¡Es divertido hablar dos idiomas!

Bilingual Storytime Idea - ¡Arroz con Leche!

2012-01-05T19:14:00.006-05:00

What's my professional New Year's resolution?

To embody the spirit of Día and help foster a culture of literacy throughout the year at the Village Branch library. How am I doing this? Well, one way involves our Bilingual Family Storytime program. I am tweaking the format of this program a bit so that it is a monthly family literacy event, drawing on themes relevant to the Latino community. Our first program is Wednesday, January 11 at 6 PM on the theme of "Arroz con Leche" - ¡que sabroso!

We will be sharing The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred by Samantha Vamos and illustrated by Rafael Lopez along with Jorge Argueta's Arroz con leche / Rice Pudding, which is a bilingual recipe/poem illustrated by Fernando Vilela. We'll be turning this book into a creative dramatic to further narrative skill development as we move through each of the steps in the recipe, as well as practicing some math concepts as we measure the appropriate amounts of the ingredients. This activity will exercise our imaginations as well! Of course we will also be sharing the traditional song "Arroz con leche." We will be using the version on the CD Juguemos a cantar as we sing and dance and play musical instruments.

Following the program, parents and children will have the opportunity to interact together at three discovery centers designed to reinforce further skill development in fun ways. One station will be a tasting of real arroz con leche - a table top poster will prompt parents to ask their children specific questions as they try the tasty treat. The other two are activities from the "Para los Niños" program out of the Houston Children's Museum. And the cinnamon on top? Every family who comes will get to take home their very own copy of Arroz con Leche: Popular Songs and Rhymes from Latin America by Lulu Delacre, courtesy of the Friends of the Lexington Public Library and Scholastic Literacy Partners.

I am so very excited for this tasty program and hope to see many families in attendance. ¡Nos vemos en la biblioteca!

Bilingual Storytime Flannel Idea - ¡Música!

2011-11-29T16:00:00.001-05:00

Recently I observed a colleague use Raffi's "Ha Ha Thisaway" song in storytime and I was inspired. I came up with a Spanish version of the song in which the singer learns to play different musical instruments as we place them on the flannelboard. The rhythm of the song is the same, but the words are totally different, making it a movement song that build vocabulary specific to a theme, in this case music.

Keeping the tune, in place of the English chorus we sing:

"Muévete así, muévete acá

Muévete así, ¡Muévete!"

You can move from side to side or back and forth while singing, and clap out the final three syllables as you sing "¡Mué-ve-te!"

We put the flannel pieces up on the board before each verse to learn the name of the instrument, and pretend to play it and make its music.

"Cuando era niño(a), niño(a), niño(a)

Cuando era niño(a), aprendí mucho.

Aprendí a tocar piano, piano, piano,

Aprendí a tocar piano, PI-A-NO.

Aprendí a tocar trompeta…

Aprendí a tocar guitarra…

Aprendí a tocar tambor…"

Again, you can clap out the syllables of the final word, reinforcing phonological awareness.

El piano y la trompeta

Here are pictures of the flannel pieces that I made to go with our version of this song.

La guitarra y el tambor

Bilingual Storytime Idea - Thanksgiving

2011-11-21T10:48:00.007-05:00

¡Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias - Gobble, gobble! This week the Village Branch will close early on Wednesday night, so we celebrated Thanksgiving early at Bilingual Family Storytime.

A colleague, Lowena Latiff, shared a song called "Mr. Turkey" with me which I translated into a rhyme to use with our beautiful Folkmanis turkey puppet. I know that all children's librarians already know this, but Folkmanis puppets are truly the best. We used our turkey friend for a fun fingerplay too. Thanks to Raul Garces for helping me edit my translations.

Mr. Turkey
I heard Mr. Turkey say
"Gobble, gobble, gobble.
Soon will be Thanksgiving Day,
gobble, gobble, gobble.
You may think that it is fun
But I think, I will run
And hide until the day is done
Gobble, gobble, gobble."

Señor Pavo

Oí a Señor Pavo

Dice “Gobble, gobble, gobble,

El día de gracias viene pronto

El día que me asusta tonto

Para tí es divertido

Pero me da mucho miedo

Entonces voy a esconderme

Hasta que este día termine

Gobble, gobble, gobble.”

Y se fue el Señor Pavo.

I found this cute turkey glove pic at
Learningand Teaching with Preschoolers.

Five Little Turkeys
Five little turkeys standing at the door,
one waddled off, and then there were four.
Four little turkeys sitting near a tree,
one waddled off, and then there were three.
Three little turkeys with nothing to do,
one waddled off, and then there were two.
Two little turkeys in the morning sun,
one waddled off, and then there was one.
One little turkey better run away,
For soon it will be Thanksgiving Day.

Cinco pavos

Acerca de la puerta son cinco pavos

Uno se salió, y ahora son cuatro.

Cuatro pavos gordos huelen a los postres

Uno se salió y ahora son tres.

Tres pequeños pavos saltan unos saltos

Uno se salió y ahora son dos.

Dos pavos nerviosos esperan su oportuno

Uno se salió y ahora solo hay uno.

Un pavo queda este día importuno

Cuando el se sale, ¡no hay ninguno!

We merged the theme of Thansgiving with family, as there are not a lot of good bilingual read alouds on the theme of Thanksgiving. The book that works the best, of course, is Pat Mora's Gracias = Thanks, which is what we read first. We then read We Are Cousins = Somos primos by Diane Gonzales Bertrand. After all, for close-knit families, your cousins are your default best friends, and for other families, Thanksgiving may be one of the few times of year when you visit with your cousins. Then we had a lot of fun singing and dancing to José-Luis Orozco's version of "La tía Mónica." I was hesitant to use this book at first (even though it is very interactive and builds body part vocabulary) because it is so long (about 5 minutes). However, I am so glad that I did. The families had a blast! This is definitely one to work into your regular bilingual storytime music rotation! We closed with Juanito Counts to Ten = Johnny cuenta hasta diez by Lee Merrill Byrd. In this cute story, Juanito counts out kisses to the various people in his family and daily life, and we practice our counting in English and Spanish, helping to develop important Kindergarten Readiness skills.

So even though I will be enjoying my Thanksgiving with a Tofurkey instead of a turkey, I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday spent relaxing with the ones you love in however many languages you live.

Para los Niños - A resource to know for bilingual storytime!

2011-11-20T15:57:00.000-05:00

As part of the "Growing Up Bilingual" workshop at the Reforma National Conference IV, I was introduced to the "Para los Niños" program. This is too great a resource to keep to myself! The program was developed by the Children's Museum of Houston. Tiffany Fontenot of CMH and Freda Mosquera, who has implemented the program at Broward County Library in Florida, gave us an in depth demonstration. The great thing about this program is that all of the materials are available to download and use in English and Spanish. Also, all of the materials needed for the learning activities are very cheap, making the activities easy for families to replicate at home.

So what is "Para los Niños"? It is a family learning program developed for Spanish-speaking families, though available in English as well. There are 8 workshop themes, such as "Math at Home," "Raise a Reader" and "Self-Esteem." Each theme has at least 5 activities that accompany it, and most of the activities tie back to picture book that the families can share together. There are multiple ways that this program could be implemented. For example, Freda Mosquera shared how her library offered these workshops at a community center that served many Spanish-speaking families. The course of the program was 8 weeks, one theme each week. The programs would start with a storytime for the families, and then the families could work together on each of activity stations. I plan to implement parts of this program into my Bilingual Family Storytime program, setting up two to three activity stations each month for families to explore together following our stories and songs.

So go check this program out! Do you know of other great ready-to-use resources for bilingual storytimes? Share them with us here!

Bilingual Storytime Ideas - Halloween!

2011-10-24T15:47:00.001-04:00

I love Halloween! It's always been my favorite holiday, and I love celebrating it with my storytime families. Every year we do a program of "Slightly Spooky Stories / Cuentos algo escalofriantes" with just enough fright for little ones. Here's the presentation of what we will be doing this year.

Bilingual Storytime for Halloween

View more presentations from Katie Cunningham.

We will open the program up with On Halloween Night / La noche de Halloween by Judith Zocchi, which provides a nice overview of the holiday. The bilingual edition is good, though unfortunately the rhyme is lost in the Spanish translation. Next it's time to sing! We'll use the tune of "Did You Ever See a Lassie" to sing our Halloween version - ¿Has visto a una calabaza? Mil gracias to my colega Jackie for proofing my translation of this song. Then it's time for my favorite Halloween story, the 2008 Pura Belpré medal winner for illustration and honor recipient for narrative, Los Gatos Black on Halloween by the late Marisa Montes. Introducing this book is a great moment for sharing with parents the power of playing with rhyme and sound in developing phonological awareness. Speaking of the power of rhyme, we'll next move to an English version of "Five Little Pumpkins" shared by a colleague and a Spanish version of "Cinco calabazas" from Jorge Anaya's Cha, Cha, Cha CD. Monsters come out to play next as we share Go Away Big Green Monster / Fuera de aquí, horrible monstruo verde and a bilingual version of "If You're a Monster and You Know It / Si eres un monstruo y lo sabes." We'll end the storytime with another Halloween classic - The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything / La viejecita que no le tenía miedo a nada by Linda Williams. I love to make the telling of this tale more interactive by using flannel pieces and musical instruments. I give all of the kids an instrument to play to make the sounds of the different clothes: a drum for the zapatos, maracas for the pantalones, bells for the camisa, rhythm sticks for the guantes, and egg shakers for the sombrero - and of course, we are all our own instruments for the "Boo, Buu, Boo" of the cabeza!

What a great week for programs - we have another celebration next week for Día de los Muertos! How are you celebrating either or both of these beautiful holidays with your families or communities?

Juntos in the Mile High City!

2011-09-13T18:17:00.002-04:00

The Reforma National Conference IV: Elevating Latino Services to a Higher Level is this weekend in Denver, CO, and I can't wait! I will be serving on a panel of librarians presenting the pre-conference "Growing Up with Bilingual Programming: A Tribute to Rose Treviño." My area will cover bilingual storytimes for preschool and early elementary age children, as well as families. All of the resources that I will be sharing are available here for you.

This presentation covers the basics of designing a bilingual storytime.
Bilingual Storytime: Preschool, School Age and Families

This document includes recommended Spanish and bilingual movement music and a sample plan for a fiesta-theme bilingual storytime.
Fiesta Plan and Recommended Music

This document is a list of online and print resources for those planning and presenting Bilingual Storytime programs.
Resources

This document is a copy of the flannel pieces that I use to tell The Bossy Gallito / El gallo de bodas on a flannelboard. The copies can be used as a pattern for creating your own flannel version of this delightful cumulative story.
Bossy Gallito

This document is a copy of the flannel pieces that I use to extend the "Eight Animals" stories by Susan Middleton Elya.
8 Animals

The final piece that I have to share are the files that I used in creating the Piñata Math activity. In this activity, parents help their children identify shapes and colors, practice counting, compare sizes and identify/extend simple patterns. The components to this activity are the Bilingual Piñata Math Instructions and the Piñata Math Shape Patterns.

As always, please feel free to send me an email or leave a comment if you have any questions about the resources I've shared here or bilingual storytime in general. I hope to see lots of you this weekend in Denver!

A BIG Idea for Building Early Literacy - ¡Elefantes!

2011-07-13T14:26:00.001-04:00

Tonight in Bilingual Family Storytime we are sharing animal stories, songs and activities, including Petr Horacek's Elefante, also available in English as Elephant. This is a great story about using our imaginations to have fun, and it uses text in some cool ways. Here's an example of how to communicate the value of unusual text for building early literacy to parents while introducing the book:

"Our first book, Elephant by Petr Horacek, uses various shapes and directions in the text, which helps children learn that when we use books, we read from left to right. This is an important skill called print utilization that helps prepare young children to learn to read.

El primer libro, Elefante por Petr Horacke, cambia mucho las formas y direcciones en el texto. Esto ayuda a los niños a aprender que cuando usamos libros, leemos desde la izquierda a la derecha. Esta es una habilidad importante que se llama el reconocimiento de la palabra escrita que prepara a los niños a aprender a leer."

I found an awesome song on YouTube by Habla Blah Blah called "Los elefantes" that we are going to use too. We will count and stomp along with the song, which would be super easy to sing again in English. We may even get out some rhythm sticks! This will be a great chance to bring out my very favorite Folkmanis elephant puppet to come out and play too!

Can't wait to share these ideas and more with all of our amigos tonight at 6 PM at the Village Branch library!

UPDATE!
One of my co-presenters (the amazing Freda Mosquera) at the "Growing Up Bilingual Programming: A Tribute to Rose Treviño" session at the Reforma IV conference last Septmber, shared a very cool way in which she uses the traditional "Elefantes" song in her program. I have since done this in my programs and it is so much fun! Take a piece of string or yarn as your telaraña and have paper elefantes for each child. I have numbered each of my elefantes 1-10. Then have the children come up one at a time to add their elefante to the telaraña with a clothespin. Number one comes up first and adds her elephant and then takes the end of the yarn to sing the first verse of the song and call over elefante dos. This is interactive and engaging, so it works for mixed ages. It uses a traditional rhyme, familiar to both Spanish-speaking and English-speaking communities, which makes it very powerful for reinforcing the development of phonological awareness. Finally, it also helps to practice counting skills and number identification, two essential school readiness skills. Have fun adding this to your programs!
The super librarians of Flannel Friday have a flannel, the words in both languages and a video of the song in Spanish all available here.

P is for Piñata: A Mexican Alphabet - How did I miss this?!

2011-06-16T20:02:00.000-04:00

Walking through the library yesterday I came across what I was sure was a brand new book - P is for Piñata: A Mexican Alphabet by Tony Johnston (who also wrote My Abuelita) and illustrated by John Parra. I was shocked to find this book has actually been around since 2008! As disappointed as I am that I haven't been using this spectacular alphabet book in my storytimes up to this point, I am so excited to start using it now!

This book presents each letter of the alphabet and a corresponding object or concept from Mexico in a short rhyming poem, written in English with some Spanish words. Because of the rhyming text, the beautiful, full-page illustrations and the simplicity of the concepts presented, this is a great alphabet book to share with preschool groups. Additionally, a sidebar shares more sophisticated information about the history or use of each letter's object, which makes this a great book for a classroom lesson on Mexico or for older readers to explore on their own. I will be using this book in September when our Bilingual Family Storytime group celebrates the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month.

My favorite letter in the book is "S" for, of course, Skeleton!

"S is for Skeleton

Skeleton, skeleton, why do you dance?

I love to move. I love to prance -

sometimes with partners; sometimes alone -

to show off my rackety, clackety bones."

