Library
Read On! Thunderbird Youth Academy
I’ve written before about how much the library staff enjoys our partnership with the Thunderbird Youth Academy and their twice monthly visits. Thunderbird’s newest cadet group started library visits last week and reminded me what a joy this partnership is for us.
It’s an opportunity for the library staff to flex our professional muscles by recommending books to read, teaching cadets how to use the library, and sharing our love of information and reading with an eager group of young people. These are things we do every day, of course, but on Thunderbird days we get to do what we do best for over 100 cadets in quick succession. Each hour brings another group of 20 or so teenagers looking for information or a good read.
After each Thunderbird visit, the staff is exhausted but exhilarated. We compare notes and are always excited when we’ve been asked something new. Marie and Amanda, who are in charge of selecting and ordering library materials, make note of titles or subjects the cadets asked for that we couldn’t get for one reason or another. We talk about trends we see with each group and what types of books seem most popular. We rejoice when a cadet comes back to tell us he or she liked (or didn’t like) a particular book we recommended.
By the time they’re ready to graduate, we also celebrate (with only the smallest hint of smugness) the fact that many cadets come to the library insisting they hate reading and then morph into some of the best people to ask for book recommendations. Watching and helping to facilitate the transformation from a non-reader to a reader is one of the most validