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Editorial

Welcome to the first issue of the all-new TeenLibrarian Newsletter!

If you are a new subscriber and would like to catch up on 13 years of the previous iteration of the newsletter you may do so here:
https://teenlibrarianmonthly.wordpress.com/, but your enjoyment of this newsletter will not be impacted in any way by not having read the old ones!

The beginning of this week marked three months in my current job as a Youth Services Specialist working for a major county library service somewhere in the Midwest. At the end of this week I will have been in the US for a year and smack-dab between those two anniversaries is the launch of my new newsletter, so this is a week to remember!

I am hoping that the newsletter will be a mixture of news, resources, ideas and practical suggestions on working with teens and young people in libraries. I would also like to offer space to colleagues around the world who would like to share their experiences in libraries; from outstanding activities to overcoming obstacles and everything in between.

If you are interested in writing for the newsletter or suggesting resources for inclusion in future issues, you can contact me via editor@teenlibrarian.co.uk

Interactive Display: Where Would You like to Live in the Future?

As part of the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the Moon Landing I created an interactive display asking young library patrons where they would like to live in the future. The four options were on earth, on a Space Station, on Mars or on an Interstellar Space Ship. They voted by placing a small astronaut under their future residence of choice.

This display was more popular than I envisioned, and I spent several hours cutting out astronauts to keep up with demand.

The posters and images available to download, if you would like to use them create your own display you may do so by following the link below
http://teenlibrarian.co.uk/2019/06/17/interactive-display-where-would-you-like-to-live-in-the-future/

Display Idea: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is a trilogy of books containing a mixture of urban myths and folklore that were compiled by author Alvin Schwartz and illustrated by Caldecott-winning illustrator Stephen Gammell.

The stories and artwork terrified a generation of readers from 1981 to 1991. The books also muscled their way to the front of the ALA’s 100 most frequently challenged books for 1990-1991 and hit seventh place in the 2000-2009 frequently challenged list. The challenges were often down to the violence of the stories as well as the ” surreal, nightmarish illustrations” in the original books.

On August 9th, a film adaptation produced by horror-maestro Guillermo del Toro will be released by Lionsgate and CBS Films.

Ahead of the movie’s release, Harper Collins is re-releasing the books with the original illustrations: https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062961280/scary-stories-to-tell-in-the-dark-movie-tie-in-edition/

The movie and books release in August will be a perfect core for a display along the lines of Tales to Chill the Warmest Months… featuring urban myths and horror stories for younger readers.

If you have never heard of or read Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark then now is the perfect time to change that. These books are phenomenal and the stories are sure to chill the blood of all who read them!

Diversity & Inclusion

BAME Workers in the Library

Librarian Ka-ming Pang has created and curates a padlet listing articles focusing on the topic of BAME (Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic) in the library. This has a UK focus but there is a wealth of information from
the US as well.
https://padlet.com/kmp23/dhd1bj1x9ldz

LGBTQIA resources for library workers

Librarians Binni Brynolf, Ash Green & Tom Peach have created and curate a Padlet with a focus on LGBTQIA resources for library workers.
https://padlet.com/brynolf/LGBTQIA_library_workers

Online Resources

Metropolitan Museum of Art Open Access

Several years ago the Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, in collaboration with Creative Commons embraced the ethos of Open Access, allowing individuals to easily access their images and use them for “any purpose, including commercial and noncommercial use, free of charge and without requiring permission from the Museum.”

You are able to access the unrestricted images through the Met’s website https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection.

As you search its collection, all you need to do is check off the “Public Domain Artworks” option under “Show Only.” You can also browse the selected works by selecting the “Metropolitan Museum of Art” filter on the Creative Commons site. https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/collections/met

The available works represent a wide range of movements, styles, and mediums, and span iconic paintings by Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh to centuries-old costumes and armour.

Find out more about the Met's Open Access policy here:
https://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/policies-and-documents/open-access

Creative Commons Collection Search

It is not just the Met Museum that has made its public domain materials available, you can search other museums and galleries collections here: https://ccsearch.creativecommons.org/collections

Waterstones Children's Laureate

On July 8th it was announced that Cressida Cowell is the Children's Laureate for 2019-2021.

The role of Children's Laureate is awarded once every two years to an eminent writer or illustrator of children's books to celebrate outstanding achievement in their field.

You can find out about the Children's Laureate here:
https://www.booktrust.org.uk/what-we-do/childrens-laureate/
and learn what Cressida has in mind for her two years by reading the Children's Laureate Charter below.

Library Island by Matt Finch

Library Island is an activity which simulates five years in the life of a nation’s library services. Participants become librarians, government officials, or community members on this island and face the challenges created by conflicting wants, needs, and limited resources. There is an Indigenous community and colonial history to be reckoned with, plus a range of political interests with their own agenda for the library.

It’s a simple game played with nothing more than office furniture, pens, and paper, but it swiftly leads to rich and complex scenarios. The fictional setting allows us to explore structural issues, political challenges, and even some of the disruptive behaviour that professionals may face from their users, within the relative safety of a “make-believe” context.

Source: What exactly is Library Island anyway? – matt finch / mechanical dolphin

Matt has provided a toolkit that can be downloaded with full instructions on how to run, adapt and play the game. It is available here:

https://booksadventures.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/library-island-toolkit.pdf

Upcoming Days to Celebrate

July 17 - World Emoji Day https://worldemojiday.com/
July 20 - The Eagle has landed! The Apollo 11 Lunar Module landed in the Sea of Tranquility
July 27 - Gary" Dungeons & Dragons" Gygax Day - marking the birthday of Gary Gygax the man who invented D&D
https://www.facebook.com/pg/GaryGygaxDay
July 30 - Emily Brontë's birthday

August 1 - World Wide Web Day - on this day in 1990 Sir Tim Berners-Lee debuted his prototype Internet browser that would allow people to share information by using a special mark-up language https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/world-wide-web-day/
August 8 - World Cat day, if you can't have a cat in the library why not a display of cats? https://nationaltoday.com/world-cat-day/
August 27 - International Cosplay day

September 13 - Friday the 13th! Celebrate it or a black cat my walk across your path! Also Roald Dahl's birthday
September 19 - On this day ye talk like a pirate arrr! You savvy? http://talklikeapirate.com/

Well this is it! You have reached the end of the first newsletter of many (hopefully).

If you enjoyed it please feel free to share it with friends and colleagues who may find it useful. I am always happy to hear comments, suggestions for future features and criticisms, so if you think future issues could be improved in any way please let me know!

You can get hold of me via: editor@teenlibrarian.co.uk