I'm Interested in Youth Services

From advocacy to storytime, hear about new approaches to youth services.

Interested in other topics? Check out the conference scheduler and use the drop down "Subject" search field or visit the interests pages to see other topics. 

Saturday

Turning Enemies into Advocates: How Empathy-Based Training Eliminated Barriers Between Youth & Our Staff
Saturday 10:30AM - 11:30AM
For many library systems, the relationship between staff and teenagers is a contentious one. Many of us see teens as disruptive and inconsiderate and it’s often showcased in the quality of our customer service. So, it should come as no surprise that many teens don’t view the library as the safe space we strive to be, instead they often see librarians as “the enemy”. If our goal is to provide equal opportunities for success to all members of our community, why is it so common for teens to be among the excluded? We fear what we don’t know, and many of us simply don’t understand what it means to be a teenager in 2019.

Sunday

The Urgency of History: How Librarians Prepare Kids for Their Times
Sunday 9:00AM - 10:00AM
The past is prologue. But whose past and told in whose voice? How do you determine truth? What’s fact or fake, balanced or biased, narrow-minded or inclusive, detached or empathic? Drawing on personal experience, award-winning authors discuss the complex, often controversial process of unpacking and presenting history in fiction and nonfiction. Drawing on work in school and public libraries, they offer librarians tested, easy-to-replicate ideas to excite kids about their connection to history and propel them to write untold stories.

Real Talk: A Framework for Youth-Led Dialogues
Sunday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Founded by youth to discuss the issues that are important to them, Real Talk is a youth-led conversation forum that has become the centerpiece of programming at the Waltham Public Library Teen Room. Twice a month, four teen leaders lead their peers in activities that promote youth voice, encourage socioemotional learning, and develop awareness of social justice issues in our community. Over the three years we have run this program, we have developed a curriculum to sustain the work of our founders and support librarians in developing similar programs in their libraries. We’re excited to share it with you! 

From Fortnite to 'Big Mood': Keeping Up with Teen Trends
Sunday 2:30PM - 3:30PM
This session covers how to stay current on teen interests, culture, and trends through a variety of media and modalities. Lots of resources are spent chasing teen attendance at and interest in programs and services – let’s increase our chances of successful outcomes and outputs by starting from a place of teen interest and need. This session will include handouts on resources, trends, and tools to stay up-to-date with teen culture, and will open a dialogue about the incredibly diverse and nuanced interests of contemporary teens.

Bringing Genius Hour to your School: Implementing a Schoolwide Passion Project Program
Sunday 2:30PM - 3:30PM
If you have ever longed for a cohesive, curriculum rich library program which lends itself to collaboration with faculty and real life application of knowledge and skills for your students, then transform student learning and your approach to teaching with Genius Hour! Also known as passion projects or 20% time, you can provide your students the opportunity to select a topic of their own choice, use that topic to practice essential skills such as writing, note taking, collaborating, problem solving, creativity, communicating, and more. You will also provide the opportunity to utilize digital and conventional resources in a practical and meaningful way.

Beyond Our Walls: Infiltrating School Culture
Sunday 2:30PM - 3:30PM
Looking to expand the impact of your school library? This session focuses on advocacy, creating collaborations, and library instruction and events beyond the library walls. Hear from AASL’s 2018 National School Library Program of the Year as we discuss implementing whole school and multi-school events, digital and blended instruction and more. Get insight on school and district administrators’ perspectives and hear librarians tips on building capacity @ your library!

I see you. I hear you. You matter: How a community of teen artists and writers use the library to connect, share and amplify each other
Sunday 4:00PM - 5:00PM
How do you give teen's a voice at your library? In 2018 we saw adults sit up and take notice of teen voices and we need to keep the power in their hands to tell their own stories. Creating art and writing programs and publications is one way the library can support teen expression and provide access to a generation of diverse and thoughtful voices. 
Johnson County Library’s teen literary magazine, elementia, was launched in 2005 at the request of a creative crew of teens who had petitioned the library for a writing group. In that first issue, 22 pieces of teen writing were published and distributed at the library. 

Are You Going to Tell My Parents?: The Minor’s Right to Privacy in the Library
Sunday 4:00PM - 5:00PM
In the United States, minors possess First Amendment rights, which traditionally includes the right to read and receive information anonymously. This means minors have a right to privacy and confidentiality in what they read and view in the library. But for school and public libraries, this has often been a contentious issue. Is a minor mature and responsible enough to have a library card? Should we give parents access to their child's library record so they can pay a fine? Should libraries record and share a minors’ internet browsing habit with their parents? Does a 5 year old have the same right to privacy as a 14 year old? And how does Child Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) impact how libraries deal with minors’ privacy? 

