Outreach

In response to LM_NET queries, Doug Johnson published a BFTP (blast from the past) post today on Your Library’s Back-to-School Letter. Doug encourages us to use the start of school as an opportunity for connection and advocacy, inspiring us to design an initial communication that conveys the energy and contributions of our library programs in [...]

Only one in three parents of children ages eight and under reads stories to their kids each night, according to a new survey by the literacy organization Reading is Fundamental (RIF) and Macy’s.

The vast majority of parents with children younger than 18 feel libraries are very important for their kids, leading to higher-than-average use of a wide range of library services, a new national report from the Pew Research Center shows.

Llama Llama… author-illustrator and rock star to preschoolers Anna Dewdney will be our special guest at the Fostering Lifelong Learners conference on April 25th, joining in the conversation about making and sharing great books for preschoolers. Here are five questions for her. 1.What did your own children teach you about creating books for preschoolers? My [...]

The post Five Questions for Anna Dewdney appeared first on The Horn Book.

“We’re bringing services to people who either would not or could not access them otherwise….[it] truly does change lives,” says Library Journal Mover & Shaker Richard Lyda, outreach librarian at Arapahoe Library District in Centennial, CO. In our follow-up interview, Lyda shares with SLJ his strategies for effective community outreach, what’s next for him in his district, and much more.

At our upcoming Fostering Lifelong Learners: Prescribing Books for Early Childhood Education conference, Horn Book Guide Executive Editor Kitty Flynn will be leading a presentation about how the Horn Book evaluates and reviews preschool books. This is one aspect of her work that also engages her off the clock: Kitty and her husband are parents [...]

The post Five Questions for Kitty Flynn appeared first on The Horn Book.

Filled with unlikely but enduring attachments, ostensibly incompatible Romeos and Juliets, and unexpected instances of true animal camaraderie, these books prove that affection can allow individuals to look beyond their differences and forge long-lasting bonds. Use these books to expand Valentine’s Day and friendship storytimes; tease out overarching themes; and initiate discussions of tolerance, compassion, and community.

Ask the Passengers by A.S. King. Little, Brown. 2012. Reviewed from ARC from publisher. The Plot: Astrid lives in a small town where everyone knows, or thinks they know, everyone’s business. Everyone judges. So Astrid keeps some things to herself: like that her father is smoking pot. Like how she and her younger sister Ellis are [...]