YAACING Summer 2016 Judith Saltman’s Retirement
A Canadian Children’s Librarian in Sweden
YAACS Makerspace Event
SRC Program: Secret Codes in the Library
NEWSLETTER OF THE YOUNG ADULT & CHILDREN’S SERVICES SECTION OF BCLA
YAACING Summer 2016
Contents:
Message from the Past Chair Message from the Chair Message from the Editors
Features
News
26 Firefighter Storytime by Marianne Huang
7 Red Cedar 2015/2016 9 PNLA Reader’s Choice Award 10 YAACS Award Winner 11 Judith Saltman’s Retirement 14 YAACS Makerspace Event 14 SRC News and Updates
Columns 17 We’ll link to that by Dana Horrocks and Lindsey Krabbenhoft 19 Teens Only by Amy Dawley 21 Who’s On the Felt Board?: Polar Bear’s Underwear by Sharon MacDonald
23 A Canadian Children’s Librarian in Sweden by Rebekah Adams
28 Annotated Bibliography: Camping Books by Jennifer Streckmann 32 Annotated Bibliography: Alphabet Books by Chloe Humphreys 36 SRC Program: Secret Codes in the Library by Susan Pierce
Reviews Call for Submissions
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: Alicia Cheng & Jane Whittingham Art Director: Afton Schindel If you are interested in submitting anything for publication, send it to yaacing@gmail.com Next Deadline: September 1, 2016
Message from the Past Chair It was great seeing many of you at our annual general meeting during the BC Library Conference in May, and linking some faces with names! I hope everyone is enjoying a last breath of air as we gear up for the busy summer season. I’ve really enjoyed chairing YAACS this year, and I’m happy that Dana Horrocks will be taking the reins. I’d also like to extend a big thank-you to Kristen Rumohr for playing an important role as vice-chair this year, and wish her well in her new adventures as a mom.
Jon Scop YAACS Chair jon.scop@bpl.bc.ca 4 YAACING | Summer 2016
Message from the Chair Hi Everyone, I am thrilled to be stepping into the role of YAACS Chair and I am thrilled to be doing this for a number of reasons. First of all, I am excited to build on the momentum of all the awesome work done by our social media team as well as the professional development activities organized by members all across the province. We now have a strong presence on and offline, which not only builds our professional community but our recognition outside of this community too. Speaking of recognition I’d like to congratulate Heather Gloster, the winner of the 2016 YAACS Award. Heather is the Teen Services Librarian at Prince George Public Library and has been engaging youth at Prince George Youth Custody Centre through creative writing workshops, which you can read about in the Winter 2016 YAACING. Thank you to the YAACS Award Committee for all their hard work and once again Heather, thank you for being such a strong example of what can be achieved when we push the boundaries. This year’s AGM was a-buzz with exciting conversations and new faces. I’m looking forward to working with Sarah Harrison who is our new Vice-Chair and while we’ll try not to bug Kristen Rumohr as she steps into another new and equally exciting role I’d like to thank her for all her work as Vice-Chair and representing YAACS on the BCLA Proposal Committee. Thank you to all the continuing YAACS executive team as well, it’s because of your hard work that we’re able to keep evolving as a section. As you read this no doubt you’ll be in the thick of SRC madness but I hope you take a moment to think about all that we’ve accomplished in the past year, how we can keep working to advocate for youth services staff and how you can join us! Onward and upward,
Dana Horrocks YAACS Chair dana.horrocks@gmail.com Summer 2016 | YAACING 5
Message from the Editors Summer is finally here, and for libraries across British Columbia that can only mean one thing Summer Reading Club! We’ve got some great SRC-themed articles for you, as well as an update from our SRC coordinator. But don’t worry - even if SRC isn’t part of your plans this summer, this issue is packed with of all sorts of exciting content, from annotated bibliographies full of great titles you’ll want to put holds on, fun storytime ideas, and even a dispatch from one of our colleagues who has relocated to Sweden! We’re also bidding a fond farewell to our outgoing chair, Jon Scop, and thanking him for his dedicated service to YAACS. We hope you’ll join us in welcoming our new President, Dana Horrocks. Welcome, Dana! Wherever the summer takes you, we hope you have a great one, and enjoy this summer issue! Cheers,
Alicia Cheng and Jane Whittingham YAACING Co-Editors yaacing@gmail.com 6 YAACING | Summer 2016
NEWS
Red Cedar Award 2015 - 2016 Over 200 children (and several children’s book authors) gathered at the Vancouver Public Library on May 7 for the annual Red Cedar Award Gala. There were presentations from several reading groups about their favourite nominated titles. We learned that Kate Jaimet’s Dunces Rock is as delicious as a smoothie, and that readers were eager to see the volcano houses from Take Shelter by Nikki Tate and Dani TateStratton in real life. Nominee Richard Scrimger advised young aspiring writers to “Use the truth, and write the story based on the truth;” Nick Gray surprised readers by revealing that it’s illegal to fly a Tibetan flag in Tibet; and Dan Bar-El stole the show by revealing how his book Audrey (Cow) has gotten him into hot water with the animals he interviewed for the book. Fiction nominees pitted cows against cats, campers, ghosts, gardeners, hockey players, guitar players, siblings, friends, and (of course) zombies. The young readers voted for their favourite choosing Becky Citra’s Finding Grace as the winner. Finding Grace is a moving story about two sisters finding each other after being separated as very young children. The non-fiction nominees tackled a range of topics from Tibet to the environment, and the human body to virus epidemics. Young readers voted If… A Mind-bending New Way of Looking at Big Ideas and Numbers as their favourite. We owe a huge thank you to our generous sponsors: Abe Books, Vancouver Public Library, and Kidsbooks. We couldn’t do it without you. Red Cedar is 100% volunteer run. We always welcome new volunteers; please RSVP to redcedaraward@gmail.com if you are interested in participating. Without further ado, the 2016/2017 Red Cedar Nominees are…
Fiction Book Nominees The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands Masterminds by Gordon Korman The Case of the Missing Moonstone by Jordan Stratford and Kelly Murphy Lost in the Backyard by Alison Hughes Seven Dead Pirates by Linda Bailey Sight Unseen by David Carroll Speechless by Jennifer Mook-Sang Eco Warrior by Philip Roy Connecting Dots by Sharon Jennings The Nest by Kenneth Oppel Shot in the Dark by Janet M. Whyte The Summer We Saved the Bees by Robin Stevenson Summer 2016 | YAACING 7
NEWS Information Book Nominees Animal Hospital: Rescuing urban wildlife by Julia Coey The Art of the Possible: An everyday guide to politics by Edward Keenan, illustrations by Julie McLaughlin Baseballogy: Supercool facts you never knew by Kevin Sylvester Colossal Canada: 100 epic facts and feats by Elizabeth Macleod and Frieda Wishinsky DNA Detective by Tanya Lloyd Kyi, illustrations by Lil Crump Elephant Journey: The true story of three zoo elephants and their rescue from captivity by Rob Laidlaw, art by Brian Deines Friend or Foe: The whole truth about animals that people love to hate by Etta Kaner, illustrations by David Anderson Give Me Wings: How a choir of former slaves took on the world by Kathy Lowinger Power up!: A visual exploration of energy by Shaker Paleja, art by Glenda Tse Trash Talk: Moving toward a zero-waste world Written by Michelle Mulder What’s the Buzz?: Keeping bees in flight by Merrie-Ellen Wilcox
Cathy Mount President, YRCA redcedaraward@gmail.com 8 YAACING | Summer 2016
NEWS
