Online High School Yearbooks

 

 

 

 

Many public libraries host physical collections of local high school yearbooks– what if they also linked virtually to the high school yearbooks? Cutler Memorial Library and Rockingham Free Public do, and here’s how it happens.

The Oklahoma Correctional Industries hosts The OCI Yearbook Program, free scanning of high school yearbooks. Use the contact email and phone number, ocirc at doc.ok.gov for OCI Records Conversion, (405) 527-0830. Libraries provide the yearbooks, inmates scan the pages, OCI returns a DVD to the library which chooses a site for the images. Brian Herzog’s Swiss Army Librarian offers some project background for librarians who want to know more. And yes, OCI provides packing details and pays the postage.

Google’s Open Gallery is the  Cutler Memorial Library online digital archive for historic materials of Plainfield, including the neatly typed and drawn 1934 Yearbook. The Rockingham Free Library online yearbooks link takes the reader to a Flickr account, 10 yearbooks per page.

OCI recommends loaning out the DVD for nursing home visits, individual use and high school reunions. What about copyright permission? Good question. Email amy.howlett at vermont.gov if you figure it out.

Minecraft IRL (in real life)

Sam Maskell offers a Minecraft Middle School event with printables for swords and hilts, scavenger hunt sheets, and design sheets, here Minecraft IRL

Attendees made swords of poster board (floppy enough to discourage sword fights) and then competed in the scavenger hunt. Sample questions:
Find three books turned into movies
What are the names of all the Weasley children?
What book won last year’s DCF award?

After the hunt, kids worked with beads and perler pegboards on Minecraft projects like the stone pickaxe. Afterschool fun at of the Rockingham Free Public 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.

Banned Books Week

Take a tip from Vermont librarians last year, and try an easy exhibit to celebrate Banned Books Week, September 25−October 2, 2010. For more information, see the official ALA link. Here’s a short list of some ideas.

Springfield Town Library, pictured above, went for brown paper bag covers and a challenge,”Don’t READ these books.”

The St Johnsbury Academy put together a display of banned/challenged books blocked with Police Do Not Cross tape. Several students and faculty checked out books from the display.

At the Waterbury Public Library, the display of books included red buttons with the message “I read banned books.” Any patron checking out a banned book was given a button to wear.

Marilee Attley at Brattleboro Union High School created a Caution banner with “Ideas inside” “May be eye-opening” to highlight Banned Books and about 10 titles with the reasons they were challenged.

The Rockingham Free Public Library created a circus poster frame for a live action display showing local people reading banned books.

Sensory Friendly Film Series

Samantha Maskell, the Youth Services Librarian at the Rockingham Free Public Library recently hosted a successful Sensory Friendly Film Series.  They had 11 people and their caretakers at the first film (hand picked to see how it would work), then the same audience as well as a few families with toddlers at the next.  The ability to go in and out of the room also worked well, and some people needed to do that in order to take in the experience.

Here is some information on the program from her, as well as the flyer used:

This program is modeled after one that was launched by AMC  (www.amcentertainment.com/) and The Autism Society of America  (http://www.autism-society.org)

The things that set this film series apart from other film series is how you set it up: 

• Lights need to be up – not bright, just make sure that the room isn’t dark
• Sound needs to be lower
• No one gets to say “shhhhhhh, other people are trying to watch the movie” instead, the audience gets to watch it in the way they’re most comfortable, whether it’s clapping, talking, singing, dancing, or something else – as long as no one is in danger – this needs to be in a time or place in your library when noise won’t be a problem.
• Be sure to skip previews and go straight to the movie
• Have an easy exit, sometimes members of this audience need a break from the movie – be prepared for them to come in and out.
• If you allow food, allow home-brought snacks or be prepared to provide gluten/casein-free snack options.
• Be sure you have permission to show films (http://www.movlic.com/library/)
• Be flexible

We also provided a Social Story for this event.  The idea for the Social Story was provided by a high school teacher who works with autistic youth, they use social stories as ways to prepare some youths for what they’re going to encounter.  Our social story is very simple, pictures of the Library, what they can do at the Library, the movie set-up, and the movie schedule.

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October Programs

Rockingham Free Public Library October calendar with events for families and children.

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Humans vs. Zombies Program

Rockingham Free Public Library held a Humans vs. Zombies program that ran through the month of October.

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