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About the Inclusive Internship Initiative The Public Library Association’s Inclusive Internship Initiative (III) offers paid, summer-long internships to high school students at their local public library. Over the course of the summer, each intern works with their library mentor on a community-based…

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Summer Tracking Templates. Bingo board, bookmark, game board, and tracking slips

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Summer Tracking Templates. Bingo board, bookmark, game board, and tracking slips

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Skip to Main Content

2023 Summer Reading Canva Templates

Canva is a free web-based graphic design tool. We've created templates with the theme graphics provided by iREAD. To use the templates, you must first create a free account at www.canva.com. Canva is easy to learn, but if you want to familiarize yourself with the basics or improve your skills, check out Canva Design School. The Getting Started with Canva tutorial is a good "Canva 101" resource.

Clicking on the images below will create a copy of each design in your account. All of the text on the templates can be edited to suit your library's needs, and your library's information and logo can also be added to the designs. To print, download the files as Print PDFs. If you decide to have them professionally printed, printers should be able to use the files in that format. You can also print them in-house from Print PDFs.

Credits

This project is funded by the State of Connecticut and the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered by the Connecticut State Library. And by the Connecticut State Library

Connecticut State Library | 231 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT 06106 | 860-757-6500 * Toll-free 866-886-4478
Disclaimers & Permissions | Privacy Policy | State of Connecticut Home Page

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LibGuides Home: Summer Reading: Summer Program Templates

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Skip to Main Content Canva is a free web-based graphic design tool. We've created templates with the theme graphics provided by iREAD. To use the templates, you must first create a free account at www.canva.com . Canva is easy to learn, but if you want to familiarize yourself with the basics or improve your skills, check out Canva Design School.

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How to incorporate STEM into summer programming.pdf

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Female Veterans Art Therapy

Sacramento Public Library held a virtual art therapy program for female veterans in partnership with Women Veterans Alliance. This four-week program met once a week for an hour.

Our goals for this program were to provide three critical elements for female veterans: a safe environment in which to express themselves, knowledge of local resources, and connection with fellow veterans. We started planning about five months prior to the program and first focused on booking the instructor and developing a plan with our partner.

We provided art supply kits to the first 20 participants. We prepared the kits ahead of time so they could be sent out as people registered. Each kit came in a large plastic envelope and included:

Mixed media journal

Watercolor set

Paintbrushes

Permanent marker, pencil, eraser

Scissors

Tissue paper

Tape, masking tape

Glue stick

Markers

See a photograph of the art kit here.

Two months before the program, we reached out to our contacts at CalVet, Veterans Connect at the Library, and the County Veteran Services Office with information about the program and a flyer to help spread the word. We also presented at a local veteran's collaborative meeting a month before the program, posted information about the program to the veterans page on our website, and created an event on Facebook.

The most successful promotion came from our partnership with Women Veterans Alliance. They shared the event on their Facebook page, and we received registrations from participants all over the U.S.

There were two costs associated with the program: art supplies and the instructor fee. Art supplies totaled $550. We purchased art supplies to create 20 kits for participants. All of the items were purchased at either Dollar Tree or Michaels. The instructor fee was $400 payment for four hours of instruction.

To cut costs, you could share the list of supplies needed for the program, then offer to fill in the items that patrons don't already have or just offer some of the main items, such as the journal and watercolor set.

One staff person ran the Zoom meeting and introduced the speakers, who were each joining from different locations.

The run of show is as follows:

1. Library staff shared short introduction and information about Women Veterans Alliance (5 mins.)

2. Women Veterans Alliance director shared services and programs at their organization (10 mins.)

3. Library staff introduced the art instructor

4. The art instructor opened with 5 mins. of breathing and mindfulness exercises, then led participants through art project (40 mins.)

5. Library staff wrapped up (5 mins.)

Altogether, 22 people participated in the four-week program. Participants shared that they enjoyed the opportunity to be creative and explore different art materials and that they learned about Women Veterans Alliance at the program and intended to use one of their services.

We received the following comments in a post-program survey: "I really appreciate that this group was offered. It's nice that veterans are being recognized as a group that would benefit from art" and "I appreciated that it was on Zoom. I could do art, but not have to talk to anyone. I'm pretty introverted and when you add in PTSD, anxiety and depression, taking an art class is way out of my reach. But this one let me just do some art while being part of the group though not having to get anxious about interacting."

Given the positive feedback and response to this program, we will be offering another session in the future.

In our post-program survey, we received feedback from multiple participants asking to extend the length of each session to at least 90 minutes to allow more time to work on the art projects.

A hybrid option can also work well for this program; it would allow those who are uncomfortable around others to participate from the privacy of their home, while also allowing others to connect in person. Since it was virtual, it was difficult to see when the instructor showed something up close or when the participants showed off their projects.

Also, partnering with a local organization that served the program's audience was so valuable. Their director was able to provide input as we developed the program, and their reach to female veterans nationwide led to new participants that we wouldn't have been able to reach otherwise.

About Library

Sacramento Public Library serves Sacramento County, which has a population of nearly 1.6 million. We have 28 library locations and a mobile services unit. Sacramento County is home to over 75,000 veterans.

This program series at Sacramento Public Library offers virtual art therapy for female veterans.

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Female Veterans Art Therapy Sacramento Public Library held a virtual art therapy program for female veterans in partnership with Women Veterans Alliance. This four-week program met once a week for an hour. Our goals for this program were to provide three critical elements for female veterans: a safe environment in which to express themselves, knowledge of local resources, and connection with fellow veterans.

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A Community Art Swap is an event where new and gently used art materials are exchanged. Community members are encouraged to trade secondhand supplies, all of which are available for free.

Most of our planning time went into spreading the word about this event and sorting donations. We began promoting the event three months in advance. We also reached out to community groups who might want to collect unclaimed donations; one had particular criteria and agreed to select a small number of items that their service population might appreciate, and the other would take anything.

We set simple ground rules and included them in all of our promotional materials. In the weeks leading up to the event, we shared more specific guidelines on the event page. We looked at creative reuse centers like Philadelphia's Resource Exchange and Denton's Thistle Creative Reuse when setting these guidelines.

The week of the program, we collected donations from people who had art supplies to share but weren't able to make it to the event. These items were loosely sorted and stored until the day before the event, when they were organized more thoroughly and set up in the event space. Two staff members did the bulk of this work, and it took about four hours.

