Best of
Library-Science

2020

The School Librarian's Technology Playbook: Innovative Strategies to Inspire Teachers and Learners


Stacy Brown - 2020
    Many librarians now support teachers in integrating technology tools and innovative teaching practices in their classrooms.At her school, author and learning coordinator Stacy Brown has pioneered the transition to innovation and technology use in the classroom. In The School Librarian's Technology Playbook, she showcases different technology tools and innovative strategies that can be incorporated into the classroom, such as 3D printing, augmented reality, green screen applications, gamification, coding, makerEd, and more. She details the many ways in which school librarians can support teachers as they implement these new practices into their curriculum.School librarians will learn how to collaborate with teachers and how to empower them to step outside of their comfort zones to try new tools and teaching methods. Readers of this book will also learn how to support teachers as the technology continues to change in this dynamic educational landscape.

Linked Data for the Perplexed Librarian


Scott Carlson - 2020
    But the fact is, linked data is already happening now, evident in projects from Big Tech and the Wikimedia Foundation as well as the web pages of library service platforms. The goal of exposing cultural institutions' records to the web is as important as ever--but for the non-technically minded, linked data can feel like a confusing morass of abstraction, jargon, and acronyms. Get conversant in linked data with this basic introduction from the Association of Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS). The book's expert contributorssummarize the origins of linked data, from early computers and the creation of the World Wide Web through RDF; walk readers through the practical, everyday side of creating, identifying, and representing semantically rich linked data using as an example the funk classic Mothership Connection album from the band Parliament; explain the concept of ontologies; explore such linked data projects as Open Graph, DBpedia, BIBFRAME, and Schema.org's Bib Extension; offer suggested solo and group entry-level projects for linked data-curious librarians who wish to dive deeper; and provide a handy glossary and links to additional resources. This valuable primer on linked data will enable readers at any level of experience to get quickly up to speed on this important subject.

Ask, Listen, Empower: Grounding your Library Work in Community Engagement


Mary Davis Fournier - 2020
    This important resource from the ALA's Public Programs Office (PPO) features contributions be leaders active in library-led community engagement. Designed to be equally useful as a teaching text for LIS students and a go-to handbook for current programming, adult services, and outreach library staff.

209 Big Programming Ideas for Small Budgets


Chelsea Price - 2020
    With creativity, flexibility, and heart, you can be the anchor your community needs, offering programming that engages people of all ages and backgrounds. In this book Price, whose library serves a town with a population of less than 300, shares dozens of ideas that have helped to triple attendance numbers in a three-year period, alongside many more suggestions from other libraries across the country. You'll learn how fun and easy DIY programming can be, inspiring you touse passive programming like scavenger hunts and Lego towers to engage your patrons no matter when they visit your library;adapt one of the dozens of low- or no-cost programs included, from library decorating parties and teen taste-tests to a local history night and a mini-golf tournament;celebrate the different seasons of the year with ideas tied to a variety of holidays;jump-start your outreach efforts by partnering with health clinics, museums, restaurants, local businesses, and other organizations and individuals in your community;collaborate with your school district through initiatives like reading challenges and information literacy field trips;get the word out using fliers, advertising, word of mouth marketing, your library's website, and social media;avoid burnout and deal with stress, with suggestions for self-care and reinvigoration; andhost a benefit, launch a fundraising drive, or apply for grants using the tips and information provided in the book.No matter their size, libraries are the lifeblood of their communities. Armed with this book's ideas and guidance, yours will be sure to connect successfully with the people you serve.

Maximizing the Impact of Comics in Your Library: Graphic Novels, Manga, and More


Jack Phoenix - 2020
    The author describes how libraries would benefit from an in-house classification system and organization that accounts for both publishers and series.In addition, acquiring comics can often be tricky due to renumbering of series, reboots, shifting creative teams, and more--this book shows you how to work around those obstacles. Shelving and displays that reflect comic readers' browsing habits, creative programs that boost circulation of comics and graphic novels, and how comics can play a vital role in educational institutions are also covered.

Beyond Accommodation: Creating an Inclusive Workplace for Disabled Library Workers


Jessica Schomberg - 2020
    Examines issues faced by disabled library workers, through the lens of critical disability theory.