So if you are like me, and somehow have missed this amazing book, go find it and add it to your collection ASAP! Know of another great book for bilingual programming that I may have missed? Share it here!

¡Listos para Kindergarten! Ready for Kindergarten!

2011-03-24T16:05:00.001-04:00

We are all about working closely with the Fayette County Schools at the Lexington Public Library to promote Kindergarten readiness - sharing with families the skills their kids need to be successful when they start school, and modeling fun, interactive ways in which they can practice this at home. Last year, a colleague of mine, Susan Price at the Central Location, took this mission and used it to develop a brilliant program called "When I'm in Kindergarten." This is a discovery center style program, much like "Little Hands, Big Ideas / Manos pequeñas / Ideas grandes." In every station, parent and child explore important Kindergarten readiness and pre-literacy skills, such as their personal information, parts of the body, practicing numbers, sorting objects by color and size and alphabet letters. Last year I translated this program, and we have offered it twice so far at the Villlage Branch. With Susan's permission, in this post I will share all of the materials you need to put this program on bilingually at your library too! The instructions for the walls are available in English and in Spanish. However, both were originally created in Microsoft Publisher, so to access via Google Docs, you will need to download and open with Publisher. If this is a problem for any reason, please feel free to contact me via the blog and I can email to you as an attachment.

Patterns / Sequencias

In this station, foam shapes are set out on a mat. We use the Mother Goose Foam Shape and Pattern Blocks, but this could also be done on the cheap with paper cutouts. Parents work with the child to identify the various shapes and their colors. The caregiver then helps the child construct the patterns depicted in the instructions, and the child predicts which shapes will come next to continue the pattern. Children who master this can then be challenged to create and extend their own patterns. This stations helps develop Letter Knowledge by practicing shapes, as well as the Kindergarten readiness skills of identifying shapes and colors and extending simple patterns.

2. Telephone / Teléfono

This is probably my favorite station! Large numbers are laminated and glued to a mat in the shape of a phone pad. The caregiver helps the child practice important phone numbers (such as home, cell and 911) by hopping from number to number!

3. Laundary / Lavando la ropa

This station practices sorting objects by various attributes, such as color and shape. A small clothesline is hung to the wall to which children can clip laminated paper cutouts of articles of clothing in assorted colors. For example, they can group all of the shirts, or all of the red clothes.

4. Body Parts / Partes del cuerpo

Another important station! Susan made and laminated a large cutout of a child. The names of various body parts are laminated and attached to magnets which correspond to magnets on the body parts too. Children match the name to the appropriate area of the body. This activity would be fun to include in a body or movement themed storytime. You could follow up with a movement song that practices body parts, such as "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" or "Juanito."

5. Personal Information / Información personal

Through this activity, children and caregivers go over important personal information children need to know, particularly in the event of an emergency, such as family members' names, address and birthday. Parents review this information with their child in the form of a mad lib (available in English and Spanish). They also use dry erase markers to complete the missing information from the drawn and laminated house.

6. Alphabet Soup / La sopa de letras

At this station, children find a big bowl of letter soup, made from paper letters, cut and laminated. Caregivers help children find the letters in their names and dip out the whole alphabet in order.

In order to continue the fun and learning outside of the library, Susan also made two take-home activities: an obstacle course and a grocery hunt. We are sure to also share with parents the information from FCPS regarding what children are expected to know as they enter Kindergarten.

Let me know if you use any or all of these stations to supplement storytimes or create new programs. Do you have other Kindergarten readiness programming ideas? Share them here / compártanlos aquí!

Storyblocks by Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy

2011-03-16T12:23:00.004-04:00

Colorado, way to go! First of all, "Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy" is a brilliant statewide initiative. Second, I love Storyblocks! Storyblocks is a website for parents, caregivers, etc. with lots of age-appropriate videos in English and Spanish of librarians demonstrating rhymes and songs to share with little ones, helping them develop vocabulary and phonological awarenes. This website is awesome.

I will be in Denver, CO in September for the REFORMA 4th National Conference, presenting a preconference workshop on bilingual programming for various ages with a panel of librarians from across the country. I will love to meet with other librarians in or near Denver, or attending the conference, who are serving Latino families, offering bilingual programs, or promoting early literacy to Spanish-speaking parents. It is always so invigorating to hear the creative ways in which others are making an impact!

What are other libraries and librarians doing in a visible way to promote early literacy and empower parents?

NPR Story on Benefits of Bilingualism

2011-03-06T12:11:00.000-05:00

For anyone out there raising bilingual babies, this story from Science Friday is definitely worth a listen! This really hits home the importance of reassuring parents who may be wary of confusing or harming their child's development by speaking "too much" in their native language, that sharing language with your child is a gift and a key to culture - not too mention an extremely valuable skill to have at one's disposal later in life.

http://www.npr.org/2011/02/25/134059279/being-bilingual-not-only-a-boon-for-native-tongues

McConnell 2011!

2011-02-28T15:43:00.000-05:00

What a great McConnell Conference the UK School of Library and Information Science put together this year! Sharon Draper lifted our spirits with her amazing energy, Rafael López shared his dazzling colors and artistic process, and Matt de la Peña illuminated and inspired with his own personal story. It was truly an honor and a joy to present at this conference.

I was thrilled by the questions and ideas shared during both of my sessions. Here are some of the ideas that participants shared that they were planning to take back to their libraries. I have added some of my own comments to these in asterisks:

Start planning a Día celebration for the first time. *LOTS of folks said this, which is wonderful! Don't forget that Reforma Southeast is accepting applications for two mini-grants for folks planning Día programs.*
Access websites for Survival Spanish and translations of library policies.
Contact services in my county that serve Latinos to ask about the materials they need, the programs they would participate in, and ways to reach Latinos in my community. *This is great!*
I am an elementary school librarian. I can contact the local public library to collaborate with them to build a stronger Latino program in my school.
Staff training about using folktales as part of programming to Latino communities. *Conejito by Margaret Read MacDonald and Martina, the Beautiful Cockroach by Carmen Agra Deedy are two great books to start with. The Bossy Gallito by Lucia Gonzalez also makes a great flannel story!*
Check out Webjunction resources and share them with others at my library. *Consider their Spanish Language Outreach training, which is available online.*
Welcome Latino families into our school with warmth and a smile. *I LOVE this one!*
Start homework help if possible - helps total constituency. *Great point!*
Add more multicultural / bilingual books to storytime.
Contact with Spanish liaison at school to schedule a library tour for local Latino families. *Fantastic idea!*
Start a Noche de Cuentos evening program.
Purchase more bilingual books.
Have high school students taking Spanish do bilingual storytelling, giving them volunteer hours and giving the children role models. *Love this idea! There are lots of great books and stories out there that incorporate little bits of Spanish into English text. This might be a great place to start, so that it is not too overwhelming for the high schoolers. I recommend Susan Middleton Elya and Ann Whitford Paul to get you started.*

Mil gracias to everyone who attended my sessions at the McConnell for sharing these ideas. Keep us posted with how things are going for you by leaving a comment or sending me an email. Also, if you have any questions along the way, please know that I am always happy to help. You aren't alone! Reforma Southeast is here for you too!

Serving Latino Children and Families in Kentucky Libraries

2011-02-17T20:09:00.000-05:00

On February 25 and 26, 2011, I will be sharing this presentation at the McConnell Conference in Lexington, KY. By clicking below, you can access the entire PowerPoint. The two accompaning handouts are also available at http://www.slideshare.net/KatieCunningham, as well as past presentations.

Serving Latino Children and Families in Kentucky Libraries

View more presentations from Katie Cunningham.

12 Ways Libraries Are Good for the Country | American Libraries Magazine

2010-12-29T15:11:00.000-05:00

A colleague recently shared this article, and I love it. We are truly fortunate to have the public libraries we have in this country. At a time when so many are in crisis due to dwindling budgets and a stalled economy, it is important to remember the value and return on investment libraries provide to their communities.

12 Ways Libraries Are Good for the Country American Libraries Magazine

¡Feliz Navidad!

2010-12-27T12:51:00.002-05:00

It's a rare thing when you actually love where you work and what you do. This should give you a glimpse of why I honestly love working at Village. Happy New Year everyone!

Manos pequeñas, ideas grandes: A bilingual discovery center program

2010-11-21T15:31:00.000-05:00

My amazing colleagues at the Tates Creek Branch library have been doing a series of programs called "Little Hands, Big Ideas" for a while now. Last year I observed one, and got inspired to try a bilingual version here at the Village Branch. Today was our first program, and it was really fun!

The program works like this: various activity stations are set up using a certain theme, and the parent/caregiver and child move from activity to activity. Through this interactive play, the child is building early literacy, science and math concepts. There is a lot of prep to setup the program, but it is worth it to see child and parent interacting together and having fun while they build important Kindergarten Readiness skills.

Our theme for today's program was Grocery Store / El supermercado. We started off with a book and a story: Susan Middleton Elya's Bebé Goes Shopping, which introduces Spanish vocabulary through rhyming English text, and "Chocolate," one of our favorite phonological awareness building rhymes. Then it was off to explore at the five stations.

Station 1: Shopping Baskets / Cestas de compras
Children counted the items in two shopping baskets and compared which one had more items. They then created patterns with the groceries and lined the various items up by size. This helped them practice counting up to 20, comparing objects of different sizes and constructing simple patterns.

Station 2: Shopping Cart / Carrito de compras
Kids estimated how many objects they could fit into the shopping cart and then experimented by placing object in the cart. They did the same activity again, estimating how many small items would fit into the cart and then how many large items would fit. This also practiced counting and size comparisons, as well as making and testing hypotheses.

Station 3: Food Sort / Tipos de alimentos
Kids sorted various types of foods into the appropriate categories based on the USDA food pyramid. This helped children practice sorting skills.

Station 4: Let's Go Shopping / Vamos de compras

This was a very fun activity. Kids could use shopping baskets and mini shopping carts to search for the groceries on their list, while they talked with their parent or cargiver about what they were purchasing and what they would use it for. This activity helped build early literacy skills such as vocabulary and narrative skills by sparking parent and child conversation. Plus, pushing around the mini cart was a lot of fun!

Station 5: Price Matching / Emparejamiento de precios

Lots of products and prices were spread out for kids to match the prices to the correct items. The best part? They could then enter the prices into a REAL cash register. It even beeped and opened to reveal play money! This was an opportunity to identify various numbers and to compare numbers of different sizes.

This style of program is a great way to share with parents the types of early skills their children need to know to be ready for school success, and to share fun ways of practicing those skills which they can expand out at home or in other locations. All of the files used in this program are available online here at Google Docs. Do you do any kind of discovery center programming? How do you make it accessible for everyone in your community?

Celebrating Halloween and El Día de los Muertos through Stories

2010-10-29T10:11:00.003-04:00

Two holidays in one week? Yippee! This alone is enough to put a smile on my face, but when you add in that the two holidays are Halloween and the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos), it gets even better - costumes, calaveras and candy!

Like last year, we celebrated Halloween in bilingual family storytime with Slightly Spooky Stories / Cuentos algo escalofriantes. We started off with a vocabulary activity, reviewing the names and colors of an orange pumpkin / calavaza anaranjada, a purple bat / murciélago morado, a white ghost / fantasma blanco and a balck cat / gato negro. The cutouts of each are available here through Google Docs. They would also work for flannel patterns. To keep this piece interactive, we pretended to scoop out our pumkins, fly like bats, boo like ghosts and hiss like cats.

Our first story was the Pura Belpre award winning Los Gatos Black on Halloween by Marissa Montes and illustrated by the always amazing Yuyi Morales. The story is told in rhyming English text, useful for practicing phonological awareness, with Spanish vocabulary sprinkled throughout. We then did some Five Little Pumpkins / Cinco calabazas fingerplays. Several versions are available and I included them on my Spooky Stories handout.

Next, we tried a new spin on an old classic - La viejecita que no le tenía miedo a nada by Sue Williams, also known as The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything. At a presentation I attended last week at Kentucky's Widening Circles conference, a music therapist shared how she tells this story incorporating musical instruments, which I thought sounded like a great idea to try. It was great! Each piece of clothing got a different instrument, such as drums, rattles, shakers and bells. Luckily I had enough egg shakers so that every kid could participate. This story tends to run a little long, but the use of the instruments kept the kids engaged throughout.

We finished with an English song, something I don't do very often, but it was a cute thing I had seen another librarian do and wanted to try out. We first found our derecha and izquierda (right and left), and then instead of the Hokey Pokey, we sang the Hooky Spooky. Everyone had a ball! The kids trick-or-treated throughout the library on their way out with huge smiles on their faces.

This Monday, we will celebrate El Día de los Muertos with stories, calavera puppets and pan dulce. We will be sharing Bob Barner's new book, The Day of the Dead / El Día de los Muertos. We have a community altar for folks to drop by and leave rememberances of their loved ones, such as pictures and favorite foods. A personal note to share, is this year I lost my cat Zoey who was my faithful companion for 20 years. I will be celebrating her long and beautiful life by bringing a picture and some of her treats for our altar.

Butterflies and Science Make Storytime Fun!

2010-09-28T14:09:00.002-04:00

Bilingual Family Storytime is back in full swing at the Village Branch Library with a new time. We are now offering the program on Wednesday evenings at 6 PM. Last week, mariposas filled the air. This was a great theme for incorporating important science and early literacy concepts.

We started off as always with our opening song, "Hola amigo" from Ole! Ole! Ole! Dr. Jean en Español by Dr. Jean Feldman. This song introduces English speakers to fun Spanish greetings, practices rhythm and rhyme, and signals to the children each week that storytime is beginning. Our first book was Mariposa, mariposa by Petr Horacek. I love this book! Lucía encounters all kinds of colorful bugs in her yard as she searches for an elusive butterfly. The cutouts in the pages and a special surprise at the end make this book extra fun to explore. It's a perfect choice for reinforcing print motivation.

Moving on, we practiced both colors and sorting while we listened to "Mariposa" from ¡Piñata! Bilingual Songs for Children by Sarah Barchas. We placed four sheets of paper on our carpet - azul, morado, amarillo y anaranjado. Then I had a big bag of assorted objects in those colors. One at a time we sorted the objects by color into 4 different groups. This activity took about three minutes to complete; we ended just as the song was finishing.

Next we met Rita, a mischevious little butterfly in the book by Rachel Chaundler. The story is amusing and can even be adapted into a creative dramatic using puppets. Afterward I put on my storytelling apron and used pieces available from Lakeshore to retell Eric Carle's classic The Very Hungry Caterpillar. This story is excellent for telling bilingually. The repetition of "he was still hungry / todavia tenía hambre" makes the story interactive to tell. The names of the different fruits help build vocabulary, and counting them practices early numeracy concepts. An alternative to purchasing the storytelling pieces is to make your own puppets or felt pieces. Patterns are available from DLTK.