PNLA Young Reader’s Choice Awards The Pacific Northwest Library Association’s Young The next slate for the 2017 Reader’s Choice Award is the oldest children’s choice award in the U.S. and Canada. The award was Young Reader’s Choice Award established in 1940 by a Seattle bookseller, the late Nominees are as follows: Harry Hartman, who believed every student should have an opportunity to select a book that gives him Junior Division (Grades 4-6) or her pleasure. The provinces and states included Absolutely Almost – Graff, Lisa in the Pacific Northwest are Alaska, Alberta, British Loot – Watson, Jude Columbia, Idaho, Montana and Washington. El Deafo – Bell, Cece The Fourteenth Goldfish – Holm, Jennifer Rain Reign – Martin, Ann M. The Thickety: A Path Begins – White, J.A. The winners for the 2016 PNLA New Kid – Green,Tim The Circus Dogs of Prague – Delaney, Rachelle YRCA are:
Intermediate Division (Grades Junior Division: 7-9)
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s The Crossover – Alexander, Kwame Library by Chris Grabenstein Greenglass House – Milford, Kate Deep Blue – Donnelly, Jennifer The Iron Trial – Black, Holly and Cassandra Clare Outside In – Ellis, Sarah The Night Gardener – Auxier, Jonathan The Boundless- Oppel, Kenneth Skink No Surrender – Hiaasen, Carl
Intermediate Division:
The 5th Wave by Richard Yancey
Senior Divison (Grades 10-12)
Four – Roth, Veronica I’ll Give You the Sun - Nelson, Jandy The Young Elites – Lu, Marie Senior Division: In Real Life – Doctorow, Cory and Jen Wang This is What Happy Looks Like To All the Boys I Loved Before – Han, Jenny by Jennifer E. Smith Panic – Oliver, Lauren Since You’ve Been Gone – Matson, Morgan Through the Woods – Carroll, Emily
Noreen Ma PNLA YRCA - BC Representative Summer 2016 | YAACING 9
NEWS
YAACS AWARD WINNER YAACS is pleased to announced Heather Gloster as the 2016 YAACS award recipient! Heather is the Teen Services Librarian at Prince George Public Library and has been engaging youth at Prince George Youth Custody Centre through creative writing workshops. You can read more about her program in Winter 2016 YAACING Newsletter. The award was presented at the YAACS AGM held at BCLA on Thursday May, 12, 2016. Congratulations Heather!
10 YAACING | Summer 2016
NEWS
Picturing Judi: A Wild Rumpus of an Evening the wild things are—her nearly 200 guests who crowned her queen of all wild things, and awaited her instructions to let the wild rumpus start. And start it did. Here are a few highlights of the gala commemorating Judi’s retirement from 32 wonderful years at SLAIS: Alison Taylor-McBryde mused on how we could continue the legacy of Judi’s knowledge of children’s literature. Could we set up “JudiNet”—an online repository in which the collective minds of all of Judi’s students could help answer children’s literature-related questions? The best solution, however, Alison deemed to be a replica of Judi—a puppet version, of course! Alison also proceeded to direct a roomful of children’s librarians to a song with lyrics to commemorate Judi’s departure from SLAIS.
It was a blustery evening in early March when the University Golf Club underwent an extraordinary transformation. A forest of stories and memories grew and grew until the ceiling hung with vines and the walls became the world all around and an ocean of words and pictures tumbled by with a private boat for the guest of honour — Professor Judith Saltman. Judi sailed off through night and day and in and out of weeks and almost over a year to where
Judi’s students Kallie George and Shannon Ozirny (who did double duty by lending her usual sparkling wit as MC for the evening) gave heartfelt thanks to Judi for her encouragement, joie de vivre, and belief in her students to find the paths they were meant to follow. Sarah Ellis gave Judi the equivalent of the “birthday bumps,” in which she felt compelled to share instances when Judi did not excel… and recalled one Christmas program baking mishap. Sarah chose a finicky recipe, and Judi had never baked cookies before. The result? Cookies bearing little resemblance to the desired lambs. Judi reminded Sarah that the cookies were disguised as Christmas Summer 2016 | YAACING 11
NEWS chickens instead. Sarah presented Judi with that very cookie cutter as a memento. Kit Pearson reminisced about being flatmates with Judi during their Simmons days, when they both studied for their M.A.s in children’s literature. She recounted how Judi breezed out of the house early one morning, resplendent in white from head to toe, on her way to accidentally-on-purpose run into Maurice Sendak. Please note that copies of Picturing Judi are available for purchase for $25.00, from Sarah & Kit performed Kathie Shoemaker. If you would like a copy, please email Kathie at kshoe@telus.net. an abcederay outlining more of The lovely volume is filled with artwork and messages to Judi from the world over. Judi’s deficiencies and charms (did you know, for example, that Judi cannot quite very much, though no threats were made by the cope with eating ice cream cones?). audience to eat her up (and none gnashed their teeth or rolled their eyes, to my recollection). Judi Eric Meyers, the successor to Judi as the chair of the graciously thanked each and every one for making M.A. of Children’s Literature at SLAIS, serenaded her reign in Judiland such a memorable one, from Judi and the audience with the ukulele (note: he Sheila Egoff, to the amazing folks of the Vancouver does not know how to play a ukulele). Children’s Literature Roundtable, to Ronald Jobe, and Canadian Children’s Book Centre, IBBY, her Gregory Maguire, the penultimate speaker of the fellow faculty members, beloved authors, and her evening, electrified the room by singing “Somewhere students. Over the Rainbow” as he approached the lectern. The room stilled as Mr. Maguire described finding These are but thumbnail sketches of an evening the thumbprint of he believed to be a giant at the which cannot capture the joy (commingled, home of Lucy M. Boston, and asked Judi to put her of course, with sadness) in celebrating Judis’ thumb in the rock—it fit, just as he knew it would, distinguished career and vast influence in children’s for Judi stands, he said, as a giant amongst men. He literature, library services and advocacy for youth, presented a pocket watch featuring a Wild Thing to and all-round peerless excellence. We love her so, Judi as a retirement gift. and can only watch as she sails away from one adventure to the next one awaiting her. Denizens Judi herself took the stage at last. She knew that of that wild rumpus in Judiland, your job is clear— her loyal subjects, her wild things, would miss her
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go out and share with someone who didn’t have the opportunity to attend, but wished they had. While you are at it, don’t resist the urge to swap children’s literature titles with one another (try The Lie Tree, by Frances Hardinge)! Those of you who weren’t at Judiland last March, be prepared for a good story or three, though there is no guarantee that your dinner will still be hot when the sharing ends. Ellen Wu Teen Librarian, Surrey Libraries
The Judi Cheer By Chris Kevlahan
Children’s Librarianship Unite Read, read, read, read Programme, programme, programme, programme Kids, kids, kids, kids Go Judi! Simmons Unite Travel, travel, travel, travel Study, study, study, study Talk, talk, talk, talk Go Judi! SLAIS Unite Teach, teach, teach, teach Research, research, research, research Publish, publish, publish, publish Go Judi! Chris Kevlahan Branch Head, Vancouver Public Library Summer 2016 | YAACING 13
NEWS
YAACS Makerspace Event Thanks to all those who participated in our Makerspace event last month! We had tons of fun and hope you were inspired to try out some of the fun and easy middle years and teen projects that our fantastic colleagues Jenn, Rachel, and Tina shared. We are looking forward to planning our next exciting event for the fall, so stay tuned! Tina Lee & Jane Whittingham YAACS Continuing Education Committee
BC SRC at the 2016 BCLA Conference We had so much fun at this year’s BCLA Conference! Fixxer. He’s also got his paws on Lee’s handmade In case you missed us, here’s a photo-tour of the BC “portal books”! SRC Booth. SRC Planning Committee Chair, Kate Adams (RPL) and Incoming Chair, Emily Olsen (TNRD). Check out the gorgeous BC SRC Notebook in Emily’s hands!