We reached out to local papers and family groups three months before the event date. We also created a Facebook event page and shared it in local "Buy Nothing" Facebook groups, groups focused on sustainability, and a few family groups.

In the weeks leading up to the event, we posted YouTube videos highlighting creative reuse projects and shared them on social media. A week before the event, we created fliers and asked local framing and art-focused stores to hang them in their shop fronts. We also asked local community members with active social media posts to share the event information on their social media channels. Our posts were met with positive responses on Facebook, though our event page only garnered 63 responses.

This program only cost us staff time. All the supplies that were made available were donated by community members.

Three staff members and a community volunteer facilitated this event.

An assortment of art supplies were organized on tables. Anyone was welcome to take items from this area or leave items for others to take. Anyone who had more precious supplies that they'd prefer to swap directly was encouraged to "pre-swap" materials using the Facebook event page. They could post items they had or wanted, arrange a trade, and then meet up at the event to exchange goods. Buying and selling good was prohibited.

A local group who runs a community pantry visited to select items that their families might appreciate. At the end of the event, anything that wasn't claimed was donated to a local thrift store, who was happy to receive art supplies.

About 80 people attended this program. Attendees were thrilled about the event, and many urged us to hold the event regularly. Some attendees had tips for acquiring more donations, though our preference would be to attract more people to help clear out the available materials. Our goal was to divert materials from landfills and make art materials accessible to a wide range of community members, which we did.

This program attracted local artists and hobbyists from a variety of disciplines. Because the swap lent itself to informal conversation, we were able to tell attendees about upcoming programs centered on art. Given the low cost of this program and the overwhelmingly positive feedback from participants, we would happily host this program again. We relied on feedback from individual library patrons.

Expect to receive materials that are not fit for donation. Designate a space for these materials and quietly stow unusable materials there. Give staff as much time as possible to set up, and pull as many staff members as possible to help. Set a cutoff time for items to come in; we had a few people arrive minutes before the end of our program, which didn't allow enough time for their items to be claimed.

About Library

The Cranford Public Library is located in an affluent New Jersey suburb and serves a population of 24,000.

Divert art materials from landfills and encourage environmental-friendly crafts.

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A Community Art Swap is an event where new and gently used art materials are exchanged. Community members are encouraged to trade secondhand supplies, all of which are available for free. Most of our planning time went into spreading the word about this event and sorting donations.

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The Network of the National Library of Medicine in Region 7 serves all of New England and New York State. Organizations can apply for funding to support health information outreach, so if you have an idea for health-related programming for summer 2024, please reach out to us to discuss. Our call for proposals for next year 5/1/24-4/30/25 will open up in the fall. bennie.finch@umassmed.edu

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Focused outreach brings the resources of the NNLM upon a community in order to conduct a systematic approach of identifying health agencies, pursue contacts, and develop relationships with key leaders. The goal is to assess health information use patterns, promote resources, and conduct training with partners.
Learn more about Focused Outreach

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Focused outreach brings the resources of the NNLM upon a community in order to conduct a systematic approach of identifying health agencies, pursue contacts, and develop relationships with key leaders. The goal is to assess health information use patterns, promote resources, and conduct training with partners.

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I think we're looking at the impact (and popularity) our 21 & 22 outdoor programming had on patrons' expectations going into this summer. Many like being outside, but for staff, it's a lot more work in many instances, plus the backup planning that has to be done to overcome weather issues. Vocal patrons also want air conditioning...

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We continue all of our early literacy "morning lineup" programming that we do during the school year, but we rethink some aspects knowing that our attendance will be much bigger, and outdoor environments have different challenges. Our patrons expect a full slate of morning programs for young children every week.

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Zero to low cost: Picture scavenger hunt around the children's room (we change ours out every month with a different theme and the families LOVE it), spot the difference and "I Spy" displays.

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Anything with animals - we have received grants to get in paid presenters but therapy dogs that the kids can read to are free and always a hit.

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There was a healthy demand for our outdoor fitness series. The obstacle course hosted by Luke Robinson of WolfPack Fitness was a fan favorite. We started opening registration only two weeks prior to events to give equal opportunities to all families in our community. It's been helpful to add an at-a-glance calendar to the back of our program flyers. People miss social opportunities. Our 0-5 playgroups help parents and children stay connected and make new friends.

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Library Makers: a Community of Leaders and Learners

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Library Makers: a Community of Leaders and Learners

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Providence Public Library is excited to be a charter member of this community of library staff who are involved in, or want to be involved in making in libraries. We invite you to find out more and to join our community by joining the Library Makers Facebook Group. Register for our upcoming virtual Happy Hour, and for April's STEAM Seekers virtual workshop on Prototyping with Anne and Seiji from Providence Public Library.
Library Makers is a community that:

• Connects and supports library maker staff of all levels of experience.

• Recognizes the experience and strengths that library maker staff bring to the collective.

• Creates a safe welcoming space for library maker staff to ask questions, share knowledge, find a mentor, develop skills, and/or exchange ideas with a diverse group of other professionals.

• Equips and advances library professionals to be innovative leaders for library makerspaces.

Originally formed at the Public Library Association conference in 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic, this group has grown and is now affiliated with a wonderful group of library maker staff people from around the country who are working to advance making in libraries!

This is a networking group for library staff and volunteers who run maker programs and makerspaces in libraries. This includes public libraries, academic libraries, school libraries and any other library you can think of. This is a forum for sharing ideas, troubleshooting, inspiring and encouraging one another. Please help us build the group and invite your colleagues who do making in libraries to join. Whether it is coding or crafts, digital arts or fiber arts, music or painting or robotics or engineering or weaving or woodwork or clay or electronics or...... any kind of making!

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https://www.fishwildlife.org/projectwild/project-wild
We were lucky enough to be given this program book by the state and we plan to pull activities from it for a reoccurring program this summer.

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Project WILD K12 Guide :: Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies

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Since Project WILD was introduced in 1983, more than 1.5 million educators in the United States have participated in Project WILD and Aquatic WILD workshops. Those educators, in turn, have reached over 100 million youth since the program was first introduced.

