The ALA Annual Conference is coming up in just a few weeks (June 27 – July 2, 2024) and the ALSC Blog plans to offer updates about what is happening at the Conference with a team of guest bloggers. Are you attending? Would you be interested in writing brief updates about the programs you attend, the speakers you hear, or the information you are learning? It’s not too late to join our Conference Blogging Team. Let us know of your interest by filling out the Conference Blogging Interest Form. Looking forward to hearing from you! The post Last Call for Conference Bloggers appeared first on ALSC ..read more

Oralia Garza de Cortés is the 2024 recipient of the Association for Library Service to Children’s (ALSC) Distinguished Service Award. This prestigious award honors an individual who has made significant contributions to library service to children and to ALSC. From longstanding membership and service in ALSC and REFORMA to cofounding the Pura Belpré Award and the Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros celebration, Garza de Cortés’ dedication to the field spans over 40 years. Her work in youth services has included being a children’s librarian, writer, and family literacy expert, as well as a pass ..read more

Stories are powerful expressions and conveyors of culture that build empathy, understanding, and help children explore their places in the world. How do we support children to become responsible creators of digital stories? This was the subject of a We Are ALSC Chat on May 20, 2024. Members of the ALSC Children and Technology Committee and other ALSC members met for an hour online to dig into strategies library staff in schools and public libraries can use to ensure we are helping kids grow in the area of digital storytelling. By incorporating digital content creation into the curriculum, we ..read more

At the beginning of this school year, I was pleasantly surprised to hear that our local Girl Scouts wanted to volunteer at our library! Ranging from age 8 to 12, these Girl Scouts were enthusiastic to serve their community by volunteering in the children’s department. I have greatly enjoyed working with this group, as they have showed excitement and pride in the work they have accomplished. Here are some volunteer opportunities that you can provide Girl Scouts and other child volunteers. Creative Commons Photo Decorating the Children’s Department I don’t know about all of you, but I sometimes ..read more

Do you want to engage toddlers, practice motor skills, and capitalize on the enthusiasm of the summer Olympic Games? We did! With increasing toddler attendance at our early learning programs, we wanted to add programs specific to the target age of 18 to 36 months. Practicing gross motor skills and free play was a great start, and the beginning of Toddler Games. Read on for more details. The kit houses most of the program’s needed supplies. Supplies Toddler Games is highly customizable, so you can purchase (or repurpose) only the supplies you need for your chosen activities. Our system is five ..read more

It’s June. And like every June since I’ve begun working in youth services, there’s a little part of me that wonders what to expect (if anything) when PRIDE displays go up around the library. While I’m ready for complaints and concerns as the surge in book challenges continues, something else can happen too. People can smile. This year a caregiver and school age child stood at the lobby display browsing the featured LGBTQ+ themed books for different ages. Both had big smiles on their faces. The adult picked out a picture book, adding it to a basket full of titles. Then they picked out another ..read more

Dear Members, I recall sitting in my office one day in April 2022 and receiving a phone call from ALSC Executive Director Alena Rivers, who told me that I had been elected ALSC vice president. I was excited, nervous, and surprised that people voted for me even though I am a former elementary school teacher and professor of literacy education, and now a professor of children’s literature. Although I have not worked as a librarian, I am determinedly committed to literacy and putting books in the hands of children, and over the years, I have had close relationships with many librarians who have s ..read more

(Image by Thinkstockphotos.com) My journey with ALA and ALSC membership came much later than it probably should have. I’ve been working in libraries since 2005 and saw all the postings in our breakroom about joining ALA and thought, “Well, maybe one day. I’m just a paraprofessional, who knows if I’ll stick around. . .” Year after year, I thought about joining. Then, one day in 2021, I saw an email from our staff training coordinator that talked about an opportunity for BIPOC individuals to join ALSC. I talked with my supervisor at the time and she encouraged me to apply. I submitted an applica ..read more

As the final school bells of the year begin to ring, a collective sigh slinks its way through the ranks of youth library workers everywhere. Some are in relief: we’ve planned it all and we’re ready to go. Some are riddled with stress: did we do enough? Are we really ready to take on our role as informal educators for the next three months? The start of Summer Reading, Summer with the Library, Summer Learning, and every other name umbrellaed by conjoining the wide-ranging ideas of ‘reading’ ‘learning’ and ‘libraries’ is upon us, and though we might be ready for all that summer brings, are the f ..read more

“Let us set this upside-down world right again by starting with the children. They will show the grown-ups the way to go.” – Jella Lepman, 1945 In the aftermath of World War II, Jella Lepman returned to her native Germany to help rebuild. She saw books as a way for children to imagine a bigger world and a brighter future, as bridges to understanding. Today her vision seems more relevant than ever. After traveling through Germany to share books from different countries, Lepman founded the International Youth Library which celebrates 75 years in 2024. Soon after, Jepman founded IBBY, the Interna ..read more