The SRC booth right before the crowd lets out from Opening Keynote with Cory Doctorow. If you look closely, you can see that our adorable Polar Bear puppet is sporting a cap like his “dad”
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Kate and Emily welcomed SRC-friends old and new to the SRC booth. Visitors had the opportunity to try out the SRC Quiz Conference Edition for a chance to win the polar bear puppet or a bottle of wine. Once again, our Quiztress, Randi Robin (BPL) outdid herself! Overheard: “This is really hard!”
Much to everyone’s delight, our 2016 artist, Lee Edward Födi came by to sign posters during the lunch break.
Our 2016 SRC Community Story Award winner, Lise Kreps (BPL). Lise attended this year’s BCLA Conference as a guest of RBC. To read Lise’s awardwinning story, please visit http://kidssrc.libraries. coop/community-story-award/this-years-winner/.
It was a lovely moment to have two out three of our BC SRC Community Story Award winners on hand for a photo opp: BPL’s Lise Kreps (2016) and Rossland’s Bev Rintoul (2014). Missing (and muchmissed) was VPL’s Miranda Mallinson (2015). To learn more about the BC SRC Community Story Award and how you might enter (and attend next year’s Conference as a guest of RBC!), please visit http://kidssrc.libraries.coop/community-storyaward/
Dressed for travel, Lee sported a thematicallyappropriate pair of goggles and a WWII Map Case slung over his shoulder. Looks as though he is ready to Book a Trip!
Summer 2016 | YAACING 15
NEWS and adapted to their community’s unique challenges and needs. As Beth put it, “Although an idea doesn’t work the first or second time, sometimes a seed has been planted.” Beth also chose to describe her example not as a “fail” but rather as “not successful — yet!” It’s this combination of commitment and flexibility, determination and possibility-thinking that seems to be prevalent in SRC staff and what makes the BC SRC such a successful program.
BCLA Conference, Disrupt & Transform What a terrific time we had at the BC SRC Conference session: Feats & Failures: Creating Memorable Summer Reading Clubs! Our wonderful and courageous panelists: Aaron Francis (Creston Public Library), Alicia Cheng (Vancouver Public Library), Beth Dimond (Prince Rupert Public Library), Emily Olsen (TNRD), and Kate Adams (Richmond Public Library) shared stories of their successes and their not-so successes. We talked about programming, about communication, about outreach, about expectations, about registration process, about hiring students... did I mention communication? Perhaps most inspiring was how all of the panelists demonstrated the ways they sought to learn and grow from their “fails” and more often than not, ultimately transformed them into successes. Over and over again, it was apparent that they paid attention, made adjustments, revised their approach 16 YAACING | Summer 2016
And in case you were wondering, our session also addressed the disrupt component of the Conference theme. A couple activities from the SRC manual were integrated into the session in order to give participants a hands-on takeaway (World Hopscotch and What Animal Am I?) The latter produced such noise levels we got complaints. Twice. And then we had to shut it down. Such is the enthusiasm of SRC staff. :)
Cynthia Ford BC SRC Coordinator bcsrc@bclibrary.ca
COLUMNS
We’ll Link to That!
By Dana Horrocks and Lindsey Krabbenhoft We love us some children’s librarian blogs. Our fellow youth services professionals knock our socks off on the regular with their amazing ideas. But we also know that there are a lot of other people who work with children sharing ideas we can adapt and use in a library setting. So this quarter we’re sharing some of our favourite non-librarian websites that provide us with inspiration for serving the children and families in our communities.
NON-LIBRARIAN BLOGS 1. NO TIME FOR FLASH CARDS Written by a preschool teacher, this website features tons of literacy-based activities for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Browse through craft projects, book lists, handson activities that are fun and educational.
3. TEACH PRESCHOOL
5. PRAGMATIC MOM
Our friend Anna recommended this blog written by preschool teacher, Deborah. It is filled with literacy activities, STEM ideas, and sensory play inspiration. Deborah understands the importance of play, and many of her posts include early literacy tips for caregivers and teachers.
We call Pragmatic Mom Queen of the Booklists! Seriously, she provides great round-ups of books for kids all ages. We especially love her focus on cultural diversity. A mom of three, she often shares what her kids are reading too. A genuine and authentic voice.
4. MAMA OT
6. READING CONFETTI
Our friend Cate recommended this website created by a 2. PLAYING BY THE pediatric occupational therapist. There is so much we can learn BOOK about early literacy by reading Written by a mum of two girls about the developmental living in the U.K., this blog progression of handwriting features picture book reviews skills and learning about the and author interviews. We love importance of crawling. Highly the craft projects that accompany recommended if you need to the books such as this amazing boost your knowledge of child hot air balloon. So much development. inspiration for book clubs at the library!
It would be easy to brush this off as just another site with beautiful craft ideas for little ones. But lucky for us Lorie was a reading specialist before starting Reading Confetti and it shows! Check out her list of Book Club Link Parties which include ideas from all over the web on all your favourite books or her Year of Preschool Books & Activities which would be an excellent tool for planning storytimes.
Summer 2016 | YAACING 17
COLUMNS 7. TINKERLAB
10. NOT JUST CUTE
Once you’ve located the small, white arrow on the splash page and landed on Rachelle’s visually stunning site, be sure to navigate to her arts and crafts and science experiments tabs along the top for step by step instructions and bite sized information chunks to answer the how’s and why’s along the way. As readers, we also love her list of articles about creativity and kids. Thanks Beth, of BethReads for pointing us to this great resource!
Amanda Morgan is a former preschool teacher who focuses on intentional child development. Let’s just say this blog delivers on the name and then some. Drop into her Read Along which is packed with current research about early to middle school children or browse her posts under the language and literacy tag for some seriously validating stuff.
8. STURDY FOR COMMON THINGS Ok, you caught us Rebecca is a librarian but honestly it would be a crime not to include her blog on this list. Her booklists span all possible titles on a topic and cover babes up to older readers and her Storytimes Anytime are truly inspiring. Enough said, go check it out!
9. FUN AT HOME WITH KIDS Asia, the author of this blog has published several books on engaging kids with art and science and her blog is no different. Her simple DIY kits to keep kids busy could be easily adapted for the library as could many of the sensory play activities.
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Do you have a favourite nonlibrarian website that we missed? We’d love to hear about it, give us a shout at jbrary@gmail.com.
Dana Horrocks and Lindsey Krabbenhoft are Children’s Librarians at the Vancouver Public Library.
