Month: May 2020

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Resources for still engaging with families during a pandemic:

Library Storytimes during COVID-19 – a Different Kind of Connection
Saroj Ghoting with Brooke Doyle and Betha Gutsche / 05 May 2020
Library Storytimes during COVID-19 – Connecting with Families
Saroj Ghoting with Brooke Doyle and Betha Gutsche / 14 May 2020
Getting Started with Virtual Storytimes
Tuesday, June 16, 2020 ◆ 3:00 pm Eastern / 12:00 pm Pacific ◆ 90 minutes
Registration: https://www.webjunction.org/events/webjunction/getting-started-with-virtual-storytimes.html
Many libraries are moving their storytimes online, to be able to engage with families during times of social distancing. If you want to launch virtual storytimes at your library, but don’t know where to start, this webinar is for you! This comprehensive introduction to virtual storytimes will include book selection and copyright, technology and social media tools, strategies for accessibility and inclusion, early literacy activities, and ideas for promotion. Learn lessons on how to create a dynamic and engaging online presence and building a rapport with your virtual audience.
Presenter: Renee Grassi, Youth Services Manager, Dakota County Library (MN)

CSLP Re-imagining your summer library programs and more Newsletter

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CSLP Teen Video Challenge

Hi all,

CSLP’s Teen Video Challenge is going on again this summer and is a great program to promote to the library staff in your state! Here’s a sample message to share on your listservs and/or website about this fun contest; thanks for spreading the word about it:
Looking for an easy program to share with your teens that they can do at home or outside this summer? The CSLP Teen Video Challenge is back for 2020! A summary is below; go to https://www.cslpreads.org/programs/teen-program/2020-teen-video-challenge/ for all the details, including the submission form and contest rules. Please share on your social media (using #ImagineYourStory), website, and with interested teens in your community! The Teen Video Challenge, sponsored by the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP), is an annual national video contest open to all teens (librarian and teacher support is encouraged). The challenge is for teens to create a public service announcement-type video that shows their unique interpretation of the 2020 CSLP slogan “Imagine Your Story.” Videos are to be no longer than 60 seconds and should promote libraries and reading.
Videos will be accepted June 1 through August 7, 2020.

  • There will be 5 national winners. Just have your teens submit a link to their video and complete a simple online form.
  • The program will accept submissions June 1-Aug 7, 2020, so that the program can be incorporated into summer programs (it’s still a great opportunity to partner with schools with video production classes or clubs; students can produce the videos as a class project and submit them in June!)
  • Videos will be limited to 60 seconds, making this a doable project for small teams.
  • Permission and model release forms will only be required from the winning entries (completing the forms is a requirement to receive prizes and acknowledgement).
  • The TVC Ad-Hoc Committee will convene a judging panel from CSLP partners and members.
  • Teens can upload to the social media outlet of their choice.

Resources:

Please let me know if you have any questions about the contest. Good luck to your teens that enter the contest!

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SIGN UP for READsquared

The New Hampshire State Library is pleased to announce it has reached an agreement to offer READsquared at NO COST to public libraries statewide! READsquared is an online reading program solution. This solution is being paid for with special IMLS Cares funds and will be supplied to all participating NH Public Libraries at no cost for TWO-Years until the end of May 2022.

READsquared provides easy to use pre-packaged themed-based programs such as CSLP and 1000 Books Before Kindergarten and other reading and learning programs. Each library can customize their site, programs, patron engagement features, content and activities to have unique appeal in your community. READsquared can help libraries of any size brand their reading programs and increase registration and participation of individuals, families, and groups through activities, book lists, challenges, and more. READsquared excels at supporting “mixed” programs meaning online and paper participation with streamlined features for quickly and easily registering and logging patron activity for those who prefer off-line participation.

