Reading out loud improves reading skills, and reading to a dog gives kids a chance to read to a non-judgmental listener.  For many children, it allows a rare chance to experience stress-free reading.

Considering starting a “Read to a Dog” program at your library?

Over at the WisPubLib discussion list, Arin C. Wilken (Mondovi PL) asked,

Any of the smaller libraries out there ever run a “Read to a Dog Program”?  How do you run your program and what kinds of legal and administrative things need to be considered before undertaking something like this?

You can read all the tips and advice he got, to help you set up one of your own.

Or already have  one, but want to re-brand it with a new name?

Over at the ALA Think Tank Facebook group, Marge Loch-Wouters (La Crosse PL, and Menasha PL alumnus) asked,

Hey, libraries that have a ‘read to a dog’ program with kids…what do you call your program? We feel meh about our “Read-to-Rover” title and want something more fun.

Here are the ideas she got, that you might consider “borrowing” for your library as well:

• ARF (Animal Reading Friends)
• Bow Wow Reading
• Dog Tale Time
• Doggy Tales
• Outside of a Dog: A Well-Lit Place for Kids to Read
• Paw Pals
• Paws for Reading
• Paws for Tales
• Paws to Read: Love on a Leash
• Pawsitive Reading Partners
• Puppy Dog Tales
• Puppy Tales
• R.E.A.D (Reading Education Assistance Dogs)
• Read With the Welcome Waggers
• Reading Buddies
• Reading with Rover
• Ruff Readers
• Ruff Ruff Read
• Sit, Stay, Read
• Tail Waggin’ Tutors
• Tale Waggers: Read to a Dog
• Tales to Tails
• Wags & Tales: Read to a Dog

Sources:
• Arin’s post on WisPubLib
• Marge’s post on the ALA Think Tank Facebook group

Image credit:
• LOLcat Builder

Libraries Changed My Life is for “real life accounts from library patrons whose lives have been changed for the better by libraries.”

And it’s super easy for patrons to share the love through words, photos or videos:

• via online form
• via postcard or letter

Libraries Changed My Life was created by two librarians — Ingrid Henny Abrams (AKA The Magpie Librarian) and Natalie Binder — who wrote about it at the ALA Think Tank Facebook Group. Ingrid wrote, it’s a …

simple Tumblr where real life library users can share positive experiences they’ve had at the library. Will it work? We don’t know! But please share with your non-librarian friends, and let’s give the voice of the library back to the people …

You can “like” the Libraries Changed My Life Facebook page to get updates.

Found via Ingrid’s post at the ALA Think Tank Facebook Group
Image created by me at Quozio

WPLC Gadget Pack Includes e-book readers (Kindle Fire, Kindle Touch, NOOK Simple Touch, NOOK Color, Sony Reader Touch), a tablet (iPad), Flip Video Camera and Ziggi USB document camera, and lots more devices. To borrow, contact Joy Schwarz at schwarz@winnefox.org

Video game consoles - Two Nintendo Wii Consoles (each with 4 controllers) each include: Guitar Hero III (2 guitars), Dance Dance Revolution, Hottest Party (with spare dance pad), Wii Sports, Mario Party 8, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Mario Strikers, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Cart for Wii, Boom Blox Bash Party, Carnival Games, and Monster Jam: Urban Assaultwo - Microsoft Xbox 360 consoles (each with 4 controllers) each include: Guitar Hero III (2 guitars), Dance Dance Revolution Universe (with spare dance pad), Burnout Revenge, Madden 08, Table Tennis, and NBA Street - Two digital projectors with external speakers To borrow, contact Pete Hodge at hodge@winnefox.org

Laptop lab & projectors This equipment is available for WLS-member library staff to use in public programs in their communities or for staff training, in the library or elsewhere. Six laptops use the Windows 7 operating system, and come loaded with Office 2010 (Word, Excel, etc.) and SirsiDynix WorkFlows software.  Pete may be able to install additional software if you need something else, but you will not be able to install software yourself. To borrow, contact Pete Hodge at hodge@winnefox.org

Badge-A-Minit Badgemaker This Bench Press table-top design comes with pin-back button sets and assembly rings. To borrow, contact Renee Miller at miller@winnefox.org

Flip video cam + tripod Easily record up to 2 hours of video, then connect it to your computer via the cam’s USB plug and edit and/or upload to YouTube. To borrow, contact Pete Hodge at hodge@winnefox.org

Ipevo Ziggi document camera Great for displaying 3-dimensional objects — like ebook readers, tablets, and other gadgets — for programs and presentations. Connect the document camera to a computer, which is attached to a projector. Comes with anti-glare shield, quick start guide, and CD with driver software and user manual. To borrow, contact Joy Schwarz at schwarz@winnefox.org

Winnie Fox Winnie is the official mascot of the Winnefox Library System. Borrow the mascot costume and have Winnie come to life as a lovable, entertaining and memorable ambassador for system libraries. To borrow, contact Renee Miller at miller@winnefox.org

Image credit for ebook readers photo: Michael Porter (aka Libraryman) on Flickr

Webinars with a ★ are the ones I think you’ll find most useful.

Horton Hears an Audiobook from the Get Caught Listening campaign

In Marketing Strategies Help Vitalize Audiobook Collections, Raya Kuzyk offers great marketing strategies you can use at your library to improve circulation and visibility of audiobooks.