COLUMNS TEENS ONLY
A Teen Summer Challenge Guinea Pig: DIY-to-Go Kits By Amy Dawley This summer marks the third year that the Here’s the breakdown: Vancouver Island Regional Library system has • Out of our 55 total tasks, 3 of them are labelled offered its popular Teen Summer Challenge as “DIY-to-Go Challenges” and in their task program to teens all across our system as a way to booklets, teens are instructed to report to their beat the boredom during the summer months. From local branch to pick up their kit. June 13th to August 31st, teens from Sooke to our Haida Gwaii branches and everywhere in between • The branches will be provided with a stash of each of the three different DIY-to-Go Challenges will have the opportunity to get creative, complete and they are as follows: zany challenges, and earn points for a chance to win prizes. The beauty of any Teen Summer Challenge • DIY-to-Go Challenge: Origami! Show off program is that no matter where teens are they have those origami skills by completing this the opportunity to engage with the library virtually 25-point challenge. Drop by your local through this program, as it is mostly online. This library branch to pick up everything you summer, VIRL’s Teen Services Committee wanted need—it’s yours for free! to take it a step further to help connect teens to • DIY-To-Go Challenge: Make a Chevron their local branch and the idea for a DIY-to-Go kit Bracelet! Show us how crafty you are by was born. completing this 25-point challenge. Drop by your local library branch to pick up During the planning phase for what in-branch everything you need—it’s yours for free! programs we could offer that would connect to our Teen Summer Challenge, we had been mulling • DIY-to-Go Challenge: Adult Teen over several program ideas that might work. What’s Colouring! Resurrect your childhood interesting about being in a regional system is that colouring talents to make your every own whatever we come up with for teen programs has personalized bookmark. Drop by your to work in various library sizes and settings, from local library branch to pick up everything the largest urban branches to our smallest rural you need—it’s yours for free! libraries. I was doing my usual cruise through blogs, library web sites, and Pinterest boards to try to find • Practically speaking, the kits consist of a paper bag with a Teen Summer Challenge label on the ideas and stumbled across a passive program idea outside and everything teens need is included in called “DIY-to-Go” that fit the bill. We’ve worked it the bag. We are stuffing each stack of bags with into our Teen Summer Challenge as part of the task the relevant instruction sheet, origami paper, structure and I’m looking forward to seeing how it embroidery floss, and/or cardstock-printed turns out in practice. colouring bookmarks. Summer 2016 | YAACING 19
COLUMNS • At the beginning of the Teen Summer Challenge, branch staff will put up a sign and stick the bags out in the library for teens to grab (or keep them at the front desk at the case may be). The key is that they keep track of how many bags go out so they can track teen programming statistics. Passive, or “soft,” programs have been around for a long time and I am keen to see how this model will work for teens, especially for those in our smallest communities. I like the idea of teens being able to pop in to the branch, pick up their kit, maybe chat with library staff (or not!) and go on their merry way. I think it’s a very gentle start to building relationships with teens that may be too shy or anxious about talking to people they don’t know. As I said, this DIY-to-Go kit idea is just that, an idea! We are test-driving it during this year’s Teen Summer Challenge so I will be sure to report back to let you all know how it goes. In the meantime, feel free to try it yourself at your own libraries! Feel free to contact me and I’d be happy to provide our instruction sheets and materials lists for you to use in your own programs. Drop me a line any time at 250-247-7878 or at adawley@virl.bc.ca.
Amy Dawley is the Customer Services Librarian II at the Gabriola Island Branch of the Vancouver Island Regional Library and serves as the Chair of VIRL’s Teen Services Committee. In 2013 Amy received the British Columbia Library Association’s Young Adult and Children’s Service Award in recognition of exceptional service to children and youth in British Columbia. 20 YAACING | Summer 2016
COLUMNS WHO’S ON THE FELT BOARD
Polar Bear’s Underwear By Sharon MacDonald This is a felt version of Tupera Tupera’s Polar Bear’s Underwear created by Sharon MacDonald.
Sharon MacDonald is a library assistant at Saanich Centennial Branch at Greater Victoria Public Library. Summer 2016 | YAACING 21
FEATURES
22 YAACING | Summer 2016
FEATURES
A Canadian Children’s Librarian in Sweden By Rebekah Adams Beginning a career in children’s services felt like coming home. After coming out of my Masters degree with a vague idea of doing something public facing, working with children and families gave me a sense of fitting into a role I was meant to fill. But only a year and a half into my career, and just as I had been offered an exciting new job opportunity, I suddenly left my job and moved to Stockholm, Sweden. My partner had been offered a temporary transfer with his company, and it was a do-itnow-or-forever-wonder-what-if type of situation. I reluctantly wrote my letter of resignation, we packed our bags, and off we went. We’ve been in Stockholm for about seven months now and we expect to be here until April of next year. Easily the most challenging aspect of this move has been feeling out of touch professionally. I still obsessively keep track of the goings-on of Lower Mainland libraries, devour blogs, and try to keep in touch with my library pals back home. To be honest, it’s not enough. As lovely as Stockholm is, and as exciting it is to be living in a new city, I really miss my job, and look forward to getting back to it. As any librarian abroad would do, I comfort myself by making extensive use of the local public library. The Stockholm Public Library system is a good one - the physical spaces are conveniently located and well-maintained, service is prompt and friendly, and materials (both children’s and adults) are available in around ten languages. This includes an extensive English language selection, available in
every branch I have visited so far. All of the library staff members that I have approached have also spoken excellent English (even when I ask them if they do and they modestly reply “Yes, but only a little.”) Naturally, one of the first things I did when I arrived in Sweden was to write to the central library branch (Stadsbiblioteket) and ask for a tour. Since I mentioned that I worked in children’s services, I was graciously toured around by a children’s librarian, and that was the focus of our discussion. She also suggested that I pay a visit to a special branch of the library called “Rum för Barn” - Room for Children, which also happens to offer an English storytime. Rum för Barn is a very special place, not quite like any other youth department I have ever visited. It is specifically geared for the under ten set - once you turn ten, you graduate to your own branch within the same building, called “TioTretton” - TenThirteen. Caregivers can park their strollers in a dedicated stroller “parking lot” on the ground floor and take the elevator up to the top floor where Rum för Barn is located. Entrance is limited so that it’s never over crowded, but families are welcome to wait in the foyer until space is available. There is a giant traffic light displayed in the window to alert patrons in the plaza below how much space is available. Red means that there will be a wait, yellow means the space is getting full, and green means come on in, no wait time! Although it might be discouraging Summer 2016 | YAACING 23
FEATURES for some patrons to have to wait, this system seems to work really well. Library staff encourage families to experience the library together, and this is much more easily done when the chaos is slightly controlled.
out system and noted that this provides a good opportunity to remind caregivers about sharing the experience with their children. Dropping your kids off or letting them play a game while you’re on your phone is considered poor Rum för Barn etiquette.
When I arrived for English storytime, I was greeted (not by name, but by nationality - “Ah, the Canadian librarian! Welcome!”) by the woman at the door and her dinosaur hand puppet. The dinosaur gently instructed me to leave my shoes and coat at the door and encouraged me to explore before storytime. Everything looks specifically engineered to delight. The main room is dominated by a wooden structure that is equal parts pirate ship, castle, and builtin shelving. There is also a large closet bursting with board games that can be used within the department. The librarian showed me their sign-
At the back of the department, there is an art studio! For a low fee (around five Canadian dollars), children are given painting materials and a short introduction to a painting technique before being set loose at their easel. It is the lowtech makerspace of my dreams, but I admit I am a bit torn on the paid service model. It does enable them to provide the enhanced experience, and I’m sure it again encourages caregivers and children to work together, but I’m pretty staunchly in favour of the ‘absolutely free everything’ vision of the public library children’s department.