Next we reviewed the life cycle of una mariposa. I printed out four pictures - an egg (un huevo), a caterpillar (una oruga), a cocoon (un capullo) and a butterfly (una mariposa). We put the pictures in order to practice sequencing, and then acted out the various stages as a movement activity. As always, we closed with another Dr. Jean tune, "Adiós amigos." Handouts for parents shared information about what specific Kindergarten Readiness skills we were practicing throughout the program, and included books and ideas to use at home. The handouts are available in English and Spanish.

Another fun song you could use in a butterfly storytime is "La mariposa" by Colibri from Putamayo Presents World Playground: a Musical Adventure for Kids. Clapping to the rythm with their manos and pies help kids develop phonological awareness. What do you like to share when mariposas come to visit your storytime?

Incorporating las ciencias into Bilingual Storytime

2010-06-23T18:17:00.001-04:00

Some of you may be familiar with the Vermont Center for the Book's Mother Goose programs. These programs are intended to help increase kids' school readiness - a personal passion of my own. The Lexington Public Library uses the Mother Goose math and science resources to incorporate math and science skills, along with early literacy skill development techniques, into our storytime programs. Bilingual Family Storytime is no exception. So far this summer we have had a hands-on science activity for parents and kids to work on together after every program, and they have loved it!

The first week we had a water theme to kick off our Summer Reading Program - Make a Splash at your Library. As promised in a previous post, I used I Know the River Loves Me / Yo sé que el rio me ama by Maya Christina Gonzalez, along with Salpicar / Splash by Flora McDonnell, Bebé Goes to the Beach by Susan Middleton Elya, and "Vamos a la mar" by Jose-Luis Orozco. Our science activity also used water - various objects were spread out and kids had to examine them and predict which objects would sink and which would float. They marked their predictions on a chart and then it was time to experiment. When I saw how much the parents and the children enjoyed interacting together to make the predictions and conduct the experiment, I knew I would have to keep trying this type of activity. I'm sharing the bilingual directions you can print out and use with this activity via Google Docs along with the bilingual chart we used to mark our predictions. Sample sink or float activities are available on the Mother Goose site, along with other resources.

Last week our program was about colors. The last story we told was Pinta ratones, also known as Mouse Paint, by Ellen Stoll Walsh. This story introduces the concept of primary and secondary colors. We followed this with our science activity. Using color paddles available from Oriental Trading, the kids were able to mix primary colors together (mess-free!) and make secondary colors. They had a lot of fun looking through the paddles and seeing Miss Katie turn green and purple!

Tonight we are talking about the weather. One of my favorite things about the summer is growing my own food in my garden, so we are starting off with A sembrar sopa de verduras by Lois Ehlert (Growing Vegetable Soup) to talk about seasons. To reinforce narrative skills, we will retell what happened first, middle and last in the story after we read it. Lexington is a rainy town, so we'll follow up with "Que llueva" by Jose-Luis Orozco, Un día de lluvia by Valeri Gorbachev, and (of course!) "La araña pequeñita." We'll come back to seasons with Oso bajo el sol by Stella Blackstone. The change of seasons in our climate produces a clear pattern. Every year we move from spring, to summer, to fall and winter. So our science activity tonight will be identifying patterns. I've set out one easy and one hard pattern using foam shapes. Kids and parents will work together to find the pieces that continue and complete the pattern. This is a school readiness skill, and it also reinforces narrative skills by helping children identify sequence. The Mother Goose site has a number of professional articles about the effectiveness of incorporating math and science into storytime, including this one about recognizing patterns.

Do you incorporate science skills in your programs? Do you have some other kind of hands-on activity for kids and caregivers at the end of storytime? Let us know what you are doing!

International Latino Book Awards Winners

2010-06-18T10:28:00.001-04:00

I am reposting the following from the SLHW Literary Notes blog available at http://slhwnotes.blogspot.com. This was mentioned in the most recent American Libraries Direct. Way to go winners! There are a number of books on this list that I have not yet seen that I look forward to checking out.

International Latino Book Awards Winners

Here is a listing of the 12th Annual International Latino Book Awards Winners announced last night. I am so proud to see some local authors on the list! Congratulations to everyone!!

12th Annual International Latino Book Awards Winners Announced

In recognition of the many positive contributions being made to Latino literature by publishers and writers worldwide, Latino Literacy Now, a non-profit organization that supports and promotes literacy and literary excellence within the Latino community, created the Latino Book Awards in 1999. The awards were presented during BookExpo America on May 25, 2010, at the Javits Center. This year we are introducing a new designation for those entries that swept the judges 1st place ballots: Triple Crown Award Winners.

The Winners (Title - Author(s) or Illustrator (s) - Publisher):

CATEGORY A – CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULT BOOKS
Best Educational Children’s Book - Spanish
Cambio Climático: Los Gases de Efecto Invernadero - Daniel R. Faust - Rosen Publishing
2ND Place: Andy Warhol - Patricia Geis - Combel Editorial
Honorable Mention: Mitología Mesoamericana: Quetzalcóatl - Tom Danish - Rosen Publishing

Best Educational Children’s Book - Bilingual
Chiles- Inés Vaughn - Rosen Publishing
2ND Place: Fun With ABC's - Loteria Style - Luciano Martinez - Lectura Books
Honorable Mention: Chocolate - Inés Vaughn - Rosen Publishing
Honorable Mention: Corn/Maiz- Inés Vaughn - Rosen Publishing

Best Children’s Picture Book – English
What Can You Do With A Paleta? - Carmen Tafolla - Trycycle Press2ND Place: Diego: Bigger Than Life - Carmen T. Bernier-Grand - Marshall Cavendish
Honorable Mention: Lom and the Gnatters – Kurusa - Groundwood Books

Best Children’s Picture Book – Spanish
¡Al Galope! - Rufus Butler Seder - Workman Publishing
2ND Place: Cocinando cuentos de hadas: Alicia en el pais de las delicias - Maria Villegas & Jennie Kent - Villegas Editores S.A.
2ND Place: Cocinando cuentos de hadas: Hansel y Gretel y la casita endulzado - Maria Villegas & Jennie Kent - Villegas Editores S.A.
Honorable Mention: Cocinando cuentos de hadas: Caperucita roja y el lobo glotón - Maria Villegas & Jennie Kent - Villegas Editores S.A.

Best Children’s Picture Book – BilingualMy Papa Diego and Me/Mi papa Diego y yo - Guadalupe Rivera Marin - Children's Book Press
2ND Place: I Know the River Loves Me/Yo se que el rio me ama - Maya Christina Gonzalez - Children's Book Press
Honorable Mention: Rene Has Two Last Names/René tiene dos apellidos - René Colato Laiñez - Arte Público Press
Honorable Mention: What Can You Do With A Paleta?/¿Que puedes hacer con una paleta? - Carmen Tafolla - Trycycle Press

Las seis habilidades de pre-alfabetización

2010-06-06T13:52:00.000-04:00

Posts have been few and far between lately, but such is the nature of May. Final purchases are being made with end-of-year budgets, and, of course, all energy is going into planning for Summer Reading. Our program started last week, and the Village branch staff have been doing an amazing job at making sure all families are signed up and participating in this year's program.

For a quick post, I thought I'd share a video that LPL just added to our YouTube channel. I worked on this a few months back. It is our first all-Spanish video, and it is about the six early literacy skills and library services. Enjoy!

Fiesta Babies Say Hello!

2010-04-19T13:19:00.001-04:00

Two lovely new books came in to the library today that I have to share. They each reinforce multiple early literacy skills, and could be used in bilingual storytime programs or by monolingual librarians striving to make their storytimes multiculturally inclusive.

Everyone loves a good party, including our youngest friends - and Fiesta Babies is just for them! This title by Carmen Tafolla is the perfect length for a baby or toddler storytime. The rhyming text encourages phonological awareness, while the Spanish words integrated into the text help develop vocabulary. Additionally, there are many ways parents can act out the text in this story while reading it with their child, such as tipping upside down, putting on pretend coronas, and dancing. This kind of interaction makes reading together fun and promotes print motivation. Even little Fiesta Babies can have positive experiences enjoying books!

Say Hello! by Rachel Isadora teaches us a variety of ways to greet the folks in our neighborhood from different cultures. I love this book! I am a big fan of mixed-media illustrations, such as those Isadora uses to bring her neighborhood to life. Carmelita and her mama start the day with breakfast, huevos con tocino, and then they are off to visit abuela. They are a friendly pair, enjoying this morning stroll through the neighborhood. They call out Buenos Días! at the bodega, Konichiwa! at the sushi restaurant, and Bonjour! at the pastisserie, as well as taking the time to stop and say hi with the neighbors they meet along the way. In addition to being an obvious vocabulary reinforcing book, this is an excellent print awareness title too. Words are incorporated throughout the pictures, just like we may see on buildings and signs in our own neighborhood. I plan to share this title this week at storytime when our theme is "Our Neighborhood / Nuestro vecindario." This would be a fun title for parents to share with their child before taking neighborhood walk together, practicing letter knowledge along the way by pointing out the letters they see and practicing their names and sounds.

We are so proud of you Betty!

2010-04-15T15:34:00.001-04:00

Betty Abdmishani

Village Branch manager Betty Abdmishani was recently selected as one of the 20 Women Leading Central Kentucky by Business Lexington! This distinction could not be any more well-deserved. Betty is a tireless advocate for the Latino community in Lexington and provides the model for exceptional customer service to ALL people who walk through our library's doors. She is also one of the most caring and compassionate people I have ever met - working with her is a joy. In addition to sharing Betty's many accomplishments, this article does a fantastic job at describing the service model that makes the Village Branch a truly unique and special library. Please take a minute to read the article!

Virginia Hamilton Conference Follow Up

2010-04-14T09:13:00.003-04:00

What an honor it was to present last week at the 26th annual Virginia Hamilton Conference on Multicultural Literature for Youth at Kent State University! The authors were moving, the artists fascinating, and the breakout sessions highly relevant to today's librarians and teachers serving increasingly diverse communities. My greatest take-aways are from Laurie Halse Anderson to STOP being too nice and fight back when schools and governments slash library funding, and from Ken and Sylvia Marantz that the "picturebook" is its own art form and not merely a book of pictures (picture book).

I was thrilled to present my session on Bilingual Storytime to a group of interested individuals on Friday, including a group of international scholars from Egypt and Brazil. You all asked some great questions! A few of your questions have stayed in my mind, and so I am going to share them here over the next several days, along with more complete answers.

During the presentation, I commented that there are many reasons for establishing a bilingual storytime program, including to reach out to the Latino population in the community. However, bilingual storytime should not be the first step in an organization's outreach effort. If the Latino community is not using your library, the reason is not because you don't have a Spanish or bilingual storytime. In response to this, I was asked: What are the first steps for a library wanting to reach out to the Latino community?

In my opinion, the first step is to get outside of the library and get to know the community. Find one key person who can help you connect with others; this first key person may not be Latino him/herself, but will be more deeply involved in working with the community. Places to look are local Hispanic/Latino organizations, churches, ESL teachers, other agencies working with the Latino community, the local Spanish or bilingual newspaper and local businesses catering to Latinos. Be prepared to ask these key folks what you want to know: why doesn't the Latino community currently use the library? Then, be prepared to respond to what they share with you by making the changes you can to make your library and its services more accessible and relevant. To accomplish this, you need buy in and support from the upper levels of administration and leadership in your organization, which can be tricky to gain. Even well-meaning administrators may not have a clear understanding of how to serve the Latino community. Find an ally with authority in your organization from the beginning, and bring them along with you as much as possible. Try to encourage the people in charge at your organization to come with you, so they are part of meeting key leaders and hearing directly how the library can improve. This will have more impact then your words alone. Outreach needs differ depending on many variables, such as the experience of the community you are trying to reach, the perspectives and commitment of your administration to serving the community, the work your organization has already done to reach the community, and the staff, services and programs you have to offer.

There are many resources out there that can help you in your outreach process. I recommend the following for getting started:

Crash Course in Serving Spanish Speakers by Salvador Avila. There are many great book resources out there on library services to Latinos and the Spanish-speaking, but I have found this to be the most straightforward, simple and practical for getting started.

Webjunction's Spanish Language Outreach Course. Available to take online at your own pace for $20. This course will provide an overview on what is means to do outreach to your Spanish-speaking community and provide a highly functional framework for doing so. If you are reaching out to Latinos in your community and can encourage someone in your administration to take this course as well, it may help them to understand what you are doing and why.

"Latinos and Public Library Perceptions." This study was conducted by Webjunction and the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute. It is a major research project that surveyed over 2,000 Latinos from across the country on their library use and perceptions. This is a very eye opening study, and it can reveal what are the most important factors your organization should focus on as you approach your outreach.

And of course, join REFORMA - the National Organization to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking. The listserv is active and the people involved do an excellent job at sharing resources and ideas.

Latinos are already the largest minority in the USA and the fastest growing. Serving Latinos in no longer "optional" or "extra" for libraries - it is essential for remaining relevant to your community! Those who do not start reaching out and cultivating staff who can effectively serve this community will find themselves in a situation of playing a lot of catch-up down the road. Buena suerte as you initiate an outreach project and do the necessary work to make your organization inclusive in all ways of the Latinos and Spanish-speakers you serve.

Día 2010 is almost here - How will you spread Bookjoy?

2010-04-05T12:07:00.001-04:00

April is here after a long winter. Cherry blossoms and magnolias are sprouting bringing color back into the world. The return of the birds and the budding trees fills me with joy. It's so fitting, then, that April is the month when we celebrate Día de los niños/Día de los libros - Children's Day/Book Day.

This is my first year getting to plan a Día celebration, and I am so happy to be doing it here at the Village Branch library. This is their fifth year celebrating the event, and in years past it has always drawn in a massive crowd of families from our local neighborhood and beyond in Lexington. This year's event promises to be our biggest to date. We are continuing the tradition of providing Latino crafts and a free book to each child who attends our program, as well as adding some new elements that will further encourage a love of reading and the library as a place to turn for information across the lifespan. We will have ongoing programs and performances for children and families throughout the day, such as a special program for parents and babies, a bilingual storytime, African drumming and a very special payaso guest. We are also hosting a Community Information Fair for the first time. Local agencies, particularly those serving the Latino community in the Cardinal Valley neighborhood have been invited to attend. Each agency will provide an activity or giveaway for children, while having the opportunity to reach a large group of families all in one location. Funding for our program is generously provided by the Friends of the Lexington Public Library - we couldn't do it without them. 5/3 Bank is also a supporter of the program, dropping by to provide ice cream treats for the kids.

