CEO, 06/24/09

Children’s Event Organizer
Lakeshores Library System and
Mid-Wisconsin Federated Library System
Youth Services Update
Issue 329; June 24, 2009
http://www.west-bendlibrary.org/mwflskids.htm
http://www.llsmwflschildrens.blogspot.com/

In this issue:
Ruhama’s Review
Summer Updates
Phase Two of ALSC’s Kids Campaign Targets Tweens
Simon & Schuster Launches Teen Networking Site
Free Copy of ICv2 Insider’s Guide
Events This Week
Dates to Remember
Website Faves
And Finally…….


RUHAMA’S REVIEW

Sucks to be Me by Kimberly Pauley
http://tinyurl.com/deyk2z

Mina's life sucks and she can come up with several reasons why, but the biggest is that she is being forced to decide by her birthday (just a few weeks away!) whether or not she wants to be a vampire. Both her parents are vampires, and the Council doesn't like humans and vampires to mix, so now Mina has to figure out if she wants to keep her parents or her best friend Serena. To help with the decision is a set of vampire classes, at which she meets more teens who are trying to decide, including of course, a couple of cute boys. Mina also has a sponsor--her Uncle Mortie--who also helps her see what the vampire world is like (like blood bars) to keep her informed while she figures out her future.

This is a fun story that is a different take on vampirism. Each chapter opens with a fact vs. fiction blurb and throughout the course of the novel, Mina uncovers more interesting tidbits about the vampire lifestyle (and jobs they can have). Mina is a likeable character and reminds me a lot of Princess Mia (and the vampire classes are very much like princess lessons), though Mina is a bit more mature and (dare I say this?) realistic. There were times I laughed out loud while reading and I enjoyed seeing Pauley's take on what a vampire is and isn't. And I was pleased with the way she wraps things up at the end--not too neat to allow some imagination, but many questions are answered.


SUMMER UPDATES

I updated the Lakeshores website calendar this morning with all of the Storywagon appearances. Just click on the Calendar tab at www.lakeshores.lib.wi.us. And please remember to complete your performer evaluations and return them to me. You can do this by completing the blue paper forms, electronically in a Word document, and online with Survey Monkey. (Survey Monkey seems to be down today, so don’t do it now! J)

Also, if you are interested in including American Sign into your programs, you can go to the CSLP Diversity webpage at http://www.cslpreads.org/learning-tools/diversity.html. The videos this year are broken into individual segments, so you don’t have to watch the entire thing to get to the fingerplay, song, or sign that you want use.

I have a lot of printed material left, so if you need more reading records, certificates, or Storywagon brochures please let me know. I am waiting yet on getting the Spanish versions back from the translator and hope to have that soon.


PHASE TWO OF ALSC’S KIDS CAMPAIGN TARGETS TWEENS

Phase Two of the Association for Library Service to Children’s (ALSC) Kids! @ your library® public awareness campaign, which officially launches in July, focuses on tools to help librarians promote library services to kids in grades five through eight.

In preparation of the official July launch, the following free resources have been added to the campaign’s online tool kit: "Bud, Not Buddy" readers theater script, adapted from an excerpt of Christopher Paul Curtis’s award-winning book; and "The Library Card" readers theater script, adapted from an excerpt of Jerry Spinelli’s award-winning book. Other additions to the tool kit include a fresh, new navy blue and lime green version of the So Much to See/Do @ your library® artwork, which is also now available in Russian, Polish and French. The artwork is ideal for promotional flyers and library handouts.

All campaign resources are free and available for download at http://www.ala.org/kids.

The campaign’s phase two launch is the conference program, “A.R.T. and Your Library: How You Can Bring Them Together!” which is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, July 12, in McCormick Place West, Room W-181 at the ALA conference in Chicago. Renowned children’s authors Avi, Brian Selznick, Pam Muñoz Ryan, and Sarah Weeks will perform their readers theater magic to demonstrate how librarians can successfully present readers theater in the library. Librarian presenters will share what’s new in the campaign tool kit and how libraries are using these resources.

Phase one of the Kids! @ your library® Campaign was launched in 2006 and provides free resources to help local libraries reach out to children in grades K-4, their parents and caregivers. For more information about the Kids! @ your library® Campaign and to check out all the free tool kit materials available, visit www.ala.org/kids and click on the tool kit link.


SIMON & SCHUSTER LAUNCHES TEEN NETWORKING SITE

Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing hopes to attract more teens to its books through the creation of a new Pulse It social networking site http://www.simonandschuster.com/specials/pulseit/. The site is aimed at 14- to 18-year-olds and will let teens do things they can do on such places as Facebook—like create personal profiles and befriend other members—as well as read and react to S&S titles. S&S will make two books per month available to be read online for free and members can choose one of those titles and have 60 days to finish the book. Message boards will let readers discuss the book and rank it. The site will also have an author section where teens can interact with their favorite writers.

Simon & Schuster hopes the new site will encourage teens “to buzz our books by spreading the word to their peers on other networks and sites.” The site grew out of the Pulse It advisory board of 3,000 teens who received free physical books in exchange for providing feedback. According to S&S, board members became so active on message boards the company decided to create a site dedicated to them. Pulse It had a soft launch June 8 and currently has about 3,100 members. (PW Daily, 6/18/09)


FREE COPY OF ICV2 INSIDER’S GUIDE

The ICv2 Insider's Guide, with the latest news on "What's Hot, What's Next, and What's Good," is available by subscription. For more info on how to get your subscription go to: http://www.icv2.com/articles/home/9922.html

They have just released the new ICv2 Insider's Guide #65 (Graphic Novels). You can request a free copy by sending an e-mail with your address to: DViau@icv2.com. They also have available copies of their previous ICv2 Insider's Guide #64 (Games) and ICv2 Guide #62: Manga/Anime.