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consensus that that was enough for the day, and storytime came to a quiet end. I am so grateful that I had a chance to visit Rum för Barn. It reminded me of what I so valued about my work at home. The ability to delight families and create opportunities for them to experience books, public spaces, and programming together is what makes children’s services invaluable. I’m itching to get back to work as a youth librarian, but for now I am happy just learning as much as I can from Swedish libraries. If you’re interested learning more, you can always find me on Twitter @rebstweeting or in person, probably lurking around my local public library.
The storytime room is a smaller circular room with built-in benches around the periphery and a sunken pit in the middle. Everything is lightly padded and covered in dark fabric, and there are cushy pillows strewn about. On the ceiling, LED lights map out the constellations. The acoustics of the room are particularly good; the librarian’s low voice easily filled the space. She came into the room holding a stack of around fifteen picture books. The crowd was roughly five adults and ten children, all between the ages of four and seven. Once the librarian was seated, she began storytime without preamble. She was very good about encouraging audience participation, asking lots of questions and making sure everyone saw the pictures. I was momentarily surprised though when she transitioned straight from her first book onto the next, and then on to a third. There were no songs, rhymes, or anything else we often consider integral to the storytime experience. The children seemed to enjoy it though, and sat quite still until the end of the third book. There seemed to be an unspoken
Rebekah Adams graduated from the MLIS program at the University of British Columbia. She is currently based in Stockholm, Sweden. Summer 2016 | YAACING 25
FEATURES
Firefighter Storytime By Marianne Huang Welcome Song (ASL):
Welcome Friends! (x3) It’s time to say ‘Hello!’
Action/Stretch Song:
Oh! The city is great & the city is grand! There are lots of tall buildings on a tiny piece of land. We live way up high on the 57th floor....and this is what we do when we go out the door! We...take the elevator up, take the elevator down (x3) & we spin around! Repeat.......then we all sit down!
1st Story:
Here comes Firefighter Hippo! by London, Jonathan
Surprise Box: Firefighter Headband Hats! Pass them out in preparation for next song... Action/Stretch Song:
“Hurry, Hurry Drive the Firefighter Truck!” Hurry, hurry drive the firetruck (x3)...Ding! (x5) quickly Hurry, hurry turn the corner (x3)...Ding! (x5) quickly Hurry, hurry climb the ladder (x3)...Ding! (x5) quickly Hurry, hurry roll the hose out (x3)....Ding! (x5) quickly Hurry, hurry spray the water (x3)...Ding! (x5) quickly Driving, driving back to the station (x3)...Ding! (x5) slowly
Felt Story:
Meow and the Big Box! by Braun, Sebastien
2nd Story:
Firefighters: Speeding! Spraying! by Hubbell, Patricia
Fingerplay:
5 Brave Firefighters
5 brave firefighters, sleeping so (hold hand with fingers across palm) The fire bell rings, down the pole they go (slide fingers down arm) Jump in the fire truck, hurry down the street (land fingers in palm) Climb up the ladder, feel the fire’s heat! (climb fingers up arm) 5 brave firefighters, put the fire out (make swiping motion) Hip, Hip Hooray! All the people shout!
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Action/Stretch Song:
3rd Story:
I’m A Big Red Firetruck! (I’m a Little Teapot!)
I’m a big red fire truck, long and stout! When I’m needed, I roar and shout! People love to see me rush about, Turn me on and head me out.
I’m a big red fire truck, stout and long! Here is my ladder, tall and strong. When I get a call, you’ll hear my song. Climb aboard and turn me on!
Dot the Fire Dog by Desimini, Lisa
Exit Routine:
Roly Poly/Bread & Butter/See You Later, Alligator (pick one!)
Goodbye Song (ASL):
See You Next Week (x3). It’s time to say, ‘Good-bye!’
Stamps! For See You Later, Alligator Song: • Print & cut out cute pics • Print lyrics and paste to back • Laminate and glue onto sticks Kids love the visuals and the lyrics on the back help me keep track.
For firefighter hat: • Red construction paper cut into 4 length-wise strips (2 strips per hat) • Red construction paper cut into 4 equal pieces, fold in half to cut out arch point. • Yellow construction paper 3”x3” (use badge outline as guide) for yellow shield on hats
Marianne Huang is a Library Technician at the Vancouver Public Library. Summer 2016 | YAACING 27
FEATURES
An Annotated Bibliography of Children’s Material on the Theme of Camping By Jennifer Streckmann The following resources are children’s literary works related to the theme of camping. The first time a child goes on a camping trip with their family can be quite an overwhelming experience, and the library can help both the child and the family by providing books that deal with living in the outdoors, what animals may be encountered, and how to be safe in a campsite. The following titles span many age groups and are collected based on their content, relevance, and merit. The purpose of this compilation is to provide librarians with titles for a book display, readers advisory work, or a general grasp of some good material related to the family camping trip. Infants and Toddlers Martin, B., & Carle, E. (1983). Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (1st General book ed.). New York: Henry Holt and Co. This board book is a wonderful way for parents and caregivers to spend time with their child as they learn about animals and colours. The bright and lively tissue Illustration by Eric Carle make for very animated animals, and the rhyme scheme is very simple so parents won’t stumble over the small text. The repetition of the names of each animal helps infants and toddlers with phonemic awareness, and the easy labeling helps build emerging vocabularies. This book is a great early literacy aid, and a wonderful way for parents to engage with their children. The reason this book applies so well to the theme of camping is that it introduces a lot of wildlife that a child may see on a camping trip. Green frogs, yellow ducks, black sheep, and even brown bears may be spotted during a family trip into the outdoors. Although purple cats may be rare, this can be used as a dialogic reading tool with toddlers, where the parents may ask ‘Are cats purple?’. The vocabulary in this book of common animals found in BC is simple and relates well to a road trip or any other trip into outside the city. For young infants and toddlers is it a must read before a family outing into the wild. Rosen, M., & Oxenbury, H. (1989). We’re Going on a Bear Hunt (1st ed.). New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt is a classically simple story about a family on an adventure outdoors. The words lend themselves easily to being delivered as a song. Parents and children who read this story are likely to remember the catchy words and perhaps even sing them when they come across a field of grass or a forest in their own camping trip! The story repeats itself backwards as the family is chased by the bear, and gives toddlers the chance to remember all the different scenes. The illustrations are beautiful watercolour and black and white depictions of common outdoor scenes, and the way the entire family is involved is wonderful. Sprinkled throughout the story are really interesting movement sounds, such as 28 YAACING | Summer 2016
‘squelch and squerch’ and ‘splash splosh’ when the family hits a large patch of mud and a river. The subtle differences in these words can help teach phonemic awareness and print recognition in toddlers. The only issue parents may have with this book is that it does depict a perfectly Caucasian, nuclear family. It doesn’t challenge any stereotypes in that the mother wear a skirt on the adventure and the father is often the leader of the family pack. This book is great for camping families because it provides an easy tune, which can quickly be ad-libbed by parents into any camping situation. The scenarios are relatable to Canadian camping trips, and parents could even give their children a warning about being careful in the outdoors because of bears and larger wildlife. Preschoolers Ages 3 - 5 Aardema, V., Dillon, D., & Dillon, L. (1975). Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears: A West African Tale. New York: Dial Press. Has a camping trip ever occurred in BC without the occasional buzzing of a mosquito in the ears of campers? This beautiful folktale is set in Africa, but has relevance to Canadian wilderness through some of the critters such as mosquitoes, birds, rabbits, and owls. The book won the Caldecott Medal in 1976 and the Brooklyn Art Books for Children Award in 1977. The story strongly emphasizes how everything in nature in connected, and how there is a whole ecosystem made up of a community of animals who live in the outdoors. The story also teaches that lying has negative consequences when the mosquito is shunned by the rest of the forest for telling a lie. More seriously though, is that the book contains the death of a baby owlet, which happens by accident, but is still very sad. In terms of relating to the camping theme, this book was selected based on two factors. First, is the attention to the mosquito, which will certainly arise when camping, and will give children a familiarity with the incessant buzzing. Second, introducing the concept of death to children through a beautiful story may help parents to explain what has happened when children come across dead animals when in the wilderness. There is also a lovely online animated version of this story narrated by James Earl Jones of the Lion King, which could be shown in storytimes or other programs in the summer. Flett, J. (2010). Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer: L’alfabet di Michif = Owls See Clearly at Night : A Michif Alphabet. Vancouver: Simply Read Books. A beautiful and relevant alphabet book, Owls See Clearly at Night was written by Julie Flett, a Cree-Metis award winning Canadian author and illustrator. This book is truly stunning, and has lots of empty space so that the focus is on the amazing drawings which each tell their own small story. The book is a bilingual ABC picture book which can teach both children and their parents the words of Canadian heritage in the Michif language. This is the language of the Metis peoples, and is a combination of native Cree and Salteaux with some French added. The Michif words are connected to the alphabet letters, and the English words are added underneath. One drawback to the book is that the phonetic pronunciations of the Michif words are at the back of the book, so some flipping is necessary. Summer 2016 | YAACING 29
