Posts by Cari
Read On! Thunderbird Youth Academy
Your library staff tries not to have favorite patrons (just like I’m sure all of you try not to have favorite librarians). I will admit, though, we definitely have a favorite day: Thunderbird Day.
Twice a month, cadets from Thunderbird Youth Academy come to the library during their daily classes. Every hour, we get a new class of cadets searching for information and reading materials. Like any population, their interests are diverse. Also like any population, their reading levels and joy found in reading are varied.
This level of diversity experienced in a single day is what makes Thunderbird days such favorites. Because each class of up to 20 cadets searches for materials for a finite amount of time, the staff must keep our reading recommendation and information searching skills sharp. It’s an all-hands-on-deck kind of day where each staff member often juggles the needs of multiple cadets at a time. Not to mention the needs of our regular patrons who happen to come in at the same time.
It’s a tiring day that allows us to do what we do best – connect our patrons to the resources and materials they need. Not only that, we get to know the cadets in a fairly relaxed environment. We also get to know their teachers, sergeants, and support staff whose care and dedication to the cadets’ success is evident.
The partnership between your library and Thunderbird is beneficial to both organizations and, it is my hope, also beneficial to the cadets and their communities. Learning to navigate a library ensures each cadet has the skills necessary to continue a lifetime of learning.
Though I’m sure each cycle is plenty long for the cadets, we are always sad when a cycle ends. We hope our library has been helpful during their time in Pryor and that they had as much fun as we always do.
The Library will be closed for Veterans Day
Read On! Traveling Library
Last week I got to travel to Chicago for a kickoff meeting for a national study on library broadband measurement. I like everything about the idea of flying – the rush of takeoff, the feel of the plane as the magic of “lift” keeps us from plummeting to our doom, the exhilaration of landing such a huge machine – but the reality of commercial flight is kind of the pits. Security is disconcerting and intimidating, the plane’s seats are so cramped that even the smallest travelers feel sardined, and layovers make the hours feel like days.
To mitigate some of the discomfort of my time in the air, I listened to “Scat” by Carl Hiaasen on Overdrive (once you’ve downloaded an audiobook, you don’t need data or internet to listen to it). Set in Hiaasen’s familiar Florida, “Scat” features seemingly disjointed characters who all have a major role to play as Nick and Marta solve the mystery of why their high school biology teacher, Mrs. Starch, disappeared and where she went. It’s a fun read that is fairly decent on audio. The narrator is not as animated as many audiobook narrators, but it is a good performance nonetheless.
My other distraction was a language lesson on our Mango Languages app. Like audiobooks, once you’ve downloaded the lesson, you don’t need data or wifi to access it. Inspired by Fat Toad Brewing Company’s recent OkTOADerfest, I decided to start the special course on Oktoberfest. I’m not sure my German is much better since I didn’t get to practice any of the phrases, but it was certainly a nice distraction from the discomfort of travel.
Whether you’re headed across town or out of state, your library can travel with you. All you need is your library card number and an initial internet connection (you can use our wifi for free 24 hours a day) to get your trip started right.
Read On! Good Searching
One of the things we talked about at our Staff Training Day a few weeks ago was the importance of good search terms. Whether you’re using one of our online resources like EBSCO or you’re feeling lucky with a Google search, this advice applies to everyone searching for information online.
My example for the staff was searching for information on the American Civil War. First, we searched with just the terms “Civil War.” In EBSCO, our online resource for articles from peer-reviewed journals, magazines, and newspapers, this search gets results about a lot of civil wars. Not all of them are the one we actually want. When we add “American” to our “Civil War” search, we get a lot closer.
In a simple Google search, “Civil War” might get more information about the American Civil War, especially if you allow Google to know your location. Searching “Civil War” will also return a lot of information on the Marvel Universe’s Civil War. While entertaining, those results are not helpful for this search. When we add “American” to our “Civil War” search on Google, we are on a far better track!
When using the Library’s online resources, there are several simple ways to limit your search results and ensure you’re getting the information you want. (These search limits are almost always on the left-hand side of your search results.)
Google results are a little trickier to limit and to ensure you’re getting correct information. Using the “Advanced Search” in the “Settings” section is a good place to start. Once you start exploring your results, if it’s a site you’re not familiar with, check the site’s “About” section. If you can’t find one, or if the “About” section doesn’t sound right, you might look for another result. If you need help with any of your search results, we’re happy to help.