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Last summer, outdoor programs had higher attendance. This year, we're finding that some families, especially with preschool-aged children, are just attempting library programs for the first time since before the pandemic began. One of our outdoor program options this summer will feature card, board, and lawn games from our Library of Things (LOT). We're hoping to promote the LOT while offering families a choose-your-own-adventure-esque weekly outdoor program.

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With the summer theme we are starting with the Book Dress Coded, this spring. Then add the prompt: What this World Needs Now for teens to post a weekly podcast to let their voices be heard! We will have a full set up for the Podcasting. We will also extend this to Adults
Your Rhode Island Story and Children - intergeneration story with grandchildren- When I was your age. We hope that the stories live longer with our partnership with Story Corps.
Middletown RI - wkirchner@middletownri.com

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In this debut middle-grade girl-power friendship story,…

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Our teens that earn reading badges this year will receive little scratch tickets that I am making myself. I have partnered with local businesses so the teens can earn free slices of pizza, baked goods, gift certificates, and raffle entries.

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Theme of find your voice: how do people communicate differently and combining our Read Across RI book True Biz. This would be a one off session for hearing people to learn basic signs. Break into 2 session for littles and middle littles

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Have a story time out in the community. At a playground, park or other community space. It might not be in the morning, it might be after nap time in the afternoon.

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We do Messy Art every year! We've done stomp painting, finger painting, splatter painting... anything and everything that will make a mess. Kids love the approval of and enthusiasm around getting messy, and parents love the opportunity to provide the activities to their kids without the cleanup. It is pretty staff-heavy and lots of prep and cleanup involved, but worth it. Everyone loves it.

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It's not every day that patrons dodge prancing barnyard goats while navigating instructor-led yoga sessions, but goat yoga (exactly what it sounds like-yoga in the company of goats) is finding a surprisingly warm reception in the library world.

The novel form of exercise, which was founded by Lainey Morse in 2016 with her Original Goat Yoga company and has since found loyal fans all over the country, gives new meaning to community engagement.

Just ask Mary Woodward, circulation services supervisor at Bedford (Tex.) Public Library(BPL). After considering ways to rethink her library's approach to programming, she contacted a local vendor who was able to present a yoga experience that was well off the beaten path.

"It looked like so much fun," Woodward recalls thinking when she booked the goat yoga session as part of her library's fall 2021 programs. "They even brought the goats in Halloween costumes." She describes the whole event as "a belly-laughing, picture-taking, goat-cuddling good time."

Downward dog, meet graceful goat

As with other forms of yoga-and animal appreciation-the audience for the activity isn't limited to anyone demographic.

Catherine Folk-Pushee, adult services librarian at Johnson Public Library in Hackensack, New Jersey, cosponsored a goat yoga event in May with neighboring Rochelle Park Free Public Library. The event featured one session for adults and one for kids.

If you're wondering how much actual physical contact goat yoga practitioners have with the animals, the answer is: It varies. "For the adults, the yoga teacher began with some stretching and warm-up exercises while the goats wandered throughout," Folk-Pushee says. Adults then form a line in table top pose (or other goat-friendly poses low to the ground), she explains, as the handler leads a goat across everyone's backs.

Obviously, not every library will have an outdoor area suitable for goat yoga.

"The space has to be even bigger [than for traditional yoga] to accommodate jumping, inquisitive, sometimes headbutting goats," advises Sarah Kleiva, community engagement manager for Orland Park (Ill.) Public Library (OPPL). It also must be an area, she says, "where goat piddle won't be an issue."

In OPPL's case, an existing, fenced-in backyard with durable decking worked well. "We still had to put up [additional] temporary fencing to prevent the goats from eating our garden," Kleiva notes. That's because-aside from the need to keep the goats inbounds-some of the plant species in the yard were potentially toxic to them.

No goats, no glory

It's important for any library interested in presenting a similar program to work with a reputable goat yoga company. For a fee of $400, Nature's Trail Goat Yoga provided OPPL with an instructor, eight goats, and three wranglers for one hour-about 35 minutes of yoga and the rest of the time for cuddles and photos.

Goats used by well-run companies are brought up to be comfortable around people. "Goat yoga companies raise their goats from babies to be socialized to doing yoga classes with people," Kleiva says. "They tend to use smaller breeds and know their goats' personalities very well." Young ones are especially fun; she suggests asking your local contact when babies may be ready for goat yoga classes so you can schedule a class that month.

A goat yoga company can also handle some of the behind-the-scenes logistics. BPL's program was led by a certified goat yoga instructor (yes, that's a thing), and two wranglers made sure everyone had ample one-on-onetime with the goats. The company, Woodward says, took care of both setup and cleanup. "Participants registered and paid on Goat Yoga Dallas's own event page," she says, "and our city attorney required all participants to sign a liability waiver in case of a goat catastrophe."

As with any activity that includes animals, librarians advise overpreparing. Kleiva suggests attendees bring older exercise mats or towels that they're not worried about getting messy.

Mostly appealing to yoga beginners and, perhaps, people who enjoy getting up close and personal with animals, goat yoga encourages patrons to find the connection between nature and self-care as they practice breathing exercises and learn about goats and their behaviors. The program is a good fit for libraries, assisting them in their core mission to provide programming that educates and creates a healthy community. At OPPL, library staffers happily took plenty of "goat-back selfies," Kleiva says, and helped participants get petting time in as well.

"Librarians are always looking for new ways to bring people to the library," Woodward says. "Unique programming like this is a great way to attract them. Our goat yoga event was so much fun and a big success. I took the class myself and had a blast. I've already booked another one."

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Baa-maste! | American Libraries Magazine

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It's not every day that patrons dodge prancing barnyard goats while navigating instructor-led yoga sessions, but goat yoga (exactly what it sounds like-yoga in the company of goats) is finding a surprisingly warm reception in the library world.

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I'm working with NASA & AAS to promote these 2 upcoming sights of a lifetime. Library resources are available through SEAL (Solar Eclipse Activities for Libraries) with StarNet and a vetted SE reading list. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or would like more info. With gratitude and clear skies, Rik Yeames NASA SE Ambassador

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The Great Stories Club is a reading and discussion program for underserved youth. All materials from each iteration of the Great Stories Club — including the programming guide, book lists, discussion questions, related reading lists and promotional materials — are available for use by any library, state humanities council or community nonprofit, free of charge.

Find free resources to host your own Great Stories Club.

