Get ready for The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games movie will be released March 23, 2012. Join the fervor with a YA book club , as Amity DeAngelis did at the Weatherfield Proctor Library. Her idea of pairing survival training for teens with the the Suzanne Collins trilogy is genius!

For the book clubs I chose a popular series and had three meetings. For two of the book clubs (Percy Jackson and Twilight) I did related crafts at the first two meetings and then did pizza and a trip to the movies to see the film version at the last meeting. This did require some planning ahead to make sure that the movie was going to be released at the time we would be having the third meeting. The library paid for the pizza but the attendees were responsible for their movie ticket. For the other book club (The Hunger Games) I partnered with the Precision Valley Fish & Game Association to set up survival training for each meeting. Each meeting covered a different topic: archery, emergency shelter building, and fire making.

YouTube for a Website Overview

With so many services online, Laura Henderson of the Mark Skinner Library chose YouTube to publicize them. This seven minute video introduces website, catalog, quick links, the Vermont Online Library, ListenUp and Universal Class. Another approach might be mini-videos– segment each service into a one short clip.

Nice work, Laura, and nice website, MSL!

Quiet area in the library?

Borrow a good idea from Davis Library at Middlebury College: create a quiet area. Here’s the blog post to go with the sign:

While certain areas of Davis Family Library have always been known unofficially as good spots for quiet study, recently we’ve formalized that a bit by installing signage marking some areas as “Quiet Study Areas”. Look for the big blue Q and please avoid conversation, either in person or on the phone, anywhere near these signs. Of course, LIS staff won’t be going around the building “shushing” people, but we hope the new signage makes it more obvious which parts of the building are reserved for quiet contemplative study.

Need new trustees? ADVERTISE!

Brooks Memorial Library advertises for new trustees in their weekly e-newsletter. Specifics include the term length (3 years), qualifications (residency, “interest in maintaining a strong and visionary library,” and expectations: monthly meetings and service on one or more ad hoc committees.

“Applicants should sent a letter, or email, describing their interest in serving on the Library Board no later than Monday, January 3. Interviews will be arranged later that week.”

Trunk or Treat

Barnet hosted it’s second annual Trunk or Treat. There were over 20 vehicles decorated for Halloween, over 125 children trick or treated from car to car. The Library handed out books, stickers and candy. It is a great event, should any one want to think about it for next year.

Check out facebook page for photos

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Barnet-Public-Library/200749513689

Sherry Tolle, Library Director
Barnet Public Library
Barnet, VT 05821
802-633-4436

Books, Soup and Pie

Every year the Lincoln Library holds a “Books, Soup and Pie Sale” either on Columbus Day weekend or in November. People buy their Thanksgiving pies and freeze them. Last year librarian Debi Gray reported making $700 solely on pie sales. Check out the event at the library website.

The Grafton Library also holds an annual booksale the Saturday of the Columbus weekend– when people are in town for the foliage and other nonprofit fundraisers.

SAT Prep at Libraries

Burnham Memorial Library offers an informal SAT prep course to area HS students. Here’s youth services Gizelle Guyette (gguyette@colchestervt.gov): Princeton Review was willing to work with us. They provide the tests, which are actual SATs with current sections, scoring, rules and regs. We provide the venue and the proctor (me). We set the room and test conditions up as specified by SAT testing rules… we recreate as closely as possible the environment they will encounter with the real test, including timing and specific regulations regarding allowed utensils and equipment. After the exam, the tests are sent by FedEx to be scored by Princeton Review, and on the following Saturday, one of their instructors brings their scores and teaches a strategy session for individual sections, and then specific questions.

If the library is interested, talk to the Princeton Review. Gizelle’s contact is Shannon Shepardson, SShepardson@Review.com; phone: (800) 447.0254 x5630; mail: The Princeton Review 1340 Centre Street l Suite 104 l Newton, MA 02459

Paint the picture clearly– the library budget, opportunities for Young Adults, likelihood that students will be able to purchase courses. Burnham paid $500 in the initial year for the service and books, no charge to the students of course. The second year Princeton Review provided the course pro bono.

Gizelle again: Students who participated and gave us feedback told me that their scores between the Practice SAT and the official one improved 100-150 points, and that they went into the real SAT “feeling like they knew what they were doing.”

Cheap Storage and Good Will

The Roger Clark Memorial Library in Pittsfield used small town Vermont solutions for a big problem: where to store books and furniture while the old school building was rehabbed. Take a look at the library website for more details.

Living Books Program

The Ilsley Public Library in Middlebury hosted a Living Books Program.  Rather than having an author visit and talk about their book, they arranged for patrons to “check out” a person for a one-on-one conversation. Here’s the library description:

We make books come alive by inviting their authors to visit and talk with us. Now we’re going a step further.

On Saturday the 12th, we will feature living books.  You check them out for up to 30 minutes, talk with them, and then return them.  Have a coffee, sit down, it’s all about learning something new.

Each “book” is a person – local residents of different backgrounds (such as a retired FBI agent, a pro wrestler, and an animal rights activist) who have volunteered to be “checked-out” by readers for one-on-one conversations.  Everyone stays in the library.

Job Search 101 Workshops

The Rockingham Free Public Library in Bellows Falls offered a series of workshops called “Job Search 101″ for young adults ages 15 to 21.  The workshop series was free; participants met each week.

This series gave participants basic information, skills and techniques to begin career planning.

The curriculum and format were designed by the group itself in order to meet their specific employment needs and interests. All aspects of finding a job were covered: resume writing, job search techniques, interviews and building positive, useful, and practical skills in order to obtain and maintain a job.