Monday

Defining and Embracing the Instructional Role for Public Youth Services Librarians
Monday 9:00AM - 10:00AM
YALSA has recently released new Teen Services Competencies along with a set of Teens First resources that the organization describes as a “paradigm shift” for the field of youth librarianship. Central to this shift is YALSA’s description of public librarians as educators and the assertion that public youth services librarians should be planning and leading intentional, equity-based, and youth-centered learning activities. The most recent competencies for librarians serving children in libraries released by ALSC also describe an expanded instructional role for public librarians. 

Beyond Collection Development: Creating Queer-Inclusive Elementary School Library Programming
Monday 9:00AM - 10:00AM
Advocating and planning for queer-inclusive elementary school library programming is frequently limited to collection development efforts. Often, librarians feel constrained or unprepared to implement services and programs that support queer children and their families. In addition, these professionals may face challenges from community members, fellow educators, or school administration when attempting to deliver these services. In this presentation, we will define queer-inclusive programs and services, describe creative initiatives, identify potential barriers, and offer strategies and resources to face these challenges. Participants will engage in collaborative conversations on positioning themselves as advocates for this population of young students. 

Sketchnoting in School
Monday 1:00 PM - 2:00PM
In 2006, Michael Rohde had the idea to harness the power of doodling to create more memorable notes by calling upon people to incorporate meaningful images into their session notes. Rohde found this rewarding for several reasons. First, it helped him concentrate on the topic at hand; second, the notes were visually appealing; and third, he found that notes with illustrations stayed in his memory much better. (Rohde, 2013). From this initial experimentation came the practice he named "sketchnoting." 

Separating the Gingerbread Men from the Hardy Boys: Perspectives on Implementing Genrefied Juvenile Collections
Monday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Do you want to know more about reorganizing juvenile collections by subject or genre? There are many technical implications of making the change to a genre-based juvenile department, requiring input and assistance from collection managers, technical services professionals, and often vendors to make the genrefied dream a reality. 
The speakers on this panel will share their experiences facing the unique challenges posed by genrefication projects, such as tackling floating collections, shared catalogs, adjusting vendor services, and gathering statistics. This program will help attendees anticipate some of the obstacles they will face at their institution to genrefy the juvenile collection, identify which departments, staff members or workflows will need to be involved/adjusted for the project to come together, and assess the feasibility and fit of a genrification project for their library. 

Tough topics in YA: How the 2019 debuts are tackling the dark—but real—issues teens care about
Monday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Addiction, sexuality, mental illness, abuse, xenophobia—teens are dealing with these issues and so much more, both in the microcosm of their school environment and in the larger world. But they don’t have to go through it alone. A recent opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal suggests that hard-hitting YA bestsellers are too real, too dark for teenagers. Books that tackle difficult subjects, however, can teach teens how to handle real-world problems, how to find the light in the darkness, and how to empathize with others. Hear 2019 debut YA authors Nikki Barthelmess (The Quiet You Carry, Flux), James Brandon (Ziggy, Stardust and Me, Putnam/Penguin), Sarah Carlson (All the Walls of Belfast, Turner), Deb Maroulis (Within and Without, Lakewater Press), Lizzy Mason (The Art of Losing, Soho Teen), Laura Sibson (The Art of Breaking Things, Viking), Erin Stewart (Scars Like Wings, Delacorte/Random House), Alex Villasante (The Grief Keeper, Putnam/Penguin) and C.H. Armstrong (Roam, Central Avenue Publishing) discuss how teens benefit from seeing these issues explored on the page, how librarians can use these books to help teens manage tough situations, and why the authors chose to tell these stories. 

Tragedy, Healing, Understanding: Teaching Civil Rights through Primary Sources and Graphic Novels
Monday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Civil rights education is often criticized for being limited to biographies of a few leaders and the “I Have a Dream” speech. In this session, you will learn how civil rights resources can transform your collection and the way you teach the civil rights movement. Primary sources from the Library of Congress will be paired with graphic novels to help middle and high school students learn about this decades-long movement. Lesson plans, web sites, and other resources will be shared.

ALSC Charlemae Rollins Presidents Program: Subversive Activism: Creating Social Change Through Libraries, Children’s Literature, and Art
Monday 1:00PM - 2:30PM
This high energy presentation examines activism and social change through multiple lenses: first from two scholarly leaders, Dr. Nicole Cooke from Library & Information Science, and Dr. Janina Fariñas from Pediatric Neuropsychology, then from acclaimed children’s book author/illustrator Yuyi Morales, and finally, from Dr. Karin Perry’s sketchnoting that will document this dynamic event.

Connect the American Indian Youth Literature Award to the Curriculum
Monday 2:30PM - 3:30PM
A quality school library program must reflect the linguistic and cultural pluralism of our country. Empowering Learners asserts that librarians will offer diverse collection materials and services to accommodate the needs of all children. Yet, according to the CCBC, in 2015, out of 3400 books received from US publishers, only 8 books were written by Native Americans and a mere 28 were written about Native Americans. Therefore, the presenters suggest the use of Native American literature for youth as a useful support for teachers of social studies, language arts, art, and music as well as for developing and promoting diverse collections.