FEATURES Owls See Clearly at Night is a quintessentially Canadian book, and celebrates the culture and traditions of the aboriginal peoples. There are entries for ‘Bannock’, the ‘Northern Lights’, and other concepts such as ‘Windy’ and ‘Flying up’. This is a great resource to introduce children to the cultures of the people who inhabited the land before they did, and to keep a language alive. When leaving the city, people often encounter more of the culture of Canada, and this book is a great way to start that conversation with children. Rey, M., & Shalleck, A. J. (1985). Curious George goes Camping. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Curious George goes Camping is a great book for preschoolers on the older end of the age spectrum. The series is incredibly popular, and learning about how George goes camping could potentially lessen the nerves of a child who has never been in the woods before. The language is simple and there are many illustrations throughout the book, which could give clues a child who is stumbling over an unknown word. There is an illustration depicting almost every action George makes, and therefore is like a picture book that has been influenced by graphic novels. This book is a great read for children who are getting ready to go on an adventure because it deals with the day to day aspects of a camping trip, such as setting up a tent, starting a fire, and getting water from a communal pump. George encounters a deer as well, which is a common sight for most campers in Canada. A skunk also sprays George when he’s deep in the woods and George then becomes a hero by putting out a small forest fire. All the events that happen to George deal with fairly common camping occurrences, and the book would be extremely useful in teaching children about fire safety. Beginning Readers Ages 6-8 Parish, P., & Sweat, L. (1985). Amelia Bedelia goes Camping (1st ed.). New York: Greenwillow Books. Amelia Bedelia is a classic children’s book character that both parents and children find frustratingly hilarious. In this installment of the humorous Amelia Bedelia series, Amelia goes camping, fishing, and literally ’pitches the tent’ into some nearby bushes. The story uses simple language, but touches on very common aspects of a camping trip such as the tent, fishing, boating, and campfires. This book would be great to take on a trip, as children can read about activities they have already completed, and laugh at the silly ways that Amelia thinks they should be done. Amelia takes everything very literally, and in terms of language development parents can introduce the concept of dual meanings for words. Children who read this book are introduced to word play and the concept of homophones in language. Though these concepts can be tricky, the language used by Parish is very simple, and so even young readers can grasp the story. Parents and caregivers can pick out all the silly things Amelia Bedelia does wrong, and the children will have fun stating the right way to do things once they experience them themselves on a camping trip. 30 YAACING | Summer 2016
Middle Readers 8-12 George, J. C., Hodgins, J., & Schoenherr, J. (1977). Julie of the Wolves (Canadian ed.). Toronto: Fitzhenry & Whiteside. Julie of the Wolves is an incredibly powerful story about a young girl named Miyax who survives on the Canadian Tundra. She becomes lost after running away from an abusive marriage at 13, and the book delves into her hard life after her mother dies and her father goes missing. Along with good insight into the indigenous cultures of northern Canada, this book provides a ton of information on the society of wolves and their behavior. Miyax has the utmost respect for the animals that save her life, and the human qualities attributed to them in this novel make them seem more like people than wolves. Although the book deals with powerful themes from starvation to rape, George writes with such powerfully beautiful description that the book is a pleasure to read. This book is a must read for any child, especially girls, heading into the northern regions of Canada. The description of the Canadian scenery and wilderness is incredibly detailed down to the Inuit names of birds and trees. Included in the novel is a lot of survival knowledge that Miyax gained from her father. Middle readers will love to put the knowledge about making fires and gathering supplies to use in the woods, and Miyax is an amazing role model for young survivors. Paulsen, G. (1988). Hatchet. New York, N.Y., U.S.A: Viking Penguin. Gary Paulsen created the survival story of a generation with Hatchet, and it is still an amazing and relevant book today. The 13 year old protagonist Brian is involved in a plane crash in the Canadian wilderness and must learn the ways of the woods to survive. He makes a lot of mistakes, but eventually manages to build shelter, find food, and figure out a way to get rescued. Role-play and games are a big part of the lives of children aged 8-12, and Brian is a great survivor to model their camping trip after. Boys and girls alike can use this story to practice their own survival skills as if they were alone in the woods. Although most children won’t need to survive alone on the family camping trip, the books also does have a lot of really valuable information such as teaching to stay where you are if you’re lost. The language used by Paulsen is fairly simple, and sometimes quite repetitive, but the story is incredible and would give any child reader a sense of excitement about their upcoming foray into the wild.
Jennifer Streckmann is a recent UBC MLIS graduate who compiled this list for her Survey of Children’s Literature course. Summer 2016 | YAACING 31
FEATURES
An Annotated Bibliography of Alphabet Books By Chloe Humphreys This annotated bibliography presents a set of 8 engaging, playful, and beautifully rendered alphabet books. Each title offers a unique take on the ABCs that will delight readers of all ages. Base, Graeme. Animalia. London: Puffin Books, 1996. (Words: 183) A feast for the eyes and the imagination, Animalia invites readers to immerse themselves in a dynamic world of fantasy and letters. A mix of single and double page spreads depict intricate scenes of animals and objects that reflect the alliterative phrases accompanying each illustration. Lazy lions lounge, proud peacocks preen, and youthful yaks yodel. Base renders the images in bright colours and rich textures, typographically reflecting the mood of scenes in unique fonts. Each scene vividly conjures a letter of the alphabet, as Base instructs readers to “find a thousand things” by spying whimsical details on every page. Upon each exploration, new facets of the illustrations present themselves. This cheeky invitation inspires the audience to comb through illustrations, while practicing vocabulary. Complex terms like “harnessed”, “impromptu”, and “kookaburra” are incorporated throughout, prompting adults to engage with younger readers by discussing new words and vocabulary. As such, it is a wonderful book to be shared, fostering interaction between readers and the book’s content. For readers who enjoy the game of eye-spy, Animalia will catch their attention and fascinate them time and time again. Dow Simpson, Gretchen. Gretchen’s abc. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. (Words: 224) Gretchen’s abc is a stunning collection of still life paintings, accompanied only by lower case letters of the alphabet. No alliterative phrases, or funny alphabet puns clutter the pages of this book. Instead, in sharp detail and at odd angles, the square illustrations depict everyday objects whose names begin with the corresponding letters. Demanding great scrutiny, readers observe a vibrant close up of green and yellow stripes, or an image of large round balls with colourful swirls at their centres, and discover that they are looking at grass for G and a collection of marbles for M. The necessary words do not come as quickly for all illustrations, with certain images requiring several minutes of guesswork. For this reason, Gretchen’s abc can be a wonderful book to share between readers, as they collaborate and guess at images together. Also, for younger readers, some of the vocabulary required to identify the objects is quite sophisticated: awning, unicycle, and dance shoes. As a result, a reading companion may be necessary to help decipher the correct words. The book includes an index of the appropriate vocabulary, which can be a helpful aid to prompt new word acquisition. Dow Simpson’s beautiful illustrations stand as a small art collection that exposes readers to the intricacies of the visual arts, while also acting as amusing guessing games and puzzles.