All families in Lexington are welcome to attend our Día 2010 program on Saturday, May 1, 12-4 PM.

How are you spreading bookjoy at your library this month? For great ideas and to connect with a larger community of folks planning Día events, be sure to check out the Bookjoy! blog.

Bilingual Storytime at Your Biblioteca: What, Why and How

2010-03-30T13:01:00.003-04:00

Here is the presentation along with supplementary handouts for next week's presentation at the Virginia Hamilton Conference on Multicultural Literature for Youth. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or thoughts to share.

Bilingual Storytime At Your Biblioteca

View more presentations from KatieCunningham.

Colorín Colorado - A Website You MUST Know!

2010-03-30T11:34:00.001-04:00

I just wanted to take a minute to post a link to the Colorín Colorado website (the sister site of Reading Rockets), in case there are any blog visitors out there working with bilingual families who don't yet know about it. This is easily one of the most valuable websites I have ever come across for librarians, parents and educators who are working with or raising bilingual children. There is a wealth of scientific information related to the early literacy and educational development of bilingual children available on this site, in both English and Spanish. I dig around here for new information whenever I have a spare minute to browse the web, and always find articles to print off for the families who come to my bilingual storytime. The greatest part is that all of the articles are available in English and Spanish, so I can make the same information available to all families who attend. Most useful are the Reading Tip Sheets for Parents, which break down different tips and ideas for how to promote early literacy skills with your child at home based on their age. These sheets are available in 11 different languages, including Spanish! It's really a great website, easy to navigate and full of valuable information. I highly recommend checking it out and sharing it with other families and educators whom you know.

Let's Have a Fiesta!

2010-03-25T16:48:00.012-04:00

Last night, a group of 25 at Bilingual Family Storytime had a fiesta at the Village Branch library. This is a guaranteed fun theme that works for babies through school age groups, as well as for a mixed age audience if you also use a family storytime format. Here's what we did and how you can do it too!

We started with Ginger Foglesong Guy's simple bilingual title ¡Fiesta! You have to go shopping for supplies before you can have a party, and in reading this title, we take a stroll through the market to buy all the supplies we need. This book practices counting in both languages 1-10, so as we turn the pages I call out for the children to show me the appropriate number of deditos for the page we are on. Older siblings do a great job at helping younger brothers and sisters find the right number of fingers!

What else do you need for a great party that we didn't get at the mercado? A cake! Kids all know that parties need cake! So we read about baking a cake in Eight Animals Bake a Cake by Susan Middleton Elya. This title is in English and introduces Spanish words through rhyming text, which reinforces both vocabulary and phonological awareness. Don't forget to point this out to parents! It is important that parents know that while storytime is fun, the important thing is that we are developing early literacy skills and that they can continue this learning at home.

I made a flannel cake that we put on the flannelboard after reading this book. We once again practiced counting in both languages as we added the candles to the cake. You could also talk about the colors they see on the cake or imagine what the cake might taste like.

There has to be music at a party, and little ones need to move after sitting still for so long, so we got back on our feet and danced along to "Los ninos cuando bailan" from Jorge Anaya's A bailar / Let's Dance CD. This song helps us learn body vocabulary as we dance with our deditos, pies, rodillas, cadera, mano and cabeza.

But of course, there is one key thing that any good party in our neighborhood has to have - A PIÑATA! We learned about the piñata and all the wonderful tesoros contained within by reading Rebecca Emberley's bilingual Piñata. Then we filled our own piñata - I made one out of flannel and made things to put inside it based on the book, which each of the children were able to add. When it was filled, I had all the kids close their eyes and count uno, dos, tres...when they opened them, there was a real piñata! Because it was my only one, we didn't really break it. Instead we used our imaginations and on the count of three made a loud CLAP and I through out confeti, symbolizing the breaking of the piñata. Each child was able to pick a tesoro from the basket of goodies. They loved it!

Here are the handouts that I used to talk with parents at our fiesta about print motivation and other early literacy skills. There is one in English and also one in Spanish. Feel free to use (giving credit as appropriate) for ideas on how to communicate early literacy messages in your school or library.

Have you had a fiesta at storytime? What have you done?

Professional Development Opportunities Children's Librarians Serving Latino Youth

2010-03-08T12:18:00.000-05:00

April has two exciting professional development opportunities for those serving multicultural communities, both of which are particularly relevant if you work with Latino children and families. The first is in northern Ohio at Kent State University on April 8th and 9th. This is the 26th annual Virginia Hamilton Conference on Multicultural Literature for Youth, which is described as "a forum of multicultural themes and issues in literature for children and young adults." Laurie Halse Anderson, Pam Muñoz Ryan and R. Gregory Christie will all be featured presenters discussing their work. Breakout sessions include topics such as literature for young adults, literature from West Asia, exploring Latino culture in picture books and more. I will be presenting a session on bilingual storytime at this conference too. All of my handouts and my powerpoint from the presentation will be made available on this blog after the conference. Registration is now open.

Another conference even more relevant to those serving Latino youth is the third annual Latino Children's Literature Conference: Connecting Cultures and Celebrating Cuentos in Tuscaloosa at the University of Alabama. The dates are April 23rd and 24th. Registration is also open for this event. Featured keynote speakers are Dr. Monica Brown, Oralia Garza de Cortés, Rafael López, and Dr. Carmen Tafolla. I am incredibly excited to be attending this conference for the first time this year! There will be breakout sessions and poster presentations on Friday and Saturday, as well as a Noche de Cuentos community event Friday night at the Tuscaloosa Public Library. I am really looking forward to meeting with and learning from authors, illustrators, researchers and other practitioners serving Latino families at this conference.

Planning to be at either event? I hope to see you there! Leave a comment to share any other upcoming professional development opportunities you know of that may be relevant to librarians serving multicultural communities.

Lexington Public Library Executive Director Candidates Present to Staff and Public

2010-02-05T13:01:00.000-05:00

The final three candidates for the position of Executive Director at my library, Lexington Public Library, made staff and public presentations on their leadership style and library trends yesterday. The candidates are Cindy Lombardo, Don Barlow, and Brian Lewis. LPL's hard-working marketing team and webmaster have digitized the presentations and posted them all as a playlist on YouTube, so the public can view what the candidates had to say, as well as the staff and community questions and candidate responses. I really appreciate that this has been made available to those who may not have had the opportunity to attend the sessions in person. Here they are.

Pura Belpre and other award winners announced this morning!

2010-01-18T09:38:00.002-05:00

The award winners have been announced! As always, there were some surprises and also many anticipated winners. I have to redirect everyone to my previous post regarding Book Fiesta! by Pat Mora...this year's Pura Belpre winner for illustration! Visit the ALA press release for news on all the winners.

From my blog, April 9, 2009:
"As if we really need any more reasons to absolutely LOVE Pat Mora! Well, just in case, here it is -
Book Fiesta! Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day Celebremos El día de los niños/El día de los libros. I have been keeping this book on my desk lately for those moments when I just need a smile. It is impossible to read this book without feeling all warm and fuzzy!

This totally bilingual book is all about celebrating the joy of reading, in whatever language, with all children. We read alone, with our friends, with our pets, with our families, wherever we are...even the library! We also exercise our imaginations, reading in submarines and on hot air balloons.

For any "Ready to Read" early-literacy advocates out there, turn to the page toward the end with the big moon and prepare to squeal in delight. This is probably the best example of the use of print awareness in a picture book that I know of. Not only do we have to turn the page vertically to read the text, starbeams across the page spell out "Read Books." Keep looking even closer and you'll see the word bubble is filled with nighttime words, in English AND Spanish. Beautiful!

Rafael López has done a spectacular job with the illustrations in this book. I imagine he will be the illustrator to beat for the 2009 Pura Belpre award. Every child will be able to see him or herself in this book, which makes it truly special. This is on the top of my list along with Martina, the Beautiful Cockroach for my favorite illustrations.

So if you are looking for a great book to share at a Día de los niños/Día de los libros program, this is it! But even more, this is a special book to share with any child, anytime to share the feeling of "bookjoy". Thanks Pat Mora for giving us this treasure!"

Pura Belpre Winners Coming Soon!!!!

2010-01-16T13:39:00.000-05:00

As most lovers of children's literature will know, this Monday will be the announcements of the year's award winning books, including the Caldecott, Newberry, Printz, Coretta Scott King, and (of course) Pura Belpré awards.

The Pura Belpré award was established in 1996 by ALSC and REFORMA to honor Latino/a authors and illustrators for their outstanding works portraying Latinos in children's literature. The award was initially given bi-yearly, but is now awareded yearly. One award and three honors are given for work in both narration and illustration. Past award winners and honor recipients include Pat Mora, Rudy Gutierrez, Yuyi Morales, Margarita Engle, Maya Cristina Gonzalez, and many others.

Last week I had the opportunity to participate in a mock selection of these year's winners via a webinar lead by past committee member Jean Hatfield and sponsored by the Hearland Chapter of REFORMA. This was great fun! It was quite exciting to hear people from other places and experiences talk about some of the incredible works that have come out this year, as well as to learn more about how the committee itself works from someone who has actually had this experience.

One thing I know for certain, the real Pura Belpre committee has their work cut out for them this year! It is wonderful to see how the demand for quality books that positively portray Latinos and Latino culture has grown, and how the publishing industry has responded. The quality of books this year is impressive. I'm sure there will be a lot of debate when it gets down to the wire!

Our predicted winners were Diego: Bigger than Life by Carmen T. Bernier for narrative, and My Abuelita by Tony Johnston, illustrated by Yuyi Morales for illustration. Visit the Heartland REFORMA's webpage to view a list of all the books we considered and listen to an archive of our discussion.

Thanks again to Jean and to Heartland REFORMA for hosting this event and making it available online. This was a lot of fun!

The Perfect Book for Making a Splash!

2009-12-22T13:00:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite things about being a children's librarian is when I get a batch of brand new books that will be perfect to use in bilingual storytime. Today, just such a book arrived - I Know the River Loves Me / Yo sé que el río me ama by Maya Christina Gonzalez.

Maya Christina Gonzalez is both the author and illustrator of this book, as she also was for My Colors, My World / Mis colores, mi mundo. This title features the same young Maya exploring the beauty of the world around her. Like Maya, the river is low and quiet in the winter, and full and loud in the summer. The river jumps and sings when she sees Maya, runs to her side to cool her down, and is always there calling to her as she gets close. Maya returns her love to the river by being sure to "only leave behind what already belongs to her."

In addition to the beautiful bilingual text which flows like a river and is the perfect length for bilingual storytime, Maya Christina Gonzalez' illustrations are striking. I must admit, in addition to Yuyi Morales, Gonzalez is one of my favorite illustrators. Her style in this book is unique, with paisley-esque blossoms and leaves on the banks of the cool, flowing water.

An author's note at the end explains that the Yuba River in California is an important inspiration for this story. It is published by Children's Book Press, which publishes a variety of excellent books that bring more diversity into the world of children's literature.

This year, our summer reading theme is "Make a Splash - Read!" I cannot wait to use this book in a storytime celebrating water and kicking off summer reading, pairing it up with ¡Salpicar! / Splash! by Flora McDonnell.

Celebrating Christmas! / ¡Celebrando la Navidad! Bilingual and Spanish picture books for celebrating the winter holiday season

2009-12-17T15:20:00.072-05:00

Storytime is taking a break at the Village branch library for the month of December. As such, there is no winter holiday storytime. However, I still find myself thinking about titles that would be great for such a program! In the spirit of sharing, here is a list of various titles that may be of interest. Some are secular, some religious; some are in Spanish or bilingual, and others are in English with Latino characters and themes of Latino holiday celebrations. Some of these titles are short enough to hold the attention of young pre-readers, while others would be better for a school age audience and independent readers. The titles are linked to the OCLC WorldCat, so you can easily see what is available at your local library!

Fiction

A piñata in a pine tree : a Latino twelve days of Christmas by Pat Mora
Summary from OCLC:
"In this adaptation of the folk song 'The Twelve Days of Christmas,' friends exchange such gifts as a piñata and 'cuatro luminarias.' Includes pronunciation and glossary of Spanish words and a description of Christmas foods and other holiday traditions from different Latin American countries."

La Nochebuena south of the border by James Rice
Summary from OCLC:
"In this bilingual version of 'The Night before Christmas,' Santa has become Papá Noel and his reindeer have been replaced with eight burros pulling a cart."

The Santero's Miracle: A Bilingual Story by Rudolfo Anaya
Summary from OCLC:
"In this bilingual story of faith, Don Jacobo has a dream that, in the end, is a reminder that miracles do happen."
Also by Rudolfo Anaya is, Farolitos for Abuelo
Summary from OCLC:
"When Luz's beloved grandfather dies, she places luminaria around his grave on Christmas Eve as a way of remembering him."

Uno, Dos, Tres, Posada! Let's Celebrate Christmas by Virginia L. Kroll
Summary from OCLC:

"A little girl guides the reader through each step of a posada, a Hispanic holiday tradition celebrated on the nine nights before Christmas."

Federico and the Magi's Gift: A Latin American Christmas Story by Beatriz Vidal

Summary from OCLC: "Because he has misbehaved, four-year-old Federico is afraid the three kings will not bring him the toy horse he asked them for and, unable to sleep, he goes outside to await their arrival."

The Night of Las Posadas by Tomie DePaola

Summary from OCLC:

"At the annual celebration of Las Posadas in old Santa Fe, the husband and wife slated to play Mary and Joseph are delayed by car trouble, but a mysterious couple seems perfect for the part."

N is for Navidad by Susan Middleton Elya

Summary from OCLC:

"A rhyming book that outlines the preparations for and celebration of the Christmas season, with Spanish words for each letter of the alphabet translated in a glossary."

Navidad estelar de Dora by Christine Ricci

Summary from OCLC:

"When a very special surprise visitor arrives at Dora's house on Christmas Eve, he needs help, and fast! Join Dora and friends on their magical Christmas adventure."

The Gift of the Poinsettia = El regalo de la flor de nochebuena by Pat Mora
Summary from OCLC:
"As he participates in the festivities of Las Posadas, preparing for the birth of Christ, a young Mexican boy worries about what gift he will have for the baby Jesus."

La navidad de Maisy by Lucy Cousins
Summary from OCLC:
"Maisy and her friends prepare for a Christmas celebration.

Maisy y sus amigos preparan para una celebración de Navidad."

Non-Fiction
Iguanas in the Snow And Other Winter Poems / Iguanas En La Nieve Y Otros Poemas De Invierno by Francisco X. Alarcón.
Summary from OCLC:
"These poems celebrate winter in San Francisco and the mountains of Northern California."