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Ask anyone who works with teens, inside or outside the library, and they might tell you that 13- to 18-year-olds are a tough crowd to reach. Library workers especially put in the effort to keep their teens engaged with unique programs think TikTok programs or virtual Dungeons & Dragons.

"Teenagers are a blind spot for us," says Molly McMillan, program officer at the Mississippi Humanities Council (MHC). "It can be tricky to approach kids of that age because it's generally tough for us all, right? It takes a lot to reel them in."

In 2022, McMillan set out to find humanities-based programming that could effectively reach this age group. A quick Google search bought up ALA's Great Stories Club. "It was perfect," McMillan says. "I reached out to someone at ALA because I had to confirm that we could use all the materials for free. It felt too good to be true."

McMillan found that yes, all Great Stories Club resources are indeed free to use. The Great Stories Club is a reading and discussion program for underserved youth. All materials from each iteration of the Great Stories Club including the programming guide, book lists, discussion questions, related reading lists and promotional materials are available for use by any library, state humanities council or community nonprofit, free of charge.

"Our executive director, Dr. Stuart Rockoff, and I felt the program was worth trying to see if we could reach that 12-to-18 age demographic," says McMillan. "We decided that if the initial run made an impact, the MHC would continue with it. And I'm happy to say it did!"
>>> Apply now for a grant to implement the Great Stories Club. Applications are accepted until March 29, 2023. <<<
Bringing "Empathy" to the Youthful Offender Unit

McMillan went through a few different ideas on how the MHC could successfully use the Great Stories Club's resources to engage teens. They could start by partnering with schools or a public library, but what really caught her attention was the idea of bringing the Great Stories Club as a pilot program to the Youthful Offender Unit at Central Mississippi Correctional Facility.

Using the advice and connections of MHC colleague Carla Falkner, who supports and coordinates humanities education in Mississippi prisons, McMillan approached staff at the youth correctional facility and found that they were enthusiastic about the concept.

McMillan started to look for scholars to facilitate the book group and was connected to Chauncey Spears, formerly of the Mississippi Department of Education and who now works for the Alluvial Collective, an organization working to end inequities in educational programming. Once Spears was on board, the weekly schedule was set, and the theme was chosen.

"We chose to use the Empathy theme for our pilot program," McMillan says. "Chauncey [Spears] and the teens met every single week at the facility. These weekly sessions became like an escape to participants a time where they could be themselves and remind themselves of who they are."

The weekly book discussions were kept to a small group of 12, and the participants were able to spend this time exploring the texts, connecting with each other and with the stories of the characters.

The power of stories

The Great Stories Club is flexible in that the resources can be trimmed down or added to work for the participants' preferences and schedules.

The "Empathy" theme that the Mississippi Humanities Council used suggests six titles in the reading list. "Since this was only a pilot program, Chauncey [Spears] chose to use only three of the recommended books," McMillan says. "'All American Boys' by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, 'Flight' by Sherman Alexie and 'Stuck in Neutral' by Terry Trueman."

Spears used the pre-written discussion questions, but also took the opportunity to go off script with the 12 participants. "With it being such a small group, the teens felt comfortable with each other after the first few sessions," McMillan says. "The discussion questions were tailored to help fit the participants' unique perspectives. They were opening up about topics faced in the books like anxiety and depression. They expressed that these are topics they couldn't talk about openly when they were outside of the group."

"The young men also journaled about the books and about their time in the facility," writes Spears in the Mississippi Humanities Council's January 2023 newsletter. "I enjoy helping young people develop literacy skills that translate into a joy of reading and learning. I like to hope that higher literacy would help them make more informed choices about their time, bodies and relationships. Participating in the Great Stories Club reinforced in me the power of stories to engage the mind and imagination to help better understand reality and society."

Three tips for a successful Great Stories Club

Great Stories Club resources are available to everyone, even without a grant. ALA occasionally offers implementation grants for Great Stories themes. See the application information on the currently available Great Stories Club grant.

"Because of the huge impact of the Great Stories Club pilot program, we are going to bring it back in fall 2023 at after-school programs and public libraries," says McMillan. "We don't plan on just sticking with prison education. That's the beauty of the Great Stories Club it's so adaptable."

Whether you are reading this from a school library, a humanities council or a nonprofit that works with underserved youth, McMillan offers some tips that can help you implement a Great Stories Club, with or without a grant.
1. Start with a pilot program
The Mississippi Humanities Council's pilot program used only three of the six books on the "Empathy" theme's list. McMillan recommends anyone new to the Great Stories club take a similar approach.

"Start with just a few books at a time," she says. "Take it easy so the participants can really dive in on those three titles. Especially if you are doing the Great Stories Club for the first time, you want to start slow. Starting with less is helpful from a planning perspective as well."
2. Evaluate and go from there
"Learn from every session," says McMillan. "And once your pilot program is over, see what worked and what didn't. Learn how to best recruit participants and adjust accordingly."

Remember that teens are hard to reach anywhere! Use your existing or new partnerships with local organizations to ramp up your teen outreach and re-evaluate what works and what doesn't work when it comes to recruitment.
3. There is no way to fail
"The whole point of the Great Stories Club is to connect participants to the stories so they can relate them to their own lives. I think it's important not to focus too much on turnout," says McMillan. "The groups are recommended to be on the smaller side for a reason. If only three or four kids show up to every session, that's great! It's still making a true impact."
The American Library Association's Great Stories Club is a literature-based library outreach program that gives underserved youth the opportunity to read, reflect and share ideas on topics that resonate with them. Since 2006, ALA has made 1,400 Great Stories Club grants to libraries, reaching more than 42,000 young adults in 49 states and 2 U.S. territories. Read more about the Great Stories Club.

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A Weekly Escape Into Stories: The Great Stories Club at a Youth Correctional Facility

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Ask anyone who works with teens, inside or outside the library, and they might tell you that 13- to 18-year-olds are a tough crowd to reach. Library workers especially put in the effort to keep their teens engaged with unique programs - think TikTok programs or virtual Dungeons & Dragons.

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Throughout the year we have been having a passive program were we just put out board games in the children's room for families to play on specific evenings. This summer we are going to try a program to learn specific, more unusual board games that we have access to. (We'll see how that goes!)