Libraries amid Protest: Books, Organizing, and Global Activism


Sherrin Frances - 2020
    Within a matter of weeks, the encampment had become a tiny model of a robust city, with its own kitchen, first aid station, childcare services—and a library of several thousand physical books. Since that time, social movements around the world, from Nuit Debout in Paris to Gezi Park in Istanbul, have built temporary libraries alongside their protests. While these libraries typically last only a few weeks at a time and all have ultimately been dismantled or destroyed, each has managed to collect, catalog, and circulate books, serving a need not being met elsewhere.Libraries amid Protest unpacks how these protest libraries—labor-intensive, temporary installations in parks and city squares, poorly protected from the weather, at odds with security forces—continue to arise. In telling the stories of these surprising and inspiring spaces through interviews and other research, Sherrin Frances confronts the complex history of American public libraries. She argues that protest libraries function as the spaces of opportunity and resistance promised, but not delivered, by American public libraries.

Library Marketing and Communications: Strategies to Increase Relevance and Results


Cordelia Anderson - 2020
    Speaking directly to those in senior leadership positions, Anderson lays out the structural and organizational changes needed to help libraries answer the relevance question and maximize their marketing and communications efforts. Focusing on big-picture strategies, she shares lessons learned from her 20+ year career in library marketing and communications. No matter what type or size of library you help to lead, by reading this book you willgain insight into why libraries need to tell their stories more effectively than they are today;be able to craft a strategic roadmap for marketing your library and communicating its value in a variety of ways that resonate with key audiences;see why improvements to the structure of your marketing and communications team can lead to better results;learn practical methods for incorporating audience research into your planning;know how to remove customer barriers and discontinue practices that are thwarting your marketing efforts;receive guidance on preparing for potential crises;understand how to be more community-focused by forming and sustaining partnerships; andfeel confident in engaging with stakeholders so that they become your library's best ambassadors.This book will shake up your marketing and communications approach, helping you implement real changes for lasting results.

The Gospel as Manuscript: An Early History of the Jesus Tradition as Material Artifact


Chris Keith - 2020
    The written verses of the four canonical Gospels are sometimes volleyed back and forth and taken as fact while the apocryphal and oral accounts of the life of Jesus are taken as mere oddities. Early thinkers inside and outside the community of Jesus-followers similarly described a contentious relationship between the oral and the written, though they often focused on the challenges of trusting the written word over the spoken-Socrates described the written word an illegitimate "bastard" compared to the spoken word of a teacher.Nevertheless, the written accounts of the Jesus tradition in the Gospels have taken a far superior position in the Christian faith to any oral tradition. In The Gospel as Manuscript, Chris Keith offers a new material history of the Jesus tradition's journey from voice to page, showing that the introduction of manuscripts played an underappreciated, but crucial, role in the reception history of the gospel. From the textualization of Mark in the first century CE until the eventual usage of liturgical readings as a marker of authoritative status in the second and third centuries, early followers of Jesus placed the gospel-as-manuscript on display by drawing attention to the written nature of their tradition. Many authors of Gospels saw themselves in competition with other evangelists, working to establish their texts as the quintessential Gospel. Reading the texts aloud in liturgical settings and further establishedthe literary tradition in material culture. Revealing a vibrant period of competitive development of the Jesus tradition, wherein the material status of the tradition frequently played as important a role as the ideas that it contained, Keith offers one of the most thorough considerations of the competitive textualization and public reading of the Gospels.

Mastering United States Government Information: Sources and Services


Christopher C. Brown - 2020
    Mastering United States Government Information helps them overcome any trepidation about finding and using government documents.Written by Christopher C. Brown, coordinator of government documents at the University of Denver, this approachable book provides an introduction to all major areas of U.S. government information. It references resources in all formats, including print and online. Examples are provided so users will feel comfortable solving government information questions on their own, while exercises at the end of chapters enable users to practice answering questions for themselves. Additionally, several appendixes serve as quick reference sources for such topics as congressional sessions, the most popular government publications, federal statistical databases, and citation of government publications. It serves as a practical and current guide for practitioners as well as a text or supplementary reading for students of library information studies and for in-service trainings.