*Digital Badges, Prizes, Certificates

*Individual, Family, and Group AccountsSimple

*Engaging Mobile Interface

*Fully Customizable and Branded for your Library

*Popular Themed, Seasonal, and 1000 Books Programs

*Hundreds of Learning Games for all Ages

*Curated Reading Lists by Age

*Readers AdvisoryModerated, Searchable Book Reviews

*Integrated with your ILS and Catalog

*Seamless Paper Registration and Logging

*Un-paralleled Reporting and Outcome Measurements

*Role-based Security and Permissions

*Unlimited Functional Support and Training

Sign-up HERE 

Trainings are scheduled for:

Monday, June 1st @ 10:30am EST

Wednesday, June 3rd @ 10:30am EST

Wednesday, June 3rd @ 2:00 pm EST

Thursday, June 4th @ 2:00 pm EST

Use the following link for any of the listed dates and times. https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://join.me/READsquaredTraining__;!!Oai6dtTQULp8Sw!ARIUw3ANXfQEPDu0Rif_rTzwlsSzZFi1ovBIF2SXVIGzD1jsWO4hbdJvKDRPdI4DW16J5QCA$

You will also have access to a recorded live training in your control room under the left hand menu item Help>Help Materials.

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CLiF’s Kids’ Writing Contest


by Erika Nichols-Frazer

What if the witch’s house in Hansel and Gretel was made of vegetables instead of candy? What if the Big Bad Wolf wasn’t so bad? What if your favorite fairy tales were different? Reimagine classic stories for CLiF’s “Fractured Fairy Tales” writing contest for kids!

This summer’s Collaborative Summer Library Program’s theme is Imagine Your Story: Fairy tales, myths, and fantasy. Libraries and summer learning programs across the country will be using this theme to inspire young imaginations. CLiF’s writing contest is one way to encourage the young writers in your life to get creative and keep up writing while out of school.

Come up with your own twists on your favorite stories. Open to kids ages 12 and under from New Hampshire and Vermont. The winner of each category (PreK-Kindergarten; Grades 1-2; Grades 3-4; Grades 5-6) will win a collection of new books!

Submit your stories to programs@clifonline.org by June 30, 2020.

Please include the author’s name, age, and mailing address (so we know where to send books to the winners).

We can’t wait to read your stories!

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Feeding Your Community: Summer Meals at Libraries in 2020

6/4/20 Update–Recording of webinar:

If you weren’t able to attend last week’s Feeding Your Community: Summer Meals at Libraries webinar co-produced by the Collaborative Summer Library Program and the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, the recording is available here: youtu.be/Q6Ig_zo1tj4<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://youtu.be/Q6Ig_zo1tj4__;!!Oai6dtTQULp8Sw!EiKfPgLzXruc37EWI05BCI69E25mq_QyEqP_q02DgEtXmGD4PesdXahW5j7EY5rb9jytci0J$>

It is not too late to become a Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) site for 2020. The USDA has extended temporary waivers that permit SFSP sites to provide grab-and-go meals/snacks and allow parents to pick meals up for their children. Other waivers are also in place to facilitate food distribution under social distancing guidelines. The need will be exceptionally great this year, and some previous SFSP sites may be unavailable for various reasons related to the public health emergency.

If your library is already an SFSP site, work with your current sponsor. If you want to become an SFSP site: contact your local school district, an SFSP sponsor in your area, or your state’s SFSP administering agency<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.fns.usda.gov/contacts?f*5B0*5D=program*3A28__;JSUl!!Oai6dtTQULp8Sw!EiKfPgLzXruc37EWI05BCI69E25mq_QyEqP_q02DgEtXmGD4PesdXahW5j7EY5rb9gcwUrUQ$>.

The Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) offers Libraries and Summer Food, a thorough, clear how-to guide for libraries: www.cslpreads.org/libraries-and-summer-food/<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.cslpreads.org/libraries-and-summer-food/__;!!Oai6dtTQULp8Sw!EiKfPgLzXruc37EWI05BCI69E25mq_QyEqP_q02DgEtXmGD4PesdXahW5j7EY5rb9nPbljfo$>

(please note this guide assumes ordinary circumstances and has not been revised for the current public health emergency).

Feeding Your Community: Summer Meals at Libraries in 2020

https://usda-fns.webex.com/usda-fns/onstage/g.php?MTID=ec550bb0e7098abb855f188ebdd635060

Thursday, May 28, 1:00 ET / Noon CT / 11:00 MT / 10:00 PT

Many libraries around the USA participate in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), a USDA-funded program that provides free meals and snacks to children ages 0-18 in communities with high levels of need. Libraries and SFSP are a great fit! Libraries are free and open to all. Libraries are accessible. Children and teens are always welcome. The library is a stigma-free community center where community members traditionally get things for free. Libraries also gain a lot from participating as SFSP sites. They directly support vulnerable community members and directly address food insecurity. They attract new user groups and increase their visibility and importance as a stakeholder in community well-being.