Las Navidades: Popular Christmas Songs from Latin America by Lulu Delacre

Summary from OCLC:

"A bilingual collection of popular Christmas songs from Latin America, illustrated to depict the Hispanic culture's rich and exuberant holiday celebrations."

El milagro de la primera flor de Nochebuena: Un cuento mexicano sobre la Navidad by Joanne Oppenheim

Summary from OCLC:

"A retelling of a Mexican legend that describes the origin of the Poinsettia plant. In this version, a young girl has nothing to give the Christ child, but when the weeds she carries in her hands miraculously transform into red flowers, she now has the perfect gift. Included is the music of a traditional Mexican Christmas song."

However you celebrate during the winter holidays, I hope it is filled with family, love, and good reading. ¡Feliz Navidad!

Technorati Claim

2009-12-04T11:51:00.002-05:00

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Susan Middleton Elya strikes again!

2009-12-03T14:08:00.003-05:00

The author of the popular rhyming titles that introduce readers to Spanish vocabulary such as Eight Animals Bake a Cake, Oh No Gotta Go!, and Say Hola to Spanish has struck again, this time with Adiós Tricycle. This book takes place at a garage sale, where Mom and Dad are earning some extra monedas by parting with unneeded items such as "outgrown ropa, pots for plantas and bowls for sopa." A gender-neutral niño is growing up and as such has a tricycle for sale - a favorite toy. As each potential buyer approaches the tricycle, our little seller tries to steer them elsewhere to avoid parting with the much loved trike. But finally, the trike moves on, earning the child enough money for a new mode of transportation - a bicicleta! Elizabeth Schlossberg's illustrations are emotive and cartoon-like, and the cast of animal characters represents a diverse group. As always, the text rhymes, which helps little readers develop the important pre-literacy skill of phonological awareness. A glossary at the back defines the Spanish words and provides some help with the pronunciation. Pair with Pato va en bici by David Shannon for a bicycle storytime or read-aloud!

Mora Award Winner

2009-11-21T15:55:00.001-05:00

Check out this great video from the Topeka and Shawnee County library, this year's winner of the Mora award!

Virginia Hamilton Conference 2010

2009-11-06T10:08:00.005-05:00

I am thrilled and honored to share that I have been invited to present a workshop on bilingual programming at the 2010 Virginia Hamilton Conference in Kent, Ohio! The Virginia Hamilton Conference is focused entirely on multiculturalism in literature for children and young adults, and is the longest running event of this kind. Though this conference may not be as widely known as larger events for librarians and educators, this conference attracts hundreds of public and school librarians and teachers. It also brings together some extremely important authors. This year, Pam Muñoz Ryan, author of Becoming Naomi Leon and Esperanza Rising among many others, will be the recipient of the Virginia Hamilton Literary Award. Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Chains and Speak will also be at this event.

I will be one of several presenters offering workshops at this conference, and mine will be on the topic of Bilingual Preschool Storytime. This is truly exciting for me, as I have now been part of creating a successful bilingual storytime program from scratch for two very different library systems. This experience means there are many angles from which I could approach this workshop - advocacy, marketing, early literacy, outreach, the practical elements of designing bilingual storytimes, how to find and select books, etc. As I am working on this project, I find myself thinking back to when I was first approaching bilingual programming. What did I want to know? What would have been the most useful information when I was first preparing to offer bilingual programs? I remember feeling very nervous, overwhelmed, isolated and intimidated at the prospect of launching this new program. What could have calmed my nerves? What resources did I need that I struggled to find?

My biggest goal with this workshop is that participants will leave with something practical and tangible that they can take back to their libraries or schools. I want them to feel more prepared to offer bilingual storytimes, as well as more connected to a community of bilingual programming practicioners than when they entered the room. So I'm wondering if anyone out there has ideas or suggestions for important elements to cover during the course of the workshop. What were your burning questions when you first began bilingual programming? What were your challenges? Have you trained others in presenting bilingual programs before? If so, what information did they find most beneficial?

I'll update the blog with the info I plan to share as the conference gets closer, and I will make everything available online afterward.

Early Numeracy in Bilingual Storytime

2009-11-04T20:00:00.005-05:00

Recently, a colleague shared a great article regarding the importance of exposure to early numeracy concepts, in addition to early literacy concepts, and how this can be done through storytime. I got inspired, and this week in bilingual storytime at Village, numbers and counting abounded.

We started off with a fingerplay song, counting our manitas and deditos in English and Spanish. To the tune of "Ten Little Indians," we sang:

Dos manitas, diez deditos,
Dos manitas, diz deditos,
Dos manitas, diez deditos,
Cuentenlos conmigo.

Two little hands and ten little fingers,
Two little hands and ten little fingers,
Two little hands and ten little fingers,
Count them with me now.

Uno, dos, tres deditos
Cuatro, cinco, seis deditos,
Siete, ocho, nueve deditos
Diez deditos son.

One, two, three little fingers,
Four, five, six little fingers,
Seven, eight, nine little fingers,
One more and there's ten.

Then we were ready to move on to the stories, beginning with Nico y los lobos feroces by Valeri Gorbechav. In addition to being a super cute story about getting back to sleep after a bad dream, this book introduces more numbers than the standard 1-10. Nico believes he is being chased by 100 wolves...well maybe it was just 50...OK, maybe 15...or 5. As we read the story we pointed out the numbers on the flannelboard. Following the story, we talked about which numbers were bigger and smaller. Enhancing this, I filled four bags with corresponding numbers of buttons and had the kids pick out which bag had 100, 50, 15 or 5 buttons. They did a great job at this! It was also a nice opportunity to emphasize the "n" and the end of "fifteen" as I have noticed that many of the kids here have trouble hearing the difference between this number and "fifty."

From this we moved on to the story that introduces one of my all time favorite children's characters, Señor Calavera, in Yuyi Morales' instant classic, Just a Minute. We counted our fingers a different, more musical way, singing "Los deditos" from Jorge Anaya's A bailar = Let's Dance. Then we rhymed our way numerically across the globe (you know I have to work it that phonological awareness) with Abuelita fue al mercado. A trick I like to use with rhyming books that maintain the rhyme in both languages is to type out the English and tape it to the back of the Spanish book. This way we can read both as they are written and get that great rhyme, instead of trying to translate from either language on the fly.

This was a very fun program and parents responded enthusiastically, checking out more than half of the number-related books on display. Others I recommend on this theme are Fiesta by Ginger Foglesong Guy, Cuenta ratones by Ellen Stoll Walsh and Uno, dos, tres = One, Two, Three by Pat Mora. Tie the concepts in by printing out these great take home articles for parents on early numeracy at home from Reading Rockets, also available in Spanish.

How are you practicing numeracy in your storytimes, with your children, or with your students?

Bilingual Storytime Begins at Village!

2009-09-14T09:33:00.005-04:00

How about I actually share a post on bilingual storytime for a change? ;)

So bilingual storytime has finally gotten underway at the Village branch which is certainly exciting for me. They are Wednesday evenings at 7pm, designed for preschool age children, and all in the family who want to participate are welcome to join in the fun. This past week we had a good group and the theme was farms. Here's what we did:

We started off with our opening song, "Hola amigo" by Dr. Jean Feldman. I love using this as my opening song because it has easy motions built in that break the ice by starting us off moving, and which also help to reinforce vocabulary. After this we talked a bit about the farm and what can be found there, again reinforcing vocabulary in English y en español. Our first book was the adorable ¡No, Tito, no! / No, No Titus! by Claire Masurel, one of my favorites. This book is excellent for reinforcing narrative skills as Tito, the new puppy on the farm, tries to learn how to be a good dog by imitating the actions of the others on the farm. The mixed media illustrations are also very original and present extremely well in storytime. We then met the various animals that live on the farm as we sang Sarah Barchas' excellent bilingual version of "La granja / The Farm" from her CD of bilingual songs titled ¡Piñata! We used stick puppets to enhance the song with each child getting to participate as one of the animals: la vaca/the cow, el gallo/the rooster, la gallina/the hen, el pollito/the chick, el cerdo/the pig, el burro/the donkey, or el caballo/the horse. This reinforces both phonological awareness through the use of rhythm and rhyme, as well as vocabulary in both languages. I found the patterns for the puppets here, and a high school volunteer helped me make them. We finished up by learning about the work that people do on the farm as we read Apple Farmer Annie / Ana cultiva manzanas by Monica Wellington. At the Lexington Public Library, using storytime to reinforce basic math/science concepts is empahsized just as much as reinforcing early literacy skills. This would be an excellent title to use for that purpose as Annie sorts and organizes her apples. I am still learning how to successfully incorporate these skills into bilingual storytime, but I look forward to using this title in this way in the future. We ended our time together again with a Dr. Jean tune, "Adios amigos," my favorite goodbye song. I look forward to next week when we are going to read stories about puppies!

In case you are wondering why storytime is beneficial for young children, I will encourage you to wander over to this brief School Library Journal article on just that topic recently shared by a colleague at LPL.

I beg for forgiveness!!!!

2009-07-27T11:51:00.004-04:00

Wow, I have seriously neglected you, my bilingual programming blog! Please accept my apologies and know I will try to tend to you with much more care from this point forward!

Finishing my MLIS program and finally getting my degree, landing my first Youth Services Librarian job at my dream library, and moving to Lexinton, Kentucky have kept me very busy this summer. Truly, I feel absolutely blessed. There is so much to share, from the exciting sessions I attended at ALA in Chicago a few weeks ago, to preparing for bilingual storytime which begins in September, to the new and exciting world of programming for school agers, tweens and teens! I will return to the world of blogging to share it all with you soon!

But for today, let me just shout out a few quick thoughts that are on my mind:

I love coming to work and hearing, "Miss Katie, will you read me?" even when I think I'm too busy to read with a kid (I can never say no!).
Open Source Soluntions for libraries is the way of the future...Replace TLC with Koha NOW!
I love the blend of English, Spanish, and all things Spanglish in new environment.
Raising Reader packets is an idea I will definitely be stealing for Village.
Planning bilingual, inter-generational lotería night after Jamie Naidoo's presentation.
Yuyi Morales is amazing for about a hundred different reasons; here is just a little taste:

Día de los niños/Día de los libros

2009-04-30T17:44:00.002-04:00

Happy Día everyone! Don't know about it? Check out Pat Mora, founder of Día de los niños/Día de los libros and prolific children's author talking about the origins of this important celebration.

Book Fiesta! My favorite new book of the year!

2009-04-09T09:57:00.002-04:00

As if we really need any more reasons to absolutely LOVE Pat Mora! Well, just in case, here it is -
Book Fiesta! Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day Celebremos El día de los niños/El día de los libros. I have been keeping this book on my desk lately for those moments when I just need a smile. It is impossible to read this book without feeling all warm and fuzzy!

This totally bilingual book is all about celebrating the joy of reading, in whatever language, with all children. We read alone, with our friends, with our pets, with our families, wherever we are...even the library! We also exercise our imaginations, reading in submarines and on hot air balloons.

For any "Ready to Read" early-literacy advocates out there, turn to the page toward the end with the big moon and prepare to squeal in delight. This is probably the best example of the use of print awareness in a picture book that I know of. Not only do we have to turn the page vertically to read the text, starbeams across the page spell out "Read Books." Keep looking even closer and you'll see the word bubble is filled with nighttime words, in English AND Spanish. Beautiful!

Rafael López has done a spectacular job with the illustrations in this book. I imagine he will be the illustrator to beat for the 2009 Pura Belpre award. Every child will be able to see him or herself in this book, which makes it truly special. This is on the top of my list along with Martina, the Beautiful Cockroach for my favorite illustrations.

So if you are looking for a great book to share at a Día de los niños/Día de los libros program, this is it! But even more, this is a special book to share with any child, anytime to share the feeling of "bookjoy". Thanks Pat Mora for giving us this treasure!

Phonological Awarenes - My favorite ready to read skill!

2009-03-27T11:12:00.004-04:00

As part of our outreach to the Spanish-speaking community here in Columbus, my co-worker Gabriela (from "Proteja a su familia contra incendios") and I have offered to write a monthly article for La Jornada Latina. The first one ran today, and I have to say, it looks great! You can find it on page 6 of this week's edition.

One of the most fun elements of bilingual storytime for me is choosing activities like songs and rhymes that help children develop phonological awareness, the ability to hear sounds, particularly the small sounds inside of whole words. At the recent "Listos para leer" presentation at Centro Esperanza Latina, families were very interested in learning more about music and other interactive activities they could do with their children to develop this skill. Parents of active children who sometimes have trouble sitting down to read a book were particularly interested. As a follow up to this, I wrote our first article on this very topic.

I am thrilled with the support La Jornada Latina is showing to the Columbus Metropolitan Library in helping us better reach the Spanish-speaking community in Columbus!

Homework Help Centers Rock!!!

2009-03-26T13:13:00.003-04:00

Check out this video about our Homework Help Centers (HHC) at the Columbus Metropolitan Library!

These are a fabulous resource where students and their parents can find everything they need to get their homework finished, even bilingual staff and volunteers at many locations! Too late to make it to the library for homework help? Check out our homework help website, filled with many useful resources you can use from home.

Cantajuego

2009-03-25T16:02:00.003-04:00

I had never heard of this group before today. Cantajuego is a Spanish group that makes children's music. Their songs are very active, like a Spanish Jim Gill. Check it out!

Know any other fantastic Spanish children's music? Share it!

A tiny bit of shameless self-promotion...

2009-03-19T17:55:00.003-04:00

I have to share that I am extremely pleased and excited to see that my recent "Listos para Leer" (Ready to Read in Spanish) presentation at Centro Esperanza Latina made the news! La Jornada Latina ran an article about it in their most recent issue, free on newstands now.

This event was easily one of the coolest things I've gotten to do in my job, thus far. We held two presentations, both of which were extremely well attended. All in all, we were able to make a library connection, deliver early literacy information, and provide kits filled early literacy tools such as board books and maracas to over 50 Spanish-speaking families! I have to admit that I was terrified, as this was the biggest presentation I have yet done in Spanish! Things went great however, and I had a lot of help from my colleagues Melinda Moreno, Michelle Garver, and Joy Converse. I am very grateful to the United Way for the grant that is funding such "Listos para Leer" presentations, to the Director of the Centro Esperanza Latina, Ms. Gianella Martinez for all of her help in coordinating this event, and to Ms. Patricia Ruiz for sharing our story through this article. I'm posting a copy of it below for those of you who read Spanish:

Imparten taller “Listos para leer”
PATRICIA RUIZ

La biblioteca metropolitana de Columbus, en colaboración con Action for Children, desarrolló durante los días 23 y 25 de febrero de 2009, en el Centro Esperanza Latina, el taller programa para padres “Todos los niños listos para leer”. A estos talleres gratuitos asistieron numerosos padres de familia de la comunidad, quienes recibieron información sobre cómo preparar el niño para el kinder y qué actividades debe realizar el padre en la casa para que el niño se inicie en el hábito de la lectura. Los participantes recibieron un maletín con libros en español, un abecedario magnético, marionetas y otros elementos útiles para que el niño desarrolle el amor por la lectura y la escritura.