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Ehlert, Lois. Eating the Alphabet: Fruits & Vegetables for A to Z. London: Voyager Books, 1989. (Words: 198) Written for a preschool audience, Eating the Alphabet introduces young readers to a myriad of colourful fruits and vegetables from around the world. Ehlert prompts readers to “start eating your way through this alphabet book”, as pages depict spiky artichokes, round currants, and delicate lettuce rendered in delectable watercolour. The images are dynamic and the food looks appealing; perhaps encouraging reluctant eaters to try a vegetable or two. Accompanying the illustrated fruits and veggies are their corresponding names, in upper and lower case script that is bold and easy to read. Everything is set on a simple white background, lending contrast to the bright colours and dark text. As a result, young readers can feel visually unencumbered when practicing their word and letter recognition. A lovely added feature is the glossary of fruits and vegetables that is included at the end of the book. A small thumbnail illustration and a brief description of the food’s origin, fun facts and appearance are listed alphabetically. The glossary also showcases a pronunciation guide for all the fruit and vegetable vocabulary. With the glossary for support, readers can rely on Eating the Alphabet to help them learn, while also thoroughly enjoying themselves. Escoffier, Michael. Take Away the A. Illustrated by Kris Di Giacomo. New York: Enchanted Lion Books, 2014. (Words: 203) In this “alphabeast of a book”, Escoffier and Di Giacomo re-imagine the ABCs with humour, whimsy, and intelligent wordplay. Take Away the A is an alphabetical exploration of the magic of subtraction, as letters disappears from words to create entirely new ones. The book begins, “Without the A, the beast is the best”, as the illustration depicts a hairy beast proudly holding up a large championship trophy, while a duck and fish dejectedly take second and third place. In kind, the book follows with other silly vignettes that are sure to make audiences giggle. As described above, each letter and phrase is accompanied by an illustration that tells a small story, adding a strong visual narrative to the text. Together, the words and images impart a fun and humorous tone to the book. Di Giacomo’s muted colour illustrations are stylistic, simple and engaging, as animals are imbued with recognizable emotions and facial expressions. In particular, a small white mouse appears periodically throughout the book, encouraging young readers to search for the small, familiar character. Not only does Take Away the A showcase letters, words, and their relationship, it also allows for audiences to experiment with language while having a great deal of fun. Falkenstern, Lisa. Professor Whiskerton Presents: Steampunk ABC. Las Vegas: Two Lions, 2014. (Words: 217) The fantasy genre of steampunk comes alive in Falkenstern’s imaginative alphabet book. The tale centres on two small mice who are busy wielding tools and assembling intricate gadgets. In line with this theme of building, A stands for anvil, B is for bolt, C is for crank, H is for hammer, and R is for rivet. Typographically, each capital letter dominates the page, and is constituted by large masses of shiny metal pieces, cogs, and pulleys. The visual nuance and detail of the letters is fascinating. To emphasize their intricacy, Falkenstern sets the metal letters on brightly coloured backgrounds that showcase the eye catching illustrations. In and amongst the alphabet, the two mice – both dressed in Victorian-style clothing – are carrying out their own parallel narrative, industriously using saws, drills and wrenches to invent miniature machines. Summer 2016 | YAACING 33
FEATURES However, it does not become clear what large machine they are building until the end of the book, when it is revealed that the mice have created a beautiful steampunk zeppelin for exploration. By injecting the story with this element of surprise, Falkenstern deftly keeps readers curious and engaged, as they wonder what the mice are busy doing. In this way, Steampunk ABC presents readers with the alphabet, while also telling an amusing dialogue-free story about two mice with dreams of adventure. Harrison, Ted. A Northern Alphabet. Toronto: Tundra Books, 2009. (Words: 232) As the title suggests, A Northern Alphabet captures the striking beauty and unique spirit of Northern Canada. Throughout the book, the letters of the alphabet are repeated in alliterative sentences that describe distinctly Northern objects, experiences and landscapes. Anoraks, Canadian flags, earmuffs, campfires, and igloos are brought together to evoke life in the North. In his short introduction, Harrison suggests that readers take each sentence as the beginning of a story, and encourages his audience to write the rest of the adventure themselves. Each scene also contains objects that begin with the same letter, encouraging concentration and keen eyes. As a result, A Northern Alphabet is more than a simple alphabet book, becoming a multi-faceted activity book and a source for narrative inspiration. Harrison’s illustrations reflect his iconic artistic style marked by bright colours, bold black outlines, and expansive horizons of earth and sky. Young readers will enjoy the simple lines and block colours of the paintings, as they attract the eye, and are made even more vibrant by a consistent neutral beige border. With this alphabet book in hand, readers who are new to the North will marvel at its beauty, while those who have experienced Northern life will identify deeply with the text and its accompanying images. In this way, A Northern Alphabet draws readers in and creates an intimate conversation between the work, its author and his audience. Jeffers, Oliver. Once Upon an Alphabet: Short Stories for all the Letters. London: HaperCollins Children’s Books, 2014. (Words: 266) With its neon coral cover and large size, Once Upon an Alphabet lures curious readers in with ease. The book offers a short story inspired by every letter of the alphabet; A is a tale of an astronaut named Edmund, B is a vignette about burning a bridge, and C introduces readers to a feisty cup in the cupboard. Each story is quirky and whimsical, while also striking a balance between humour and complicated emotions like loneliness and anger. Certain sections will make readers giggle; others will quietly prompt readers to pause, in order to consider how characters are feeling and why. This gentle mix lends each story emotional depth, and produces a balanced reading experience for audiences. Jeffers also spices up his stories by ending many with unexpected twists. For example, the little cup in the cupboard excitedly dreams of living on the windowsill, and one day “he decides to go for it”, only to find himself shattered to pieces on the kitchen floor! Plot twists like these are sure to surprise and delight readers. Visually, Once Upon an Alphabet can easily be recognized as the work of Oliver Jeffers, as landscapes and characters are rendered in his usual cartoonish fashion. Colour is used minimally throughout the book, lending visual emphasis to the letters and figures that are in colour. Additionally, word bubbles are used to great effect, as certain characters converse in a fun comic book style with colour coded speech. Thus, readers can jump from one story to another throughout Once Upon an Alphabet, and delight in each for their unique narrative surprises. 34 YAACING | Summer 2016
McLimans, David. Gone Wild: an Endangered Animal Alphabet. New York: Walker & Company, 2006. (Words: 240) Gone Wild is a unique alphabet book that raises awareness, both visually and textually, of the complex issue of endangered animals. McLimans introduces the subject area by explaining, in simple terms, how and why animals go extinct. The author also includes several definitions for “critically endangered”, “endangered” and “vulnerable”. With a firm grasp on these important terms, young readers can continue through the endangered animal alphabet with a better understanding of the status of each animal. For every letter of the alphabet, the book showcases one endangered animal whose name begins with that letter. Visually, the letters and animals are intimately connected, as large black and white letters depict the animals they represent. For example, the C is a spotted characin fish, its’ body curved into the gentle shape of the letter C. The illustrations are striking, sleek and simple. The black and white letters are accompanied by small red boxes that contain full body thumbnail illustrations of the animals, as well as information about habitat, class, and survival threats. As a result, readers can compare the letter representations of the animals to the full body images, in order to familiarize themselves with hallmarks of the different species. Additional information about the animals is included at the end of the book. While the subject matter of Gone Wild is complicated and often scientific, the book succeeds at introducing the topic of endangered animals in an accessible and easily digestible way.
