their own language or use their own names. The only Aboriginal words are names, but these are repeated so often that they add a rhythm and play an important part. Shinchi’s Canoe is not explicitly about Aboriginal language; it is a story of the destruction of language. The subtle and powerful references to repressed language demonstrate the need for early language learning and the need for the rest of these titles. This story shows, rather than tells, how intertwined culture is
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with language. White, Tara. I Like Who I Am. Illustrated by Lee Claremont. Penticton: Theytus Books, 2008. In this modern story, Celina learns some lessons about being who she is. At her new school on a reserve, a mean girl tells her that she can’t be Mohawk, because of her blonde hair and blue eyes. After she starts to believe this, her greatgrandma reminds her of who she is, and Celina returns to enjoying her traditional dancing. The book ends with some Mohawk phrases and phonetic pronunciations.
T
he three main themes are tied together as a measure of cultural knowledge: having a Mohawk name, speaking Mohawk, and being able to dance. Language is tied to being a member of the community and identifying as Mohawk. But the main lesson— from Celina’s great-grandma—is that being part of the culture is about what is in your heart, where the drumming is. Some children know how to respond in Mohawk language class and some don’t, but all are Mohawk. This story represents language out in the world, in the reality of modern children. These language dynamics are shaped by the residential schools in Shin-chi’s Canoe and can be supported by the language-learning books for children. Unlike the wordbooks for very young children, this story presents a complicated reality on the challenges of speaking an Aboriginal language. It addresses the internal conflicts experienced by Aboriginal children and makes it clear that it’s okay to be any kind of Mohawk that they are. Kaitie Warren is an MLIS candidate at SLAIS at UBC.
review The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires Kids Can Press, 2014 Audience: 4+ A little girl decides to create the most magnificent thing. She makes things all the time, it will sure be easy-peasy. With the help of her best friend, a dog, she gathers pieces of junk and starts tinkering, hammering, smoothing, measuring and gluing. Still, she is never satisfied with the end result. The thing just doesn’t work. She works at it until she is unbearably frustrated and decides to give up. After a well-deserved break, the girl realizes her work was not wasted after all. She finally makes the most magnificent thing, even though it could still use some improvements. The Most Magnificent Thing was written and beautifully illustrated by Ashley Spires, the author of Binky, the space cat graphic novel series. It speaks of perfectionism and persistence. It shows children that it is okay to fail. We can only learn things by trying many times, until we get it right. Not only that, but sometimes the end result will be far from the perfect thing we had in our mind. And that is okay too. It can still be magnificent nonetheless. Children over 4 or 5 years old (and surely their adult caregivers) will enjoy this inspiring narrative. Ana Calabresi, MLIS
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call for submissions YAACing
newsletter of the Young Adult & Children’s Services Section of BCLA
Summer 2014
yaacs
YAACING is published four times per year and is always looking for submissions that might interest children’s and teen specialists in BC libraries. We accept news pieces, articles, program descriptions and ideas, conference reports, and much more. If you would like to write a regular column, send us a brief pitch. Submissions should be no more than 2500 words, sent in an editable format (not PDF). Please include a byline with your job title and workplace, or for students: your school, program and class information, if applicable. YAACING invites your contributions to our Review and Felt Story sections: Reviews: Please send us reviews of books, blogs, websites, or other resources. Submissions should be no more than 300 words. Longer reviews may be considered for publication as featured articles. Felt Stories: Share your creativity! YAACING is looking for felt story patterns. Submissions should include a printable pattern, photograph of the finished product, and related rhyme or note about the origin of the story. the deadline for the Fall 2014 issue of YAACing is september 15, 2014. email your submissions to the editors at Yaacing@gmail.com
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