Cardboard Box Engineering: Cool, Inventive Projects for Tinkerers, Makers Future Scientists


Jonathan Adolph - 2020
    A working kaleidoscope, a marble roller coaster, a robotic hand, and a wind-powered tractor with cardboard gears are just some of the ingenious projects developed by Jonathan Adolph, author of the best-selling Mason Jar Science. Working with simple household tools, kids can follow the step-by-step photographic instructions to exercise their design smarts, expand their 3-D thinking, and learn the basics of physics and engineering with activities that have real-life applications.

Unplugged Play: Toddler: 156 Activities Games for Ages 1-2


Bobbi Conner - 2020
    [A] feast of unplugged family favorites, forgotten and new.”––Penelope Leach, PhD, psychologist and author of Your Baby and Child   From Tunnel Tube to Party Play Dough, Bumper Ball to Hoop-Dee-Do, here are more than 150 screen-free games and activities to help kids enjoy the wholesome old-fashioned experience of playing creatively and freely...without technology. There are outdoor games and indoor games, games to play solo and games to play with others, crafts, songs, guessing games, puppet ideas, playdates and party favorites––even instant activities to do at the kitchen table while dinner’s cooking. All games are toddler-tested and approved!  A note to parents: Play matters! Technology has the place, but these unplugged games are designed to stretch the imagination, spark creativity, build strong bodies, and forge deeper connections with family and friends.

The Color of Creatorship: Intellectual Property, Race, and the Making of Americans


Anjali Vats - 2020
    Vats examines archival, legal, political, and popular culture texts to demonstrate how intellectual properties developed alongside definitions of the "good citizen," "bad citizen," and intellectual labor in racialized ways. Offering readers a theory of critical race intellectual property, Vats historicizes the figure of the citizen-creator, the white male maker who was incorporated into the national ideology as a key contributor to the nation's moral and economic development. She also traces the emergence of racial panics around infringement, arguing that the post-racial creator exists in opposition to the figure of the hyper-racial infringer, a national enemy who is the opposite of the hardworking, innovative American creator.The Color of Creatorship contributes to a rapidly-developing conversation in critical race intellectual property. Vats argues that once anti-racist activists grapple with the underlying racial structures of intellectual property law, they can better advocate for strategies that resist the underlying drivers of racially disparate copyright, patent, and trademark policy.

Reference and Information Services: An Introduction


Melissa A Wong - 2020
    It is also a helpful handbook for practitioners. Authors include LIS faculty and professionals who have relevant degrees in their areas and who have published extensively on their topics.The first half of the book provides an overview of reference services and techniques for service provision, including the reference interview, ethics, instruction, reader's advisory, and services to diverse populations including children. This part of the book establishes a foundation of knowledge on reference service and frames each topic with ethical and social justice perspectives.The second part of the book offers an overview of the information life cycle and dissemination of information, followed by an in-depth examination of information sources by type--including dictionaries, encyclopedias, indexes, and abstracts--as well as by broad subject areas including government, statistics and data, health, and legal information. This second section introduces the tools and resources that reference professionals use to provide the services described in the first half of the text.

Inspiring Library Stories: Tales of Kindness, Connection and Community Impact


Oleg Kagan - 2020
    They open up windows to the world and inspire us to explore and achieve, and contribute to improving our quality of life. Libraries change lives for the better.” —Sidney SheldonAccording to a 2019 Gallup poll, visiting the library is the most common cultural activity Americans engage in. Here are 43 true stories that show you why. Shared by library workers, volunteers, and patrons from around the United States, these funny, insightful, and moving tales are sure to be a welcome treat for library lovers and an education for anyone who has ever wondered what makes libraries such a uniquely treasured institution. The stories are book-ended by five essays further exploring the value of libraries in the digital age.

Steam Activities in 30 Minutes for Elementary Learners


Deborah Rinio - 2020
    

Neal-Schuman Library Technology Companion: A Basic Guide for Library Staff


John J. Burke - 2020
    

Deconstructing Service in Libraries: Intersections of Identities and Expectations