Chloe Humphreys is a student in the MLIS program at the University of British Columbia iSchool. Summer 2016 | YAACING 35
FEATURES
Secret Codes from Faraway Places By Susan Pierce When BCLA announced that the Summer Reading Club theme this year is “Book a Trip,” I was ecstatic! What could be better than the idea of creating programming relating to the desire we all have to take imaginary as well as actual physical trips? The desire to see and dream of exotic locales is present in all of us and I relish the idea of sharing the excitement for travel to real and imagined destinations with all our Summer Reading Club participants. I have always had a secret desire to be a spy, travelling to exotic places on secret missions. This fueled (and still fuels!) the many book selections and series I was drawn to as a child and as an adult. BCLA’s theme for this year brought up nostalgia for books like “Harriet the Spy,” the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz, and Rick Riordan’s many brilliant series that transport us so readily to another place and time. This nostalgia resulted in me creating a passive program for this year’s “Book a Trip” Summer Reading Club; the creation of this program allowed me to meld my past desire as a child to be a spy and visit exotic locations with my current adult gig as a librarian who remembers the days when all you wanted was to be a super sleuth! This is how “Secret Codes from Faraway Places” was born. Part of my fascination with being a spy was the fact that they had to figure out codes and clues. I still have that fascination as an adult reading crime novels and trying to deduce the pattern or clues available. For my “Secret Codes from Faraway Places” program, I searched the internet for some code grids that were easy enough for children to use. I wanted them to be able to figure out the grid on their own and then use it to translate messages. I also wanted to tie in favorite book characters and fictional characters that appeal to young readers. 36 YAACING | Summer 2016
I chose some characters from specific books and then wrote a sentence or two as a clue that would indicate the character or the book. When children come into the library this summer, the code grids and secret messages will be available to them in the children’s area as well as pen and paper to fill in the message. Once they have deciphered the secret message using the code grid, they can submit their answer to win a weekly book prize. Each week will feature a different secret message which will encourage children to make weekly visits to the library to decode the message and possibly win a prize. Effectively, each week, Summer Reading Club participants will be transported to a different imaginary place along with their favorite book character. From a child’s perspective, part of the joy of reading is discovering that, while they may lack the independence to physically transport themselves places, they can mentally override this limitation. In fact, creating and reading about exotic places in their imaginations may surpass even their wildest dreams for adventure. (I would like to acknowledge the amazing support of the VIRL communications department for branding of program materials).
Susan Pierce is a Customer Services Librarian at Parksville, Woss, Sointula, Port McNeill, Port Hardy, and Port Alice branches at Vancouver Island Regional Library.
REVIEWS
Reviews diverse; it is great to see a secondary character wearing a head scarf. It was also refreshing to see a mother with a tattoo. With large pictures and words that lend themselves to a musical twang, this is a great book for story time. If you play an instrument, you can easily accompany this to music. Even if you aren’t a musician, you can slip in some information about blues as a music genre. Try introducing a little tune to “B-A-B-Y, baby” and having the kids chime in on cue. There are so many possibilities here!
Baby’s Got the Blues Review by Sadie Tucker
Great for older toddlers and preschoolers. Being a baby is hard. No language, few teeth, and limited mobility leave infants at their grown-ups’ whims. Sometimes, all you can do is sing the blues. This is really a song in book form, which is fantastic for literacy development. The rhyming text with repeating refrain provide great support for children learning to read as well as making the story more entertaining to boot! There are touches of humour here to amuse child and adult alike, lending a playful tone to the story. All in all, this is a great vehicle for discussing babies and encouraging empathy. The illustrations are large, making the book conducive to group readings. There are plenty of details to keep a young listener engaged while the text is being read and the faces are expressive which helps to draw you into the story. There is plenty of fodder for dialogic reading prompts here. The presence of a big sister will help children relate to their younger siblings. The cast is moderately
Nerdy Birdy
Review by Sadie Tucker Preschoolers and young elementary students will love this story. Nerdy Birdy doesn’t fit in with the cool birds. His wings are too small, he likes books and videogames, and he is allergic to bird seed. His loneliness comes Summer 2016 | YAACING 37
REVIEWS
to an end when he meets a flock of fellow nerdy birdies who reassure him that there is always room for one more. When he meets the new bird in town, will there be room for her, too?
in it, this book lends itself to counting. Both the narrative and the illustrations depict seven grandparents doing all sorts of things in a variety of configurations, and many readers will find it hard to resist ensuring that the two match up. This is a The book’s text is placed creatively throughout great way to subtly support early numeracy. and includes environmental print. Happily, this positively impacts the narrative by adding energy While the plot itself is not particularly amazing, and interest to the page rather than creating this book really shines in the depiction of Silas’ confusion. Playing with font size, placement, and grandparents. Not only are they active and colour also helps to support print awareness for passionate about life (something that is sadly lacking the very young. The story itself is appropriate for in many children’s books involving grandparents), preschoolers and older, as it is not overly long or they are also extremely diverse: Most are in couples, text-heavy, but some of the pictures and references but one is single; they have a wide variety of ethnic will only make sense to older readers (or nerdy and cultural backgrounds; and they range from parents). moderately grey to notably wrinkled. The mere presence of multiple sets of grandparents is also Like its text, the book’s illustrations are busy and lovely to see, as it is the reality for many children. every page seems to have a different layout. Despite this, the content is easy to follow and bursts with character. The pictures have little details that readers, young and old, will enjoy picking out. This is a great story not only about being yourself, but embracing others’ identities, as well. Without giving too much away, this book does a brilliant job of using a twist to drive home its point. Highly recommended!
Silas’ Seven Grandparents Review by Sadie Tucker
Recommended for preschoolers 4+. This is a book with detailed, colourful illustrations and a story that values inclusiveness. Silas has seven active grandparents who love him very much, but it can be exhausting! When his parents decide to go on a trip, who will he decide to stay with? As can be expected with a story that has a number 38 YAACING | Summer 2016
Call for Submissions 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 Reviews 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 2016 issue of YAACING is September 1, 2016. Email your submissions to the editors at YAACING@gmail.com.
Summer 2016 | YAACING 39
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