El paquete también incluía una solicitud para obtener la tarjeta de membresía de la biblioteca para los menores de 17 años de edad, la cual es expedida totalmente gratis.

Críticas to cease publication

2009-01-28T13:25:00.003-05:00

This is very unfortunate news. I often used this publication to learn about newly translated children's books. From the notice sent across the REFORMA Listserv:

"Reed Business Information has decided to shut down publication of Críticas after eight long and successful years...The publisher stated that ad support has greatly diminished, and given the current economic downtown, there was no sufficient foundation on which to continue with the publication of Críticas. Still, they remain optimistic, adding that they hope to somehow continue coverage of the U.S. Spanish-language book market through sister publications Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal."

I hope that Library Journal and School Library Journal have enough reviewers who speak/read Spanish to be able to fill in the void that will be left from the demise of Críticas . I will greatly miss the Cultura Crashers and Multicultural Link blogs that Críticas hosted as well.

This is the first publication that I have observed being drastically effected by our slowing economy. Do you know of any others? Where else do you recommend that we turn to find English reviews of Spanish materials?

Perfect Chemistry

2009-01-15T10:47:00.003-05:00

This is the best book for teens that I have read in a really long time!

More than your typical "opposites attract" story, Perfect Chemistry reveals that even people from drastically different worlds often have more in common than they would ever imagine. Brittany and Alex have both meticulously crafted their images to reflect how they want to be perceived and to protect who they really are. Alex is the hardass Latino Blood gangbanger and Brittany is the super rich, super blonde, super perfect girl who has it all. But when these two are paired together as partners in chemistry class, they begin to break through one another's facades and learn the secrets each tries so desperately to keep hidden. In the process they discover something in one another that is missing from themselves, but how can people with lives so different find a way to be together?

With very believable and likable main characters, lots of drama, and some great humor, this book is filled with teen appeal. Sex and violence do come up, however, so it is probably not one for middle school and younger.

We don't speak Mexican here

2009-01-15T09:52:00.005-05:00

This video comes from an ABC series called "What would you do?" and was shared with me by a colleague in REFORMA. Watch all the way to the end.

Food for thought. I hope that any of us who find ourselves in a situation where we are witness to discrimination make the choice to stand up for the real America; one built on diversity, tolerance, and justice.

Your life's work

2009-01-08T16:33:00.002-05:00

A colleague at work shared this me and I think it is great!

The purpose of the librarian? Connecting information with people!

Fotonovelas for parental involvement at school!

2008-12-30T15:12:00.005-05:00

Check out this very cool concept from the National Center for Family Literacy! Funded by a grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, they created two fotonovelas (both of which are available in English and Spanish) which teach parents how and why they should be involved with their children's education and schooling. Fotonovelas are a graphic style of book, similiar to a comic book, which are popular in Latin American. They combine pictures and words to tell a story.

The two fotonovelas created by NCFL are designed to help clarify the American expectation of parental involvement in education to people who may come from cultures without such an expectation. They explain such things as parent/teacher conferences and ways in which parents can be involved with children's schoolwork at home. PDFs and videos of these fotonovelas are available for free online. I'd love to see us at the library do something similar where we make videos that demonstrate what kind of assistance students and families can receive at our Homework Help Centers!

Proteja contra los incendios!

2008-12-23T12:17:00.003-05:00

Gabriela, my fellow Spanish Program Specialist here at CML, is a woman of many talents! Before joining our team, Gabriela volunteered her time to create this video along with the Columbus Fire Department to promote fire safety to the Spanish-speaking community here in Columbus.

There have been too many stories here in Columbus of fires destroying homes and families in the Latino community. This video is an example of a positive response to such tragedy. I wonder what opportunities there are for us to create other informative videos for our community? What other organizations could we partner with in such an effort?

10 Random Things

2008-11-26T14:51:00.003-05:00

Super Fun Challenge "Thing" from Helene Blowers! 10 random things you may not otherwise know about me...

I'm vegan and I absolutely LOVE food and cooking!
I've spent time in more foreign countries (15) than I have states outside of Ohio (12).
I have two awesome cats: Chino and Zoey (who is 18 and I swear is going to live forever!)
I've been with my amazing significant other for 6 years and we're getting married in late 2010.
I love martial arts, and I train in muay thai.
Though I enjoy a variety of music, it's definitely metal above all for me.
I spend my Sundays watching NFL and have been a Dallas Cowboys fan all my life.
Once upon a time in Northern Laos I ate a bat wing and it tasted like a chili flavored latex glove! Catch me in person for the full details on that one...
I did not have a cell phone until this year when I finally gave in and got an iPhone, and the tech geek living inside of me finally started to blossom.
I am beyond excited for the release of Tim Burton's version of Alice in Wonderland, my all time favorite story! I cannot wait to see what imagery his mind comes up with!

There you go, 10 random things!

L & P #23

2008-11-26T14:38:00.003-05:00

The final thing...

I have really enjoyed participating in Learn and Play @ CML for a variety of reasons. First, it gives staff a shared vocabulary. I can talk with my colleagues about the idea of using Twitter or a wiki to streamline our workflow without having to wonder if they know what I am talking about. Second, it lets me as an employee know that my library supports the use of emerging technologies in my job. I don't have to wonder if it is OK for me to set up a wiki or blog about programming because it is clear this is something supported within the culture at CML. Third, through the use of many of these tools I have deepened my connections with co-workers. Whether learning more about their work or personal lives or just having another way to say hello, it has been great to reconnect with fellow co-workers and to meet new ones! Fourth, I have learned more about some new technologies that will be very useful for me in this position, in my involvement with professional organizations, and for my own professional development.

Thanks for extending the time; doing so kept this fun and informative without adding the stressful burden of a looming, impossible-to-reach deadline! All in all, this has been a very cool experience and a model of training it could be cool to see us replicate in the future. I hope the blog remains up so future staff can participate as well!

Educator for a Day

2008-11-20T13:51:00.002-05:00

Today I had the opportunity along with my colleague Gabriela to visit the Columbus Bilingual Academy as part of their Educator for a Day program. We were able to visit two of Mr. Holdren's Spanish as a Second Language classes to talk with them about the library, our Homework Help Centers, and to share some bilingual stories. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that nearly all the students already had library cards! We all had an opportunity to practice reading together and drawing and sharing some things from our worlds.

The Columbus Bilingual Academy opened this year on the west side of Columbus for students in grades 4-7. The school is tuition-free and supports a full curriculum in both English and Spanish, complete with after-school activities and clubs! It was wonderful to meet the teachers, staff, and students today. I look forward to visiting and partnering with the school more in the future!

L & P #21

2008-11-11T15:22:00.004-05:00

I am pretty much obsessed with NPR. I seriously listen to it all the time. So I have been into Podcasts for a while now, because as much as I would like to listen to NPR all day while I am working, it's simply not feasible. So, I can subscribe to Podcasts of my favorite shows and listen when it is convenient. They get fed right into my iTunes on my home computer. My favorite NPR shows, by they way, are Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me!, This American Life, and Talk of the Nation.

How can libraries make use of Podcasting and webcasting? Check out how New York Public Library is doing it! I think there is real potential for webcasting for libraries. We could be webcasting our author visits so those who can't make the time can still participate, webcasting video for each of the Ready to Read pre-literacy skills modeling ways parents can practice at home, and even replace Dial-A-Story with Download-A-Story for storytime footage with our fabulous staff! Lots of library Teen Advisory Board groups are getting in to creating their own podcasts and distributing them through the library website. I definitely believe this is something we will see more of in the years to come.

L & P #20

2008-11-11T15:11:00.003-05:00

Ooops! Somehow I managed to skip two Learn and Play exercises! Allow me to backtrack...thing #20 is on You Tube. You Tube is definitely rad. I use it a lot to find sweet kickboxing matches, especially female fighters as they are not usually on TV. I also like looking up concert footage and music videos.

However, I am going to embark on some shameless self-promotion here to demonstrate embedding video content into a blog. Enjoy!

L & P #22

2008-11-09T13:25:00.002-05:00

I have wanted to use MOLDI for a really long time. I have checked out audiobooks on my home computer before, but I never actually listened to them? Why, you ask? Because I have no desire to sit at home to listen to an audiobook! I like listening to audiobooks when I am on the go, but alas, they cannot be downloaded to my iPod.

But this is changing 11/10! Hooray!!!!!! I really think this (with the proper marketing) will result in much more use. I mean seriously, who uses an MP3 player that's not an iPod? I am curious if the movies will be compatible as well. That will rock.

You can bet I'll be playing around with MOLDI again and checking out everything I can after tomorrow!

L & P #19

2008-11-05T12:34:00.002-05:00

First, a quick reminder of what this "Learn and Play" business is all about. Helene Blowers, the director of digital strategy here at CML, developed the 23 Things when she was at Charlotte-Mecklenburg County to get staff playing around, learning, and feeling comfortable with Web 2.0 tools. She has brought this program with her to CML as Learn and Play. Since September, staff who wish to participate in the program have been experimenting with various Web 2.0 tools and blogging about the experience. This is useful not only for thinking about ways libraries can incorporate such tools to extend their reach and improve customer service, but also because our customers are using many of these tools. Now when they have questions or want help, we don't have to feel intimidated or stupid because we don't know what they are talking about. Even if we're not experts, we are comfortable enough with the technology to give it a try!

For Thing #19 I took a look at the TechCruch blog, which is part of CML's Toolbox on our Power Tools page. I like it, and so have subscribed to the RSS feed in my Bloglines account. I feel that Web 2.0 technology will probably expand infinitely like the universe, so I want to at least keep my eye on the people who know much more about it than I do. If they start getting really excited about something, I should probably pay attention!

L & P #18

2008-11-03T15:39:00.003-05:00

So, I have wanted to set up a Facebook account for a while for professional use. I already have a MySpace account and I have found it to be very useful for keeping in touch and sharing photos, stories, etc. with friends I have made all over the world. But that is definitely separate from my work world! Hence, the Facebook account. I tried to set one up before but I found Facebook to be much too busy for my liking. It looks cleaner now, so I don't know if it has recently changed or what. My greatest dilemma now, however, is that I have found tons of people I met while traveling on Facebook who are not on MySpace. Hmm...shall I set up a separate Facebook account for friends so this one can stay professional? It quickly becomes too much to keep up with!

Anyway, my Facebook profile is brand new, so there is nothing fancy on it, but if you want to be my friend you can find me here: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1179271236&ref=profile

L & P #17

2008-11-03T14:56:00.003-05:00

So this month has been pretty crazy and Learn and Play has fallen way down on my list of priorities. Today, however, I am taking some time to try and catch up.

Online word processing tools are awesome! They allow people to collaborate on documents from distant lands, as well as making superb backup storage options because they do not take up any room on one's personal hard drives. I have used Google Docs for collaborative and personal endeavors and I find it to be one of the most practical and useful Web 2.0 tools out there. Additionally, this is a great option for staff who are working on documents on our computers and do not have floppy disks/flash drives to save them to.

The only complaint that I have regarding Google docs is its mobile platform. While I can view my docs on my iPhone, I cannot modify them. This is unfortunate. It would be extremely convenient for me to be able to save homework assignments and other things I am working on to Google docs and then be able to work on them whenever I have down time (such as in the passenger seat on long drives, at airports, etc.). Then my iPhone would almost completely substitute for a laptop. I am sure, however, that it will just be a matter of time before this changes. In the meantime, if anyone knows of another online word processing tool which DOES allow the user to modify documents with the mobile platform I would love to hear about it!

Meaningful Programming for Immigrant Populations

2008-10-09T12:06:00.003-04:00

On Wednesday, October 1, Sophie Maier of the Louisville Free Public Library and Betty Abdimishani, Rebecca Montano-Smith, and Brian Hocevar of the Lexington Public Library Village Branch presented a session at the Spectrum of the Future, National Diversity in Libraries conference titled "Successful and Meaningful Services for Your Immigrant Populations." As the Louisville area has seen a tremendous growth in immigrants from various parts of the world (Africa, Latin America, and most recently, Iraq), and the Village branch in Lexington is comprised completely of bilingual staff serving a largely Hispanic neighborhood, these presenters were well experienced with working with a diverse community and finding creative ways to meet their needs at the library.

Sophie shared that there is a very active refugee resettlement agency in Louisville, so the immigrant groups coming to settle there are often changing based on what is transpiring in the world at large. This makes clear how important it is to conitinually be assessing who makes up the community one is serving, what their needs are, and how they have changed to know how the library needs to adapt. How does LFPL do this? Sophie visits this agency's ESOL classes weekly to sign newcomers up for library cards and to introduce them to library services. In addition, she is constantly making contact with local cultural organizations share what the library has to offer. Some of the programs created specifically for the immigrant population in Louisville include the English Conversation Club (a place for English learners to practice their skills with native English speakers), and the Bilingual Cafe (Spanish learners and English learners both practice the language they are learning with native speakers). How does she make this work? Well,

volunteers participate in both conversation groups, including interns from the local University Latin American studies department and international student groups
prompts are provided for those who need something to get them starting speaking together
kids are included, as child care can be a barrier blocking participation
food, Food, FOOD!

Another cool thing they are doing at LFPL are cultural showcases, in which they invite members of a community to come present elements of their culture (such as dance, traditional dress, food, etc.) for the community at large. Sophie did point out, however, that this can be tricky. The library has found that they have approached some immigrant groups too soon and have found such a showcase to be very difficult for them. They have also found that there can be various perspectives and viewpoints within a culture which can lead to tension when they discuss that culture with the rest of the community. Other programs LFPL has put on for their community include a French Conversation Circle (specifically for African people who speak French), a Spanish Literary Salon, and a Qinceanera program.

The staff from Village branch of the Lexington Public Library, I must say, are some of the most dedicated and passionate individuals I have met in this field (I will be blogging about my experience at Village more later). In this session, they pointed out that for something like what they are doing there to work (completely bilingual staff and collection), they need the will and commitment of their institution to serving the Hispanic/Latino population. They pointed out that it is important to take risks; don't let perfect be the enemy of good! Maybe you'll try something that is a complete flop...this is the risk the institution must be willing to take to determine what will work! They emphasized the importance of all staff being friendly and approachable, making the extra effort to greet all customers as they walk in the door. Think about it in context: for most of us, the library by its very nature is a warm and welcoming place. For those who are not used to libraries in their own countries, the library is a place filled with uncertainty (what is this? who is it for? how does it work? am I allowed to be here?) and this makes it scary.