Veronica Arellano Douglas - 2020
    This collection of work by practicing librarians offers a historical-cultural context for the ethos of service in libraries and critically examines this professional value as it intersects with gender, sexuality, race and ethnicity, class, and (dis)ability. Deconstructing Service in Libraries: Intersections of Identities and Expectations explores the ways in which an ethic of service creates, stagnates, and destructs librarians' professional identities and sense of self; analyze the power structures, values, and contexts that influence our personal, professional, and institutional conceptions of service in libraries; and deconstruct the the costs and consequences of negotiating personal identity with professional values. Inspired by Roma Harris' Librarianship: The Erosion of a Woman's Profession (1992), this collection seeks to rework the idea of service in libraries into a more feminist, empowering foundation and suggest alternative theories and values in which to ground our professional practice.Veronica Arellano Douglas is Instruction Coordinator at the University of Houston Libraries. She received an MLS from the University of North Texas and a BA in English from Rice University. Veronica is an ALA Spectrum Scholar. Her research interests include gendered labor in libraries, relational-cultural theory, and critical information literacy and librarianship.Joanna Gadsby works as the Instruction Coordinator and a Reference & Instruction Librarian at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She holds a BA in Human Development from St. Mary's College of Maryland, an MEd in Curriculum and Instruction from Loyola University, and an MLIS from University of Maryland, College Park. Her research interests include constructivist pedagogy, librarian and teacher identity, and gendered labor in librarianship.

Libraries and the Substance Abuse Crisis: Supporting Your Community


Cindy Grove - 2020
    Because libraries are not only trusted guardians of information but also vital community centers, people struggling with addictive behaviors as well as their family members and friends often turn to the library for help. But many library workers feel overwhelmed, finding themselves unprepared for serving these patrons in an effective and empathetic way. This book encourages readers to turn their fears and uncertainty into strengths and empowerment, offering to-the-point guidance on welcoming people with substance use disorders and their loved ones through policy, materials, outreach, collaboration, programs, and services. Written by a frontline librarian whose personal experiences inform the book, this resource:- explores the library’s role in the fight against addiction and how to become part of the solution by combating stigma;- provides background on understanding how substance abuse and related behaviors affect different age groups and populations;- explains how to be proactive regarding library safety and security by carefully crafting library policies and effectively communicating them to staff;- offers real-world guidance on training library staff, including pointers on recognizing observable signs of drug abuse and responding appropriately and safely to uncomfortable or potentially dangerous situations; - discusses safeguards such as a needle disposal unit, defibrillator, and Naloxone;- gives tips on marketing, outreach, and programming, from putting together displays of materials and resources to partnering with local organizations; and- recommends useful websites, documentaries, and additional resources for further learning.By making their own contributions to changing the way people struggling with substance abuse are treated in society, libraries can demonstrate that resilience can transcend crisis.

Making the Most of Teen Library Volunteers: Energizing and Engaging Community


Becca Boland - 2020
    From small libraries with no budget to large libraries with seemingly endless budgets and everything in between, all of the concepts covered can be scaled up or down to meet the needs of the community being served.The book begins with the big picture, discussing benefits to teens, libraries, and communities; it then reviews volunteer types and volunteer possibilities for teens, including the traditional roles of shelving and programming as well as passion-led projects, programming opportunities, and special initiatives and drives. Specific volunteer roles are described in depth, with instructions for practical applications, and concrete examples and experiences from various types of libraries illustrate principles discussed. Readers will also learn how to establish volunteer partnerships within and outside of the library. The book ends with a discussion of methods for evaluation and assessment.

Pairing STEAM with Stories: 46 Hands-On Activities for Children


Elizabeth M. McChesney - 2020
    Partnering with cultural institutions, such as the Chicago Public Library (CPL) does with Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry (MSI), libraries can forge powerful connections between literacy and science. This resource shares the fruits of that partnership, offering ready-to-go, library-tested activities that meld cutting-edge STEAM education principles with some of the best books available for youth today. It's a model that can be used in a variety of library or museum settings and can also be adapted for outreach. Inside, readers will find46 book-based, customizable STEAM activities, each complete with program length, materials list, and step-by-step instructions; real-life tips, advice, and thoughts from practicing CPL librarians sprinkled throughout the book; pointers on incorporating STEAM into existing programs; pedagogical strategies behind effective STEAM experiences, ensuring successful implementation of these skills; and helpful supporting materials such as a program planning rubric and a vendor list. The activities in this book will make STEAM education fun while planting the seeds for lifelong learning.