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Adults love prizes too and definitely seem motivated by them to complete a book bingo card in the summer - especially gift certificates for food/restaurants and our local used bookstore, even for small amounts. (And our Friends of the Library who run the bookstore are happy to donate them).

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My town LOVES reading logs. kids, adults everyone. we use them year round.

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changed what to do for volunteers so we don't keep losing books. Book reviews, 2hr per review up to 10 hrs. Any book as long as it's been read recently. Helps for display and staff doesn't have to come up with something for volunteers to do.

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Last year we offered vinyl stickers, kawaii-design erasers, and small buttons. A few patrons liked the erasors, but the vinyl stickers were highly-desired. We had a couple parents tell us afterwards that their teens were working their way through our bingo card primarily to get the vinyl stickers!

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With a speaker we will teach our residence how to use resources to better understand their heritage and create stories on Podcasting which will be posted on our website.

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I'm looking for ideas for kits to use for this type of program. I'd love to hear from libraries that have had success with companies or kits and can make suggestions. Thanks!

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We use Beanstack to track reading minutes.  It has a fairly easy UI and most use the app.

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We use Beanstack to track reading minutes.  It has a fairly easy UI and most use the app.

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Find your voice- different ways of communication and how do different things communicate- Mysterious Mushrooms- World Wide Web- jumping off the popularity of Last of Us

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We did a lot of new things, one of the best choices we made was to run a summer-long raffle, with tickets handed out for participation in events and passive programs, as well as reading benchmarks. It was hugely successful and no one missed the little weekly plastic prizes.

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Our children loved earning these throughout the summer. They have SRP-themed ones and generic ones. Generic can be used all year, or are a great way to start if you're not sure if you'll have leftovers at the end of summer reading. Though kids often like the themed ones even after the program ends!
Library - Brag Tags® - School Products (schoollife.com)

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Advertising Specialties, Promotions, Free Proofs

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Using a theme, ask the community to write a poem and then use selections from the poems to create a collaborative poem. Jason Reynolds recently collaborative poem inspired this ideas. Here is the link:
https://www.npr.org/2023/03/16/1163802292/kwame-alexander-poem-napping-sleeping-rest-morning-edition

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NPR Poet in Residence Kwame Alexander recently challenged listeners to write a poem about napping, or anything related, sleeping, dreaming, relaxing....

One thing we confirmed, hundreds of you spend a lot of time thinking about rest and relaxation.

From school kids to the elderly, we received over 1,200 poems from across the country.

Here's Alexander's latest community crowd-sourced poem.

It's called a Blanket of Words.

If I Could...

I would like us to take a break I would like us to contemplate How much better we all are with rest.

I would like to take a restoring nap upon my king size bed. to pile my pillows all around my head A soft warm handmade quilt, my cozy nook to curl up with my favorite book

into a blanket of words

Let's read each other bedtime stories as I drift into unconsciousness Disconnecting from today

I would like to pause just for a few precious moments to calm my mind to slide from my world of lists and piles of laundry, of last night's dishes in the sink

I would like to rest But I have a test. I would like to sleep But my work is too deep.

I would like to give in to the pull of my eyelids Begging to close But the email in front of me Deserves a reply So I sigh deeply and shrug Resisting their tug And attempt once again To compose

I would like to hideaway for a bit of shuteye in the middle of the day to the soft quiet spaces of the old couch before the fire, dogs snoring at my feet, new snow drifting outside my window,

I would like to lay my head, On a pillow, soft as a featherbed, And let my body sink into repose, As my eyelids slowly close.

I would like to, pull the pinpoint stars down from the sky, I'd weave soft moonbeams through them,

to climb the stairs my imagination made I would like to be a bird, unburdened, I would like to be me, unbound.

I just want to nap And wonder And wander

And dream

Of letting go, ego dissolving, like honey in tea.

dreams where we can be everything we've ever wanted to be I would like to be asleep. In my bed. Unable to access the dread in my head.

In my dreams food, money, and life lack relevance

And I would play with magic monkeys.

I would like to live in a world where we dream when we fall asleep And do not face a nightmare when we wake

When I was a little girl, I had dreams of powers that could change the world, In my dreams I could fly, Now I'm seventeen, and I no longer dream that I could be a fairy queen, I have dreams where I'm invisible and no one can see me

I would like answers:

Why do we do what we do? Why do we learn how we do? We are no longer curious We are no longer present.

Exhausted, zombies roaming the streets Toiling with no end in sight We work to eat We eat to live We live to work

Real life beckons with every sheep we try to count, and When my head hits the pillow The whole world falls away.

I would like to rest my shoulders

from their stand at attention, my brain from constantly narrating,

I would like to, but I can't right now. Too much to do, not the right time. I have work to do, Places to be But what if I just flee, And sleep endlessly.

I would like to see you try. A moment of nothing, Ceaseless wonder, Boundless floors. Infinite possibilities, And a thousand more.

I would like to find you in my dream

to hear your voice again Whistling wisdom and wit Stories and songs

scents of freedom, molecules of unconditional love,

I would like to meet you in the space between asleep and awake where we belong to both worlds and yet owe nothing to either place

I would like to feel again the familiar sensation of my hand in yours as we walked in strange and scary places while my heart beats loudly

I would like to listen more closely than the arrogant child that I was who often dismissed your speech as dated and irrelevant I would like to travel in a time machine to before the years passed and you died of old age to apologize to you,

Most of all though, I would like to hear your joyful exhalation - brief and unmistakable - you're the only one I've ever known to laugh even in your sleep.

I would like to awaken in the afternoon sun, Soft fingertips lifting an eyelid Your sweet voice, "Daddy! Daddy! You in there?"

If I could,

I would like to Feel good.

Lay on the clouds and not fall through.

I would like to surrender.

I would like to rest in peace,

I would like to rest my heart From the daily stabs of an unkind world

I would like to forget the faces whose judgements crowd my mind

I would like to be your pillow The firmness to support you, The softness to embrace you,

I would like to awaken and find it's spring, I would like to be remembered as a fearless dreamer

I would like to shut my eyes and Open my heart to nap, wrapped in silence

I would like to Lay down in my bed. Wake up better.