The programming the Village branch has developed for their community demonstrates what successful partnerships with community organizations can accomplish. For example, the local schools found that Hispanic parents were not attending parent/teacher conferences, so the library suggested that the teachers come to the library for conferences. Guess what...the parents came! They could walk to the library and felt safe there, and showed up in mass to learn how their kids were doing in school and how they could help them do better. Village also secured a grant for programming to help immigrants assimilate to life in the US and to prevent gang violence. They formed a variety of programs for teens with this grant, including an aikido class! Additionally, they bring speakers in from a variety of community organizations to provide "How to..." training for immigrants. Some speakers include bank representatives, officials from the Mexican consulate, and local police. What is the result of this? When the Village community needs information or wants entertainment, they go to the library to find it. Village is the only library I have ever seen that has actually accomplished becoming the Third Place.

How does this apply to CML:

What is the vision for services to immigrants in Columbus? What is the city's vision and how does the library fit into it?
We should be making contact with our local Refugee and Immigrant services organization to get a grasp of what the immigrant groups here need and how the library can contribute.
People want to learn English...what are we doing to meet this? English conversation groups require little to get off the ground and basically come to run themselves...
Would love to do some type of cultural showcase. Any branch doing anything like this?
Bringing in community representatives to talk to immigrants about how to assimilate (get a bank account, fill out school paperwork, etc.) is brilliant!!!! Are we even thinking about programming for adult communities anymore? Certainly, helping immigrants learn about the ins-and-outs of living in the US has an impact on young minds...

Hispanic Heritage Month

2008-10-08T20:25:00.008-04:00

Tonight in storytime we celebrated Hispanic Heritage month with folktales from Latin America, and it was muy divertido! With vacations and conference travel this month, I had not seen most of my regular kids in a while, so it was great to see them enjoy these stories. Of course, we opened with our regular cancion, "Hola Amigo" by Dr. Jean. Then we read Conejito, un cuento de Panama. This story takes a folktale and weaves in lyrics of a traditional song "Tia Monica" (check out Jose-Luis Orozco's version on Diez Deditos) for a cute story about a fat little rabbit who outsmarts un zorro (fox), un tigre (tiger) y un leon (lion). After that we danced with our deditos, pies, rodillas, caderas, manos, y cabezas to the tune of "Los ninos cuando bailan" from A bailar! = Let's Dance!

The icing on the storytime cake, however, came in the form of a beautiful brand-new flannel my very talented co-worker Andrew Dittmar made to tell the story of The Bossy Gallito = El gallo de bodas. Kids and parents both enjoyed this cumulative tale of a very bossy (and exquisite) little rooster! And of course, it's not really storytime unless we end with our goodbye song, "Adios amigos!"

This was a great program, lots of fun...feel free to steal it! I mean it! And share some ideas with me as well...what are you doing in your programs to celebrate Hispanic Heritage month?

National Diversity Conference - Details coming soon!

2008-10-07T15:43:00.003-04:00

This past week I had the privilege to attend the National Diversity in Libraries conference in Louisville, KY (a million thanks Todd and Martha for agreeing to send me to this event!). I am coming back inspired and recharged, and my eyes have been opened to issues I was not quite in tune with, looking at the world through my own limited POV.

I have a lot of great information to share from this conference and it will be coming in bits and pieces. Blogging is not hard, it is just sometimes hard to find the time to keep up with it! So instead of laying everything out in one post, I'll be adding smaller posts about specific sessions. I feel the knowledge and networking gained at this conference will help me not only as a Spanish programmer, but also in my work on the CML Diversity Committee and the OLC Diversity Awareness and Resources committee.

I will share with you now the most brilliant and provacative thing I heard at the conference. Jose Aponte shared how his library system partnered with the San Diego health department to address two critical issues in the Latino community in San Diego: a lack of books and poor health conditions. How did they fight these problems to uplift the community? The library purchased a vehicle similar to the type of truck used for taquerias (mobile Mexican fast food restuarants) and turned it in to a bookmobile. They took this bookmobile out into the Latino communities equipped with bilingual staff and a clinic nurse! Let me say that again: they brought books and a nurse to the community on a familiar-looking (trustable) vehicle, with bilingual staffing!!!! This is an incredible and creative effort to truly change the lives of the community, and proof that this library knows their community and is invested in making an impact there!

Applying this to my position, I realize how much work I have to do. What are the needs of the Latino community in Columbus? What about in Whitehall specifically? How can CML creatively partner with other organizations serving the Latino community to avoid a duplication of effort and accomplish more with less?

L & P #16

2008-09-26T12:24:00.003-04:00

What fun topics in the sandbox! I look forward to learning more things about about my co-workers. I have not yet added my blog to the list because the page was being edited by someone else and I can't wait around all day! I'll get it later...

L & P #15

2008-09-26T11:30:00.003-04:00

Yes, wikis can work for libraries! These are especially useful for internal purposes. So, CML, give us some guidelines on how we can actually use this for work! For example, I created a wiki a while back using PB Wiki that was designed for staff working with the ESOL population. The point was to have a centralized location where staff looking for information to better serve this population could begin their search. This could help avoid a duplication of work, as staff could also post information to the wiki. But this didn't really go anywhere because it is unclear how we can use such technology at work. Here are some questions:

Can staff create and share work-related wikis?
Who is responsible for moderating content?
Should content be password restricted (if so, who has access) or publicly accessible (ala, "The Transparent Library")?
Which wiki software should we use?

I am very excited that we are learning about these Web 2.0 technologies, but I wonder what we are going to do with this knowledge. Is there a plan or goals for how we will be integrating this new knowledge into our jobs? Is it a free for all for staff to create and distribute any content they desire? If there is a vision of what CML 2.0 is going to look like, I would love it if such vision was shared with all of us...

L & P #14

2008-09-26T10:34:00.003-04:00

I am currently reading the Library and Web 2.0 articles and these are my thoughts:

The critical element of Library 2.0 has less to do with technology than it does with one key philosophy of how we should structure our service: It's all about the customer! There is no excuse for not focusing completely on giving the customers what they want in the ways they want it delivered. There is no room in Library 2.0 for the librarian who does not buy in to this philosophy.
How is CML measuring up on this? Clearly this philosophy is embraced at the highest levels or there would be no Learn and Play, but how well does it trickle down? It matters little how much Administration wants CML to be Library 2.0 if the everyday staff working with customers do not understand what it means, why it is important, and live it in all their interactions with customers.
I'd love to see OCLC take their Open WorldCat a step further and create an iPhone app. This type of tool could connect users (granted, a limited demographic of users) to their local libraries all over the country. See my previous blog post on why I think a library iPhone app is a good idea.
Westerville PL subscribes to a service that catalogues websites and integrates them into their OPAC. The result is that when users search the catalog for information on a subject, not only are books and journal articles retrieved, but reliable websites are as well. A customer, then, knows s/he can start a web search from home or wherever at the Westerville library online and get a manageable number of reliable web resources. I don't have any idea how often customers actually do this, but I think it is a really cool idea.
As we embrace new technologies and the new methods for delivering information that customers want, I believe it is critical to remember that libraries have a role to play in leveling the playing field so that all people have access to free information. We must not abandon those segments of our population who do not have advanced technology skills or online access. The digital divide is still very real and in these economic times, it is unlikely that this will be changing anytime soon.
It would be cool to see Ready to Read on Twitter. Parents, sign up to follow us on Twitter for daily tips and resources on how to get your kids Ready to Read!

L & P #13

2008-09-25T15:56:00.003-04:00

I have had a delicious account for a while, and I think it is a great tool. It is extremely convenient to be able to access my bookmarks from any computer (or any other tool one can use to access the Internet), instead of only having them on my home computer. I also like that I can categorize them and quickly browse through the pages I have marked on a certain subject. The cool thing about organizing with tags instead of folders is that I assign a variety of tags to a site, instead of having to choose just one folder in which to store it. Delicious helps me also to keep track of cool pages that I find which I may not want in my list of frequently used bookmarks, but that I would want to remember and come back to at a later time.

I have not really explored much with the social networking aspects of delicious, however. To be completely honest, too much social networking goes across the line from being convenient to being another time-waster, in my opinion. I like the way HFAR is using del.icio.us, and I think this is a great example of how libraries can use this tool. We make booklists and pathfinders to distribute to customers; delicious essentially allows us to create multiple pathfinders of online resources which customers can access in one place. How cool!

I do have a gripe, though. Why do we not have a delicious button on our toolbar???? We get to see how great this tool is, but we cannot use it at work, because we have to continually re-install the button to save sites. Personally, I think this is ridiculous and I hope it gets changed!

Toronto Public Library

2008-09-16T06:55:00.002-04:00

For anyone who doesn't know, Toronto is one of the most diverse cities in the world, filled with immigrants from all over. This "Newcomer Information Service" booth is one of the first things one comes across upon entering the Toronto PL. It is part of a partnership between the library and the YMCA. A YMCA staff member is there to provide information and referral services. The fifth floor houses a multimedia language learning center...very cool! There are over twenty workstations with a variety of AV equipment (TVs, CD players, cassette players, etc. and even several stations with adaptive technologies for the physically handicapped) which customers can use specifically to study a language.

Their partnership with the YMCA makes me wonder if we could partner with the Global Malls in Cbus to provide something similiar in their building with library staff who speak additional languages and can also provide other types of reference...

At any rate, it's a cool library and I'm glad I was able to visit on this trip to Toronto. I do look forward to the day, however, when libraries are seen as the hip, progressive centers of free access to information for all that we are, so that telling friends in other cities that I want to visit their library does not result in baffled looks and fits of laughter! We must sell our story!

L & P #12

2008-09-10T12:19:00.002-04:00

I love Twitter! I was really skeptical when I first heard about this site, but microblogging is fantastic. It is such an easy way to keep track of random thoughts or share something cool or funny with friends. Unfortunately, nearly none of my friends are using Twitter yet, so I am mostly just sharing random thoughts and funny moments with myself! Now that I have a phone, Twitter is easy to update. I can't explain exactly what the draw is, because I am normally a pretty private person, but I really do think Twitter is cool. I think it could be a lot easier for libraries to use Twitter to engage the public than blogs are too, simply because they do not require much time to update. With blogging, I feel like there is pressure to post something really insightful and at least a couple of paragraphs long (except for Learn and Play posts), and that pressure is not there with Twitter updates.

Anyway, you can be my friend and learn all sorts of things about me at http://twitter.com/paleopal.

Library Catalog App for iPhone

2008-09-10T12:08:00.002-04:00

So this has nothing to do with Learn and Play or with bilingual programming, but I was thinking how cool it would be if there was an iPhone app for a library catalog. In this way, when a user is out at a book store, or hears something on the radio, or is talking with friends and thinks, "I wonder if the library has that...," the user could quickly access the library catalog and find out. The user could reserve the item right then, or suggest a title to us if we don't have it. Sure, you could get online and surf over to your local library and browse their collection, but being one touch away is much quicker and easier for the user. Additionally, with a branded app right there on the homescreen, the customer is seeing that brand image regularly and in a positive way as they use their iPhone to connect with all types of information. Many social networking sites and businesses are already offering such free apps.

I have no idea how one would develop this or if any other libraries are already working on such a thing. But I can't help but think, if it's possible for businesses, if it's possible for social networking sites, if it's possible for wikipedia, why not for libraries?

L & P Thing #11

2008-09-09T11:58:00.003-04:00

I have heard about LibraryThing before but I have not played around with it because I already have a Goodreads account. I have a Goodreads widget imbedded in this blog, actually, so that readers can see some of the books I like for bilingual storytime to the left of my posts. But I must admit that LibraryThing is pretty cool. I like the layout much better than Goodreads. One of the things that drives me nuts about Goodreads is the constant updating from my friends, which is impossible to turn off (or, at least, I do not know how to do it). I am really not all that interested in what my friends are adding; and if I do want to see what my friends are reading, I want to peruse their shelves at my leisure as opposed to having their new content pushed on me. The social aspects of LibraryThing seem to be better structured. At least, I prefer being about to look through similar tags and then subscribe to RSS feeds for the users I have things in common with over having yet another social networking site filled with even more "friends." However, being able to only add 200 books is a very real limitation. Anyway, here is the link to what I have set up thus far: http://www.librarything.com/catalog/paleopal. We'll see if I invest the time to grow my library beyond these first entries!

L & P #9

2008-09-04T12:18:00.002-04:00

How do I find RSS feeds? Well, I just look for the orange box when I'm checking out stuff that I am interested in anyway. I really dig the way Aquabrowser and Ebay allow you to customize feeds based on what you are searching for and interested in. This also helps me keep up with publishers who release translations of picture books in Spanish.

L & P #8

2008-09-04T12:15:00.003-04:00

I love RSS!!!! Huge timesaver and keeps me from forgetting things. Here's the link to my Bloglines account (though I hear Google reader is pretty sweet...)

http://www.bloglines.com/public/rollon

L & P #6 Continued...

2008-09-04T11:59:00.003-04:00

OK, I take it back. This Flickr app is totally cool and I found it on a co-worker's blog. Aw, all this learnin' and playin' is paying off!

It's really hard to sit still sometimes...

This actually works as an image generator for Thing #10 as well, so I am going to use it as such. I made a hilarious avatar for myself from the image generator linked to "The Generator Blog," but the link to email it was not working, so alas...no avatar. But this will work.

It's crazy how I feel so blessed to have done the traveling that I have, but when I look at it on this map, it seems like so little!

So much world...so little time

http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/map.php

L & P #7

2008-09-04T11:29:00.002-04:00

One main thing in the technology world has captured my interest this week: the iPhone. I've been wanting an iPhone for a while, which (to anyone who knows me at all) is pretty shocking. I have not had a cell phone since 2003; a friend described them as "mechanical leashes" and I couldn't have agreed more, and that was that. But I am ready to invest in the iPhone basically because it is the Leatherman of phones. To be able to accomplish all that it has to offer with one device (not to mention store so much music, which for anyone who knows me understands that this is a high priority) is too much to resist. The technogeek inside me is ready to bloom! This week Best Buy will begin carrying the iPhone at the same price point as the Apple store and AT&T. Why am I waiting to purchase it there? Because I know myself very well, and Best Buy is offering a service plan that Apple does not. Just in case some type of smashy situation should arise, I want it to be covered!

So yes, miles behind the pack I will be getting the most basic piece of technology we all can't seem to live without these days. Somehow I still suspect only about 3 people will have my number...