Impactful Community-Based Literacy Projects


Lesley S J Farmer - 2020
    To optimize results, the projects in this book blend early literacy benefits, fundamental reading skills, and other foundational concepts with culture- or community-specific sensitivity and leveraging. They're adaptable based on age, audience, size, resources, and budget; and most importantly, they address social inequities and foster cross-culture interactions. Inside, readers will finddetailed profiles of dozens of successful literacy projects, which include such activities as oral storytelling, the Parent-Child Home Program, a repository of multilingual children's stories, accessible web readers, personal tutors, and many more; an overview of universal steps to literacy, explaining how people learn, generic reading skill development, human developmental issues, and habits of literacy; research-based factors for impactful literacy projects; discussion of the importance and role of literacy partners such as families, schools and universities, libraries, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and for-profit entities; advice on project planning, including needs assessment, goals and objectives, literacy review, target audience, project personnel, resources, setting and timing, communication, support, implementation, communication, and continuous assessment and improvement; and guidance on building capacity, empowering the community, and sustaining a culture of literacy. Complete with links to additional resources and support materials, this resource details the steps needed to create effective and sustainable projects in your own community.

52 Ready-To-Use Gaming Programs for Libraries


Ellyssa Kroski - 2020
    

Academic Library Services for First-Generation Students


Xan Arch - 2020
    Academic Library Services for First-Generation Students focuses on ways academic libraries can uniquely contribute to the successful transition to college and year-to-year retention of first-generation students.The practical recommendations in this book include a wide range of ideas for the design and modification of library services and facilities to be more inclusive of the needs of first-generation students. All of the recommendations are specifically aimed at addressing challenges faced by first-generation students. Topics covered range from study spaces and service points to information literacy instruction and campus partnerships. The book makes the case--both explicitly and implicitly--that academic libraries can help address known risk factors (e.g., by helping students build academic cultural competencies) and thereby improve success, persistence, and retention for first-generation students. Academic library professionals in both leadership roles and public service positions will benefit from the actionable strategies presented here.

Intellectual Freedom Stories from a Shifting Landscape


Valerie Nye - 2020
    And ALA has long recognized the crucial role that libraries play in protecting this right. But what does it mean in practice? How do library workers handle the ethical conundrums that often accompany the commitment to defending it? Rather than merely laying out abstract policies and best practices, this important new collection gathers real-world stories of intellectual freedom in action to illuminate the difficulties, triumphs, and occasional setbacks of advocating for free and equal access to information for all people in a shifting landscape. Offering insight to LIS students and current practitioners on how we can advance the profession of librarianship while fighting censorship and other challenges, these personal narratives explore such formidable situations aspresenting drag queen story times in rural America;a Black Lives Matter die-in at the undergraduate library of the University of Wisconsin-Madison;combating censorship at a prison library;hosting a moderated talk about threats to modern democracy that included a neo-Nazi spokesman;a provocative exhibition that triggered intimidating phone calls, emails, and a threat to burn down an art library;calls to eliminate non-Indigenous children's literature from the collection of a tribal college library; andpreserving patrons' right to privacy in the face of an FBI subpoena.These stories provide a rich platform for debate and introspection by sharing real-world examples that library staff, administrators, board members, and students can consider and discuss.

The Engaged Library: High-Impact Educational Practices in Academic Libraries


Joan D. Ruelle - 2020
    These practices take different forms depending on institutional context and priorities, as well as the learners themselves, but are all meant to create substantive activities that deepen student learning, engagement, and success.The Engaged Library provides case studies, examples, and discussion of how academic libraries can create successful partnerships to contribute to the integration of high-impact practices on their campuses, and ways to execute these practices well. Each chapter addresses one of the ten original high-impact practices through the lens of library partnerships, contributions, and opportunities, and provides ideas for and examples of outcomes assessment. A variety of types of institutions are included, and some chapters discuss initiatives that involve a combination of multiple practices. Across all of the chapters and case studies, you will find examples of well-orchestrated and engaging models that rely on instructional teams of faculty, advisers, librarians, and technology professionals to enhance and deepen the practices’ impact on student learning.The framework for The Engaged Library challenges academic libraries to plan, develop, and execute efforts to incorporate these practices intentionally, systematically, and for greater engagement and impact. It can help foster a shared language around high-impact practices within academic librarianship that will highlight and articulate how libraries have been and can increasingly become integral to the success of these engaged learning practices across academia. As high-impact practices become a leading measure of engaged pedagogy on college campuses, this volume can provide an entry point for academic librarians looking to lead, partner, and contribute to these practices on their campus.