Summer meals will look quite different this year as USDA has made temporary changes so that meals may be taken home, and parents or guardians may pick up meals for their children if the state allows.

Join Penny Weaver and Maged Hanafi from the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service to learn the basics of SFSP, what will be different in 2020, and how your library can support child and community well-being by being a new or returning SFSP site, or by supporting other SFSP sites in your community.

Speakers:

  • Penny Weaver, Public Affairs Specialist, USDA Food and Nutrition Service
  • Maged Hanafi, Team Lead, Community Nutrition, Midwest, USDA Food and Nutrition Service
  • Luke Kralik, Organizational Coordinator, Collaborative Summer Library Program

Register for the May 28 webinar here:

https://usda-fns.webex.com/usda-fns/onstage/g.php?MTID=ec550bb0e7098abb855f188ebdd635060 and click on the “Register” link

Resources:

  • The SFSP is a federally-funded, state-administered program. The SFSP reimburses providers who serve free healthy meals to children and teens in low-income areas during the summer months when school is not in session. Check out our video to learn more: https://youtu.be/U_93W0U3E8U
  • Since the outset of the coronavirus outbreak, USDA has provided states with broad flexibilities to ensure the continuation of meal service during COVID-19 related school closures. USDA is committed to using all the options available to us to help people get the food they need.  To learn more about the USDA Food and Nutrition service and our response to COVID-19, visit www.fns.usda.gov/coronavirus and follow us on Twitter at @USDANutrition.

Register for the May 28 webinar here:

https://usda-fns.webex.com/usda-fns/onstage/g.php?MTID=ec550bb0e7098abb855f188ebdd635060 and click on the “Register” link

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CSLP Child and Community Well-Being Committee shares their new mini-manual

The CSLP Child and Community Well-Being Committee (CCWB) is pleased to share  “Read Up!”, a mini-manual for non-library summer feeding sites, is now available for download on the CSLP website:

https://www.cslpreads.org/libraries-and-summer-food/#resource<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.cslpreads.org/libraries-and-summer-food/*resource__;Iw!!Oai6dtTQULp8Sw!BuF-ecZ_L2j8e5SkKnSZh0ZniOzxOClNK2AoMR35GmIqWtt8RQT5AGtWtAyCDRJ3mBON7qkv$>

Read Up! is a free 26-page resource for Summer Food Service Program sites and other feeding sites outside of libraries, featuring easy-to-implement enrichment activities that support reading, creativity, and fun. The activities are adapted from the 2020 CSLP manual. A section on Reading and Literacy Basics, written by the team, guides such sites on how they can organize literacy-supportive activities even with no books on hand, and how they can partner with libraries, involve teens, and collaborate with other community entities.

MANY thanks to the CCWB team responsible for this project:

Linda Bartley

Ally Doliboa

Stacy Hill

Janet Ingraham Dwyer

Danielle Margarida

Jennifer McNeal

Janet Reynolds

Lisa Valerio-Nowc

And to Cathy Lancaster, the Library of Michigan, and LM’s contract designer who turned our Google doc into a crisp, appealing, professional publication. And to Luke Kralik for support and encouragement throughout.

When this resource was envisioned last spring, and through the fall and winter when they worked on selecting and adapting CSLP manual programs and writing the Reading and Literacy Basics content, no one could have had any idea the committee would be releasing this resource into a world without congregate settings such as summer camps and sit-down lunches at parks, rec centers, and churches. Though states are starting to “open up,” there is of course so much unknown about the future and about the duration of the public health emergency. However the mini-manuel was written to be “evergreen”, not specifically tied to the 2020 Summer Library Program (though it takes its activities from the current program), and will be helpful and encouraging whenever sites are safely permitted to feed and engage young people in congregate settings. Please share, however and whenever appropriate, with your communities SFSP administering agency and other partners in child nutrition.