L & P Thing #6

2008-09-04T11:21:00.002-04:00

I have to admit it...I don't really get in to Flickr. Allow me to explain. Personally, I think it is extremely convenient to be able to manage your photos and back them up online, allowing or not allowing others to view based on preference. Professionally, I think it is an excellent way for libraries to keep their services in the public eye. Clearly this tool is valuable. It's just not one that excites me all that much. The mashups are fun and I'm sure there are a lot of practical things one can use them to accomplish, but a lot of them just seem like easy ways to waste a lot of time. For example, I played around with the montages and I don't really see how this tool will be all that beneficial to my personal or professional endeavors. But hey, we don't have to get excited about every Web 2.0 tool just because it's out there, and it is still great to be aware of the types of things we can do with them so we can best serve our customers when they have questions.

Thing #5

2008-08-29T12:41:00.004-04:00

So my first experience at a national conference (ALA Annual 2008 in Anaheim, CA) felt a lot like my first day at college: the campus was sprawling, I struggled to figure out where I was going, and I felt desperate for a friendly face to talk to! Thankfully, I felt much more comfortable and was well in my element at the OLOS Diversity Fair. This is a photo of my presentation at the Diversity Fair that I found on Flickr and was posted by WebJunction. It was a wonderfult experience to talk with colleagues interested in Spanish outreach from all over the country; some have long been making a strong effort to serve their Spanish-speaking community and others are just getting started. Other presentations at the fair where incredibly interesting, including a presentation about the "Conexiones que cuentan" project from the Public Library of Charlotte-Mecklenburg County, and outreach to seniors through gaming from the Lexington Public Library. And after meeting so many people at the fair, I felt at ease for the rest of the conference as a friendly face was never too far away!

7 1/2 Habits...

2008-08-20T12:28:00.002-04:00

Task 2 of Learn and Play @ CML involved learning about the 7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners. Most of the habits are about attitude; for example, do you allow problems to be roadblocks which impede your success or do you view them as challenges and find creative ways to hurdle past them? This particular habit (#3, View problems as challenges) is one that I find difficult at times. When I look back on my life, it is very clear that the greatest learning and most rewarding experiences I have had, have risen from challenges which I have had to overcome. So I do recognize the value in this type of struggle. But, being honest, I must admit that frustration and stress have been a big part of that process! I feel a way in which I can improve on this is to step back from problems and try to look at them from another perspective. Maybe someday I will even feel excited about the opportunity to find creative solutions to probl...*er*, challenges! In contrast, Habit #2, Accept responsibility for your own learning, is probably the easiest for me. Whether it's formal education, travel in foreign lands, learning a language, or picking up a new hobby, I am not able to just be still without developing some type of new knowledge for very long!

I am loving the structure of Learn and Play so far. It's fun, and is providing the opportunity to learn more about other staff scattered throughout the system. I'm looking forward to what the remaining weeks have in store!

¡A Bailar!

2008-08-14T11:35:00.004-04:00

I have to share this great new CD that I just discovered for bilingual storytime (thanks Robin!). The CD is called ¡A Bailar! Let's Dance! Spanish Learning Songs by Jorge Anaya. Many of the 16 tracks are movement songs, which are great for giving kids a break to get up and move a bit between stories. Kids can move las manos arriba, abajo, adelante, y atras as they sing track #2, "El baile de las manos." Widely recognized tunes are included in Spanish such as "Cabeza y hombros" (Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes) and "Brilla, brilla, estrellita," (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star). And the best part? It doesn't sound like kids' music! You know, the cheesy synthesizers and drum machines that can make even the most passionate children's programmer wince...Instead, the songs all have a Latin beat easy to move to which is sure to even get parents' toes tapping! I definitely recommend checking this one out!

Play at Work!

2008-08-13T13:23:00.002-04:00

Sometimes I have to just take a moment to remember how lucky I am to be getting paid to do something I love...

Anyway, CML has just kicked off its "Learn and Play @ CML" program based on Helene Blowers' 23 Things. This is a program designed to get our staff learning about Web 2.0 technologies together and on work time! I am especially excited about this because I have let the blog fall behind in recent months, as I did not know if it was acceptable to contribute to it on work time. It is a great feeling to now know that my organization is supporting the sharing of knowledge and experience with colleagues in this way!

We are in Week 1 of "Learn and Play" which opened with a bang yesterday with a presentation from Michael Stephens on The Hyperlinked Library. The basic idea? Be involved with your community wherever they are, both physically and virtually, and go out of your way to remove any and all barriers that may be keeping them from using the library! One of the most important things to remember, I think, as we embrace Learning 2.0 is that the Web 2.0 technologies are tools we can embrace to accomplish this, but perhaps even more important than learning the tools is the mindset shift required to really put the library out there and available on our cusotmers' terms.

As someone who works with the underserved striving to remove barriers to service, I look forward to our culture at CML embracing this mentality and am extremely excited to be part of this program...

Successful Outreach is Key!

2008-06-05T15:09:00.004-04:00

Those working with Spanish-speaking communities may find that library service is not necessarily an "if you build it, they will come" situation. Just because a library develops a Spanish language collection or begins offering a bilingual storytime, it will not necessarily result in increased library use by the Spanish-speaking population. You know they are out there, you have services for them, but they still aren't using the library. What should you do?

The answer to that question is outreach! There are a variety of great resources available which discuss the necessity and benefits of library outreach to Spanish-speaking communities. To sum up a key point, public library services as we offer them in the United States are not the norm in Central and South America. It could very well be possible that your Spanish-speaking community is not using the library because they simply do not know that they can, or how to, or why they should. It is up to YOU to spread the word!

I would like to share two successful outreach endeavors which I recently engaged in, in order to promote library services to residents of the Whitehall, OH Spanish-speaking community. It is my hope that these endeavors could serve as a case study and be replicated by other libraries struggling to connect with their Spanish-speaking residents.

Partnering with an ESL teacher
During the summer of 2007 I was fortunate enough to meet Stella Villaba, an ESL teacher for the Whitehall City School District. Stella is a passionate teacher and an avid library supporter. When I first met her, she was very happy to distribute information in Spanish about the library to her students and her families. Later during the school year she approached me about putting together some type of presentation for the families of her students. She was finding that they often did not know about the variety of services available through the library, such as the Homework Help Centers and the Fresh Start program, which allows customers to read-off their fines twice a year. We decided to develop a Library Orientation and Tour. On May 11, 2008 we welcomed about 35 people to the library for a bilingual presentation which explained the basic details of how to use the library and what types of services the library has to offer. It was a huge success, which wrapped up with participants taking a tour of the library and with some getting new library cards!
This particular strategy could be replicated anywhere to bring in immigrant families who may not be aware of the library. If you are not bilingual and the language barrier is an issue, perhaps a local teacher or volunteer would be willing to translate in order to present the information bilingually. Even without the tour, making contact with local ESL teachers to let them know what services the library has to offer to support their services will likely result in that information being spread to families.

Visiting an adult ESL class
Rather coincidentally, the same week we put together the library tour, a local adult ESL teacher contacted the Whitehall library to come speak to the children of the students about Summer Reading Club. Throughout the course of this conversation it was discovered that the entire ESL class was Spanish-speaking. When the teacher learned that a Spanish-speaker was available to come talk with the students about the library she was ecstatic! The following Monday, May 13, we gave the same presentation at the adult ESL class which meets at a local church. The group of about 25 was delightful to work with. I was amazed how many questions they had which I was able to answer. The group was very enthusiastic about the library, and it has since been arranged that our Bookmobile will visit the church before the ESL class each week this summer!

At my library, due to a lack of Spanish-speaking staff, we are following a model of Spanish customer service which ALA President Dr. Camila Alire describes in her book Serving Latino Communities: A how-to-do-it manual for librarians. I have a standard shift that I work to provide customer service in different branches once a week. I saw the impact of this outreach the very next Wednesday when I was working my weekly shift in Whitehall; seven people from the presentation at the ESL class came to the library!

So get out of the building and spread the word, or find creative partnerships to invite people in! Be proactive about letting potential customers know what you have to offer them and you are likely to see them take you up on it!

Dora the Explorer on NPR

2008-04-16T09:30:00.003-04:00

Sure, we all know that Dora is the star of a great educational television program on Nickelodeon that kids just can't get enough of, but there is so much more to learn about her! A variety of consultants help make Dora the stereotype-smashing, Spanish-speaking, pan-Latina superstar she is. Listen to this story, Me Llamo Dora, from NPR's Morning Edition to find out how Dora, her name, her style, and more came to be.

If your library is having an event for El Día de los Niños, be sure to register with the Association of Library Services to Children (ALSC) database, and receive 200 complimentary bilingual brochures featuring Dora to promote Día and literacy!

¡Canta con alegría!

2008-04-01T12:49:00.006-04:00

I strive to incorporate Spanish movement songs into every bilingual storytime. This helps develop phonological awareness, provides an easy way to remember new Spanish words and phrases, and helps get the wiggles out of the little ones! I have found that some otherwise wonderful Spanish songs, however, are too advanced for a bilingual storytime. Those with less developed skills in Spanish have trouble following along. These are my favorite Spanish and bilingual songs which I have found to work very well in bilingual storytime.

By Dr. Jean Feldman on Ole! Ole! Ole! Dr. Jean en Español

"Hola amigo" This is my standard opening song. Great for preschool and kindergarten children.
"Tu ti ta" Super silly!

By José-Luis Orozco

"Pajarito" on Canto y Cuento. Kids sing, jump, fly, eat, drink and sleep like a bird.
"Ruedas del camión" on Diez Deditos. "Wheels on the Bus" in Spanish. Even though this song is all in Spanish, bilingual groups can follow along easily, as kids who don't understand Spanish will still recognize the song. Good idea to quickly go over the motions before starting the song.
"El chocolate" on De Colores. Traditional rhyme from Latin America. Great for phonological awareness! I like to spell CHO-CO-LA-TE out on the feltboard before singing the chant.
"La araña pequeñita" on De Colores. "Itsy Bitsy Spider" in Spanish. This is a nice one for toddlers too.

By Sarah Jordan on Bilingual Preschool English-Spanish
These songs are a bit of a mouthful, as they are all bilingual. However, they are great fun! These songs would probably work very well in a tandem style bilingual storytime, with one presenter singing along in each language. Or, if you are not bilingual, sing along in English and let the CD do the Spanish. This is a very low pressure way to add español to your storytime!

"Follow the leader/Sigue al líder" Gallop like a horse, waddle like a duck, hop like a frog, and fly like a bird. Great for farm themes or to get those kids up and moving! Works best for preschool and school age kids.
"Groovin' and Movin'/Ritmo y movimiento" Who are los chicos más animados?

Another great standby when the wiggles start creeping in is an impromptu version of "Cabeza, hombros, rodillas, pies"..."Heads, shoulders, knees and toes" in Spanish! Mix it up by going really slowly and then very fast. Don't forget the ojos, orejas, boca, nariz!

What music do you find works well in bilingual storytime? Do you also use any of these songs?

What is bilingual programming?

2008-03-14T11:17:00.004-04:00

There are many ways to offer bilingual programs to children. Some libraries, such as the Kenton County library in Kentucky, offer bilingual storytimes using a tandem format. In this method, a programmer partners with a Spanish speaking customer or educator to provide stories in English and Spanish. They may alternate in various ways, such as reading each page first in one language and then the other. This is a great option for non-Spanish speaking programmers who serve Spanish speaking children and families. If a dedicated partner is available, such a program can be offered on a regular basis. This is also an option for large programs around holidays (such as El día de los niños). Inviting a parent to participate in such a program is a way to really involve your Spanish speaking customers in the library.

Because I speak English and Spanish, I am able to provide bilingual family storytimes solo. I use a variety of storytelling techniques in order to reinforce vocabulary in both languages. For example, I may share a draw-n-tell story mostly in English, interjecting key Spanish words which are reinforced by the drawing, repeated throughout the story, etc. Flannels also work well for reinforcing vocabulary, and are an option for stories you want to share but do not have available in a Spanish or bilingual book. I will vary the dominant language of the storytime based on the language ability of the group in attendance. However, the books and songs we use each week are always either bilingual or in Spanish.

Though speaking Spanish clearly makes it easier to offer bilingual programs, I really encourage non-Spanish speaking programmers who work with Spanish speaking families, or have large numbers of Spanish speaking residents in their service areas, to give Spanish a try in storytime. Books by Susan Middleton Elya and Ginger Foglesong Guy make it really easy; just check the pronunciation of the Spanish words ahead of time!

Do you work in a library that offers bilingual programs? How do you do it?

General Guidelines of the Blog

2008-03-01T12:38:00.005-05:00

Seems like a necessary measure to elaborate on what is expected and what I plan to provide in this blog. Here goes:

In this blog, I plan to share great books and music I come across for bilingual storytimes, storytelling techniques which work well in a bilingual format, and anything else that seems useful to share with others offering bilingual storytimes in their libraries.
This blog is intended to be used by anyone working to cultivate a love of reading and an appreciation of language in children. I offer a library perspective, but I welcome the thoughts and experiences of teachers, parents, and others working with bilingual children as well.
I do not have many colleagues providing bilingual storytimes near me in Columbus, OH, so I welcome comments and feedback from colleagues in other locations. This blog will work best if it is collaborative in nature, so please share your thoughts!

Thanks for stopping by the blog...my hope is that it will be a useful tool!

¡Hola compañeros!

2008-03-01T09:36:00.004-05:00

Hello world! I'm setting up this blog to share tips, tricks and interesting stories as I learn from my work providing bilingual (Spanish/English) storytimes for families at Columbus Metropolitan Library. Bilingual storytimes are a great way to show your Spanish speaking community that there are library staff available to help in their language! Non-Spanish speakers can also incorporate bilingual techniques in order to add cultural diversity to their programs and create a welcoming environment for their Spanish speaking customers. It is my hope that this blog will be a collaborative space to gain and share ideas related to bilingual programming and general service to Spanish speaking children and their families in the library.
In this first post, I'm including a list of links to sites which have valuable information for planning bilingual storytimes, as well as libraries which are offering unique or interesting services to their Spanish speakers.

I attended one of the Spanish Language Outreach trainings offered by Webjunction in spring 2007. I highly recommend it! Their website is incredibily useful for any staff who work with Spanish speakers, or who have Spanish speakers in their community. Find signage, archived webinars, case studies of libraries around the country, and all the materials provided in their training by clicking their link.
REFORMA is the National Association for Library Services to Latinos and the Spanish speaking. A lot of great information related to serving Spanish speakers in general can be found at their website. The listserv is a great source of current information. REFORMA members have also been very helpful as I've had programming questions.
The Village branch of the Lexington Public Library has a completely bilingual staff with a variety of cool services, including bilingual storytime, homework help, and the bilingual café!