EVENTS THIS WEEK

Wednesday, June 24
Celebration of the Senses
St. John the Baptist Day
U.F.O. Day
Museum Comes To Life Day
National Go Fly a Kite Day
Swim a Lap Day

Thursday, June 25
National Bomb Pop Day
Summerfest opens!
Eric Carle's birthday
Tennis Shoe Day
National Handshake Day
George Orwell’s birthday

Friday, June 26
Take Your Dog to Work Day
National Chocolate Pudding Day
Barcode Day
Toothbrush Day

Saturday, June 27
Great American Backyard Campout
Captain Kangaroo’s birthday
Sunglasses Day
Helen Keller's birthdayNational Orange Blossom Day
National Columnists Day

Sunday, June 28
America’s Kid’s Day
Descendants Day
Log Cabin Day
Special Recreation for Disabled Day
Paul Bunyan Day
Let It Go Day

Monday, June 29
Please Take My Children to Work Day
Peter and Paul Day
National Ducks & Wetlands Day
Camera Day

Tuesday, June 30
Leap Second Adjustment Time
Corvette Day
Meteor Day
London Bridge Day

Wednesday, July 1
Second Half of the New Year Day


DATES TO REMEMBER

June – July Storywagon
July 9-15 ALA Annual Conference, Chicago
October 2-4 IBBY Regional Conference, St. Charles, IL
October 20 SLP Preconference, Appleton
October 21-23 WLA Conference, Appleton


WEBSITE FAVES

Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward
http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/exhibitions/on-view-now/frank-lloyd-wright

The Guggenheim Museum building on New York's Upper East Side is one of Frank Lloyd Wright's most celebrated buildings, and it is truly one of the icons of an architectural career that spanned seven decades. This online exhibition complements an in situ exhibit designed to commemorate the 50th anniversary of this distinguished structure. Visitors to this online exhibit will be able to peruse four primary sections, including "Oral Histories", "Biography", and "Projects". In the "Projects" area, visitors can look through architectural drawings that depict Wright's Unity Temple in Oak Park, Illinois, along with Fallingwater and his proposed "Mile High" skyscraper. With the skyscraper drawing, visitors can also click on an animation button that provides a 360 degree view of the proposed building. Moving on, the "Oral Histories" area provides excerpt of the master himself speaking about his work, along with commentaries from other distinguished architects, including Philip Johnson. (From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/ , 5/22/09)


On the Edge: The Hidden Art of Fore-Edge Book Painting
http://foreedge.bpl.org/

Ready for something delightful? On this site, visitors can check out the first ever online exhibition of fore-edge painted books owned by the Boston Public Library. Formerly, books were not shelved with the spine facing out, but rather horizontally and with the opposite edge (fore-edge) facing out instead. Thus the desire developed to make the fore-edge aesthetically pleasing, and artists began to paint the fore-edge with scenes of an assortment of subjects. Some artists began painting scenes that could only be seen when the books pages were fanned out, and when they weren't fanned out, only the gilt on the fore-edge was visible. Visitors who want to read a little more about their history and the progression to double-sided painted fore-edge books, should click on "About Fore-Edge Painting", on the left hand side of the page. In order to watch the magic of the hidden fore-edge come to life, visitors can click on "Featured Works" to watch 15-30 second videos of hidden fore-edge painted books go from appearing to only having a gilt edge. Once they have seen how these remarkable works of art operate, visitors can browse by subject, painting title, or book title by using the "Browse" link on the left hand side of the page. (From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/ , 5/22/09)


There's a Mystery There: Sendak on Sendak
http://www.rosenbach.org/exhibitions/sendakonsendak/

Companion to a 2008-2009 retrospective exhibit "of the work of author and artist Maurice Sendak that focuses on Sendak's personality as a storyteller engaging with difficult and mysterious themes and memories in his work. It explores Sendak's prolific imagination through the characters, influences, and settings of his books." Features slideshows and video clips from an interview with Sendak on topics such as "Where the Wild Things Are." From the Rosenbach Museum & Library. (Copyright 2009 by Librarians' Internet Index, LII This Week, 6/4/09)


Shakespeare for Kids
http://www.folger.edu/template.cfm?cid=588

Children of all ages will enjoy the activities at Shakespeare for Kids. From word jumbles to weird words to trading Shakespearean insults and quotations to acting out the scenes from scripts written for kids, you’ll have fun with words at this site. Read the fun facts about Shakespeare’s life and times, including a recipe for a seventeenth-century room deodorizer, then try your hand at solving the math problems provided. Learn what a costume designer, librarian, docent, or curator does by reading about the people who work at the Folger. Play detective and test your knowledge of the characters in Shakespeare’s plays or if you want more of a challenge try solving the Shakespeare puzzles. Images from the 17th century books in the Folger collection are available for downloading and coloring or creating jigsaw puzzles. Children are invited to send in their own poems and drawings for publication in “Puck’s Place”. Also worth a click is the link to Queen Elizabeth I to learn all about one of England's most illustrious monarchs. (Education World Site Reviews, 6/9/09)


AND FINALLY………..
Guess it’s officially summer…….