Rise, ready to battle the challenges every day brings. And then I would like to have another cup of coffee, greet

The birdsongs

The willow trees

The warmth of the sun

I would like to meet

The bright new day Embraced in love, refreshed, anew, ready to change the world But first I will dream I will dream of the world I will change

And then, I will change it But for now I would like to dream.
This community poem was created using submissions by:
James Breeden, Durham, NC

Doug Thiele, Norfolk, VA

Megan Dixon, Milwaukee, WI

Michael Ceran, Charlotte, NC

Kaley Burke, Missoula

Lee Robinson, Comfort, TX

Samantha McCulloch, Washington, DC

Erin Lupold, Mount Hebron High School

Grace Russell, Pineville, NC

Ellen Somers, Syracuse, NY

Pippa Mahmood, Ca

Michael L Guss, Stone Mountain, GA

Kit Collard, Mesa, AZ

Kieralyn Kennington, AZ

Carrie Granato, Clearwater Beach, FL

Niki Cruickshank, San Carlos, CA

Citlaly Espinosa Silvestre, Mesa, AZ

Ashley Mitchell, San Carlos, CA

Eleanna Swartz, San Carlos, CA

Dan Grote, US Pennitentiary Canaan, Waymart, PA

Emily Mack, Grand Rapids, MI

Anna VanderLaan, Ann Arbor, MI

Katie Le, Reston, VA

Felicito Fernando, Tennessee

Alyssa Weedon, Ca

Whitney Lewis, Atlanta, GA

Terrence Parker, Maine

Anand Karnad, San Antonio, TX

Priyanka Singh, San Francisco, CA

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Wrapped in a blanket, this cozy community poem celebrates rest and relaxation

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NPR Poet in Residence Kwame Alexander recently challenged listeners to write a poem about napping, or anything related, sleeping, dreaming, relaxing.... One thing we confirmed, hundreds of you spend a lot of time thinking about rest and relaxation. From school kids to the elderly, we received over 1,200 poems from across the country.

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This year we are making badges with our tiny button maker that patrons can earn and add to their lanyards that they get at sign up. We are making them look like scout badges to go with our take on All Together Now, but the buttons can be fit into other themes!

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We'll be making Wreck-It journals for Find Your Voice Summer Reading Program at Pawtucket Public Library

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Where: Hespeler Idea Exchange, program room
When: March 18, 6:30-8:00, March Break
Ages: 10-19
Attendance: 21 attendees (approximately half under 12 years old and half over 12, 5 boys, 16 girls), 2 volunteers
Type: Drop-In

Description: Wreck This Journal by Kerri Smith is a special kind of book that encourages its "readers" to think outside the box, and redefine journaling. Every page has a different, often offbeat, instruction. Sew this page. Drip coffee on this page. Take this book for a walk. Write the same word over and over. Attendees were encouraged to think up their own instructions, and together they created their own book of 33 new pages.

In this program teens and tweens:

Play a high energy "icebreaking" activity

Learn about Wreck This Journal with a fun Powerpoint of inspiration

Have Design Time to create their own pages (with the help of Inspiration Sheet)

Decorate their own cardstock cover (with rhinestones, stick on pearls, googly eyes, glitter letters, etc)

Use a simple book binding technique to sew all the pages together

Complete some of their new pages together

Reflection:
This program was a hit. Some kids had never heard of Wreck This Journal before, and some had already completed one - but all of them were completely immersed in decorating their covers and creating new pages. Tweens who were not able to think of anything right away looked at The Inspiration Sheet I made, which had plenty of cool ideas to get them started. Everyone made at least one page.

The level of excitement was extremely high, and some of their pages are very creative:

Draw the Universe...impossible!

Write your adventures here:

Draw a map! Make this map detailed

Eat this page!

Put your chewed gum here

Write your own secret language here

Draw a rainbow in a different order

I was impressed that many of them were able to complete the book binding without any one-on-one assistance. However the ones who struggled were able to work with our volunteers, or use a stapler. I also created a slide and handout: Book Binding Instruction Sheet.

I had created 9 example pages in advance: finish this story, drop coffee here, write 3 titles for your future autobiography, draw yourself in 50 years doing something awesome, finish this maze using an unconventional writing utensil, etc. These were GREAT activity pages for them to complete after they finished their covers.

While th e volunteers were photocopying the pages, I had the participants decorate their covers. Once they finished they could come to the front and grab some candy - at this point I asked to take a picture of their covers. It was also an awesome opportunity to tell them about our button making services, and another school-aged March Break Event called The Idea Factory. I had premade 15 craft-related buttons. Two of the younger participants and I started a glitter club with our matching "When In Doubt Just Add Glitter" buttons. Everyone loves getting free stuff.

I will definitely be running this program (or some variation of it - perhaps explorers' themed) in the future. Next time I will make sure I have enough time for Feedback Sheets (maybe I'll trade buttons for sheets), and I may shorten the icebreaker as it was a bit longer than I expected.

For a list of materials needed and a timed outline, check out Overview Sheet.
Downloadable Resources
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This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Have you ever run a Wreck This Journal program at your library? If so let me know! And if not, feel free to use my resources, just make sure to send me pictures!

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Make Your Own Wreck This Journal Teen Program

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Where: Hespeler Idea Exchange, program room When: March 18, 6:30-8:00, March Break Ages: 10-19 Attendance: 21 attendees (approximately half under 12 years old and half over 12, 5 boys, 16 girls), 2 volunteers Type: Drop-In Description: Wreck This Journal by Kerri Smith is a special kind of book that encourages its "readers" to think outside...

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We are working on making a pollinator garden with 4H with all ages including help from some master gardeners.

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We are working on making a pollinator garden with 4H with all ages including help from some master gardeners.

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Making Potato Heads with Real Vegetables

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Making Potato Heads with Real Vegetables

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https://www.thespruceeats.com/candy-sushi-recipe-521299

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This candy sushi recipe makes adorable sushi look-alikes from Rice Krispies, gummy worms, and other pre-made candies! Even so-called sushi "haters" won't be able to resist this cute and delicious candy.

Note that this recipe creates two "types" of sushi, the maki rolls, and the fish-topped nigiri. You can make both, or choose just one type and omit the instructions for the other. As written, the recipe makes approximately 2 dozen rolls and 2 dozen nigiri.

Don't miss the photo guide showing how to make candy sushi!

1. Prepare a 12 by 17 inch baking sheet by lining it with waxed paper and spraying the paper with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Place 2 tablespoons of butter in a large microwave-safe bowl, and microwave until melted about 45 seconds.