(It doesn’t hurt that June is Audiobook Month, and winners of the 2013 Audie Awards will be announced May 30th.)

Try these top tips for cross-­promoting audio with other formats:

• stickers could be put onto print books to advertise companion audio editions, as well as onto DVD packaging in the case of movie/book/audio tie-ins
• For certain of its children’s titles, MPL displays audiobook editions alongside the print. The measure has noticeably enticed young readers — “especially those [with] reading difficulties” — to check out both versions. Says MPL’s Stirling, “They seem to like the idea of being able to listen while following along with the book.” Indeed, there is much evidence to support the idea that listening to audiobooks can help with reading comprehension, vocabulary, fluency, and more.
• audio enthusiasts are just as, if not more, drawn to a title based on the reader as on the author. Notably, when certain audiobooks are celebrity- or author-read, they can skyrocket in consumer appeal, as with Bill Clinton’s reading of My Life (Random) and Johnny Depp’s narrative contribution to Keith Richards’s Life (Hachette). In such cases, library circulation could see a real boost simply through the showcasing of the voice behind the story, rather than the “read by” credits relegated to fine print.
• At CCL, where audio and print versions of the same book are often paired, “we have found that people respond very positively to the combination of the two formats,” says CCL’s Hensley, calling the effort “instantaneously effective — we need to refill the shelves constantly.”
• staff at Sacramento (CA) Public Library place “Now in eBook Format” stickers on the covers of corresponding print titles in the library’s physical collection, a move that SPL electronic resources librarian Amy Calhoun says has improved discovery of their ­ebook holdings.
• CCL plans to implement a “shelf-talker” approach to its physical audiobook collection, spotlighting authors and subject areas that do well with brightly colored Mylar-encased signage. “We want to be sure that [our patrons] see our special collections without having to hunt for them,” says CCL technical services and collection development coordinator Elizabeth Hensley.

Get lots more tips — read the full article at at Library Journal‘s website.

Read more about it:
• Get Caught Listening info for Librarians

WLAF Gloria Hoegh Memorial Fund Education for Rural Librarians Scholarship
Amount: $1150
Deadline: June 15, 2013
Criteria for eligibility
Application form

This program extends the building blocks of science literacy to two new audiences: rural librarians and adults in the communities they serve.  The goal of Pushing the Limits is to:

• strengthen adult science programming and resources in small and rural public libraries and
• enhance public interest and involvement in STEM topics – science, technology, engineering, and math

Up to 75 public libraries in the United States will…

• receive a grant of $2500
• receive program materials including videos
• participate in an on-line training program

Deadline: May 15, 2013
Details and application form

• The Pushing the Limits public programs will explore these ideas through a discussion led by a STEM professional (science, technology, engineering, math) and the local librarian, using a blended science café and book club model that integrates feature film quality videos and a recommended (popular) book reading.
• The project’s professional development will include strategies for selecting and collaborating with a science partner. As part of the project, the rural libraries will need to identify and work with a science partner to present the programs. The science partner should be a local scholar or someone who has knowledge of science.

The program launched with 20 pilot sites, and is now being expanded to as many as 75 additional rural public libraries.

Source: Channel Weekly
Image source: Microsoft Images

Webinars with a ★ are the ones I think you’ll find most useful.

Would you like to attend?

• There’s no fee (the costs are covered through an LSTA grant)
• Apply here
• Deadline for applications: Wednesday, May 8, 2013

The Wisconsin Youth Services Development Institute will…

• provide professional development and networking for librarians who serve babies, children, and teens in smaller public libraries
• target librarians who have no graduate degree in librarianship and/or work in rural library communities
• offer foundational training related to youth services, including programming, advocacy, and collection development
• place an emphasis on developing technology and leadership skills
• start at 5pm on Sunday, September 8 and conclude at 1pm Wednesday, September 11, 2013
• be located at the Heartwood Conference Center in Trego, Wisconsin
• be conducted by DPI staff and experienced librarians and educators from around Wisconsin

Get a complete description of the Institute here. 

Questions? Contact Tessa Michaelson Schmidt, DPI’s Public Library Youth and Special Services Consultant, at tessa.schmidt@dpi.wi.gov.

Costs for the Institute are covered through a Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS), administered by the Public Library Development Team at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI).

Photo credit: Keith Davenport via Flickr

Betty McCartney wrote in the March 2013 issue of Eastern Shores Library System’ Library Connection newsletter about the changes the library made in 2012; here’s a sample:

• Weed, weed, and weed some more. By weeding out the unattractive, unused, out-of-date books we created more space on the shelves and our best books could shine through.
• We changed our DVD circulation policy from 4 DVDs per family to 4 DVDs per card.
• We started our 1,000 Books before Kindergarten program…
• We created a new children’s book area. … By combining the new areas into one and placing that area next to the entrance, along with some child-sized chairs, we immediately saw a response.

And it’s still working — Betty concluded the article by saying “Circulation statistics for January and February of 2013 show a continued increase in the circulation of Children’s materials over last year.”

The library saw an this increase in all categories (with the exception of VHS and books on cassette):

Get all the the details at Little Changes, Big Increases, and try some of their ideas at your library!

Source:
Little Changes, Big Increases, Library Connection newsletter, March 2013