3. Add 2 cups of miniature marshmallows to the bowl, and microwave until the marshmallows are completely melted, about 1 minute, stirring every 30 seconds. Stir the mixture until it is completely smooth.

4. Add 3 cups of rice cereal and stir until completely coated. Immediately pour the mixture out onto the prepared baking sheet. Spray your hands with nonstick cooking spray, and begin to press the candy into the sheet in a thin layer. Begin working from the edge of the shorter side of the sheet. The mixture will only cover approximately half of the baking sheet.

5. With the short side of the baking sheet nearest you, place a pair of gummy worms an inch from the edge. Place another pair directly below, and repeat until you have a line of worms stretching across the baking sheet.

6. Using the waxed paper to help you, roll the cereal mixture around the gummy worms, pressing firmly to make a tight roll. Take a large sharp knife and cut the log away from the rest of the mixture. Place it off to the side, and repeat the worms/rolling/cutting procedure for the remainder of the cereal.

7. Slice the logs into 1-inch rounds. Wrap each round in a strip of green-colored Fruit Roll-Ups.

8. To make the fish-topped "nigiri," repeat steps 1 to 4 to make the rice candy base, but do not press the rice mixture as thinly. It should be about 3/4 inch thick once pressed into the baking sheet.

9. Cut the candy into rectangles about 3/4 inch by 1 1/2 inches. Place a candy fish on top of each rectangle, and wrap a 1/2-inch strip of green Fruit Roll-Up around the entire package.

10. For a finishing touch, decorate your sushi platter to look more authentic. Suggestions include substituting chocolate sauce for soy sauce, green-tinted whipped cream (or melted white chocolate) for wasabi, and thinly sliced pink fish for pickled ginger.​

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This candy sushi recipe makes adorable sushi look-alikes from Rice Krispies, gummy worms, and other pre-made candies! Even so-called sushi "haters" won't be able to resist this cute and delicious candy. Note that this recipe creates two "types" of sushi, the maki rolls, and the fish-topped nigiri.

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Today, about 11.5 million Americans have some sort of hearing impairment, ranging from difficulty in hearing conversation to total hearing loss. That's about 3.5 percent of the population. In addition, around 50 million of the population experience some level of tinnitus - a constant ringing in the ears.

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders: Statistics About Hearing

A deaf quarterback is credited with the invention of the modern circular football huddle. Read more on this Wikipedia page started by UA students.

The Deaf and the Origin of Hand Signals in Baseball

Deaf Culture Facts That Might Surprise You

Deaf Fun Facts You Need to Know

DEAF HISTORY

April 15, 1817 - The American School for the Deaf, the first public permanent school for Deaf children in the United States, was opened. Located in West Hartford, Connecticut, the school is a nationally renowned leader in providing comprehensive educational programs and services for Deaf and hard-of-hearing students.

April 8, 1864 - Gallaudet University, the first and only higher education institution for Deaf and hard-of-hearing students, was founded. Gallaudet, a private federally chartered research university in Washington, DC, is the only university in the world where students live and learn using American Sign Language and English.

A HISTORY OF DEAF RIGHTS, CULTURE, AND LANGUAGE

Encyclopedia Britannica: History of the Deaf includes information dating back to the 16th century.

People and Events in Deaf History

COMMUNICATION

Healthy Hearing: Communication Tips for Talking to People with Hearing Loss

Disability Language Style Guide: Deaf

American Sign Language Classes

NAD's Position on Deaf People in Media

MORE IMPORTANT RESOURCES

National Association of the Deaf

National Association of the Deaf Resources

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communicative Disorders: Quick Statistics About Hearing

American Sign Language Spoken Here - "Before William Stokoe's groundbreaking research, American Sign Language (ASL) was erroneously viewed as a pantomime, a poor substitute for spoken speech. Now ASL is recognized as a language with its own syntax, morphology, and structure." With National Science Foundation grants Stokoe and two of his Gallaudet colleagues created the Dictionary of American Sign Language on Linguistic Principles in 1965. National Science Foundation

Deaf President Now - In March 1988, Gallaudet University experienced a watershed event that led to the appointment of the 124-year-old university's first deaf president. Since then, Deaf President Now (DPN) has become synonymous with self-determination and empowerment for Deaf and hard-of-hearing people everywhere.

How 'Deaf President Now' Changed America - A brief history of the movement that transformed a university and helped catalyze the Americans With Disabilities Act.

D-PAN.TV - In March 2016, Deaf Professional Arts Network, known as D-Pan, launched a go-to source for American Sign Language-related content. The highlight of the network is DTV News, featuring Deaf anchors who share national news in ASL along with captioning and voiceovers. The network also offers a variety of entertainment and educational content produced by and starring some of the biggest names in the Deaf community.

Deaf View/Image Art, also known as De'Via, is art that examines and expresses the Deaf experience form a cultural, linguistic and intersectional point of view.

Museum of Deaf History, Arts and Culture - Located in Olathe, Kansas, the museum exposes visitors to the historical experiences of being Deaf and the numerous contributions of Deaf people to the world.

FILM | TELEVISION | BOOKS

"Deaf U" is a Netflix reality series that follows a group of Deaf and heard of hearing students at Gallaudet University, a private university for the education of deaf and hard of hearing in Washington, DC. Released in the fall of 2020, the series is produced by actor, model and deaf activist Nyle DiMarco.

"Audible" is a 2021 short film documenting a Maryland High School for the Deaf high school athlete. It is available on Netflix.

Documentary: "Through Deaf Eyes" - This two-hour documentary explores 200 years of Deaf life in America and presents various perspectives on being deaf. The film is propelled by the stories of people, both eminent and ordinary, and sheds light on events that have shaped Deaf lives. The film includes interviews with prominent members of the Deaf community, including actress Marlee Matlin and Gallaudet University president emeritus I. King Jordan. Interwoven throughout the film are six short documentaries produced by Deaf media artists and filmmakers.

" CODA," which won an Academy Award for Best Picture and numerous other awards, was the first film to have burned-in subtitles on screen. CODA stands for Child of Deaf Adults. The movie, released in 20201, is about a hearing child in a deaf family who finds herself torn between pursuing her love of music and helping her family's struggling business. CODA is available on Apple TV+

"Sound and Fury" is a documentary that follows the lives of the Artinians, an extended family with Deaf and hearing members across three generations. Together they confront a technological device that can help the deaf to hear but may also threaten Deaf culture and their bonds with each other. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature and won the National Board of Review Freedom of Expression Award. The documentary is available on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Sling TV and Roku Channel.

"Deaf Jam: ASL Poets in the Spotlight" showcases students who perform in their first American Sign Language Poetry Performance at Lexington School for the Deaf. The documentary is available on PBS.

"A Look into the Deaf Community" is an 8-minute short that shares information on Deaf culture and American Sign Language. It is available on PBS and part of the Rise and Shine series for children on Arkansas PBS.

"The Power of Silence" is a series on PBS that explores deafness and hearing loss through the many different lenses of education, understanding, compassion and technological advances.

"Why Sign Language was Banned in America" is a 12-minute short on PBS as part of the Otherwords series.

View a more extensive list of movies about the Deaf community, including deaf narrative movies and ASL movies and documentaries.

Films to celebrate national Deaf History Month

FAMOUS DEAF & HARD-OF-HEARING ACTORS & ADVOCATES

Sandra Mae Frank - actress and producer, "New Amsterdam"

Marlee Matlin - author, activist, Academy Award-winning actress for "Children of a Lesser God" in 1986, and starred in "Coda" in 2021

Nyle DiMarco - model, actor, activist, first deaf winner on "America's Next Top Model" and "Dancing with the Stars," an executive producer of"," and president of the Nyle DiMarco Foundation

Heather Whitestone - Alabama native and the first deaf woman to be crowned Miss America

Juliette Gordon Low - founder of the Girl Scouts

Derrick Coleman - first deaf offensive player in the NFL and played for the Seattle Seahawks, including in the XVLIII Super Bowl

Lou Ferrigno - actor, bodybuilder, and personal trainer, known for his role as the Incredible Hulk

5 Famous Deaf People Who Changed the World

Famous people with hearing loss

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ASL Stories Directory - American Society for Deaf Children

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Find your child's favorite books in our ASL Stories Directory! Get links to hundreds of free videos of sign language stories your child will love!

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I contacted the pinball museum in my city and they will be donating 5 pairs of tickets! I'm stoked about it.

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Home | Electromagnetic Pinball Museum and Restoration

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Citizen Science Ideas for All Together Now

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Citizen Science Ideas for All Together Now

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SciStarter just had a webinar this week with citizen science ideas for the All Together Now theme. Here's the recording: All Together Now™: Citizen Science in your Summer Reading Program - YouTube

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All Together Now™: Citizen Science in your Summer Reading Program

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Scholastic Literacy Partnerships offers deep discounts - http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/literacypartnerships/index.html

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Scholastic Literacy Partnerships - Literacy Development & Reading Programs

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Educators turn to Scholastic Literacy Partnerships for literacy development and reading programs to help the students in their schools. Learn more now.

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We bought 200 lanyards branded with our giraffe logo and created 7 themed small buttons (using our button maker). The kids got 1 button per week for reading. The final prize was a small toy to attach to the end. We still have kids coming in sporting their lanyards around their neck

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We did a raingutter regatta that was crazy fun and talked about. Hoping to make it signature event. Rain gutter recycled from Transfer station, hose and kiddie pool at the bottom. Built boats to run down the gutter. may add a 2nd this year. 

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We did a raingutter regatta that was crazy fun and talked about. Hoping to make it signature event. Rain gutter recycled from Transfer station, hose and kiddie pool at the bottom. Built boats to run down the gutter. may add a 2nd this year. 

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we're planning a few special storytimes throughout the summer. Llama storytime (with llamas), stuffie sleepover (read a story, leave the stuffies and take pictures of their adventures which the kids will get to have when they pick up), read to a dog

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We have a "mystery" mosaic poster. The readers earn stickers to add to the poster throughout the summer and try to guess what it will be.

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Welcome to StickTogether®: Share a magical moment of community!

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StickTogether™ delivers fun, innovative, collaborative team building activities and products that create community and bring people together!

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using LORI minigrants we hope to purchase supplies for 2 backpacks, one for birding and one for hiking. Our library outdoor space is used by outdoor groups for birdwatching and has a cutthrough path for different hiking paths and we decided to foster these relationships even more. These backpacks would have bird ID, plant ID, binoculars and some family activities if families ended up checking these bags out

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We are hoping to collaborate with the town Senior Services department to have an ongoing letter writing program over the summer where youth correspond with veterans and other seniors in town.

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We made scratch tickets with Canva and then purchased scratch stickers to put over the circles that folks could scratch off. When they completed 4 of the scratch items - we asked them to take photos or show us what they did.. great material for newsletters or social media posts https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CLBXDH3?ref=nb_sb_ss_w_as-reorder-t1_k0_1_16&amp=&crid=2ES5CWACI8UPX&amp=&sprefix=scratch+off+stic  

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We made scratch tickets with Canva and then purchased scratch stickers to put over the circles that folks could scratch off. When they completed 4 of the scratch items - we asked them to take photos or show us what they did.. great material for newsletters or social media posts https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CLBXDH3?ref=nb_sb_ss_w_as-reorder-t1_k0_1_16&amp=&crid=2ES5CWACI8UPX&amp=&sprefix=scratch+off+stic  

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pull out the legos (usually with another building kit too) and let the kids build and put their creations in the display case

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fill a jar with candy. let the kids guess how many candies in the jar. the winner (s) get the candy

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lazy k ranch in RI has llamas that will come to library. llama llama loves to read!

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i try to hold all programming outside that i am putting on outside during the summer. i book the meeting room as a back up for rain. it's easier for kids to run around, need to leave, folks to see, pop in, pop out. we also have a really nice outdoor space for it

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i discovered a lot of sidewalk chalk in the craft closet and I want let people draw on our side walk way for the summer (appropriately). at least i can hose it off if need be

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Schools (visit classes in the school library at the end of the year), Farmer's Market, summer school, day cares, tables at a few community events in May

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Yoga can be a great resource for all ages to express themselves and practice in selfcare, so my library is working with a local mom who's a certified yoga instructor on a kid friendly yoga class!

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I'll be doing a "Make Your Own Storytime" with wordless picture books. I'll gear it towards 3-5 and have a book per kid (or close) and we'll work together to form the story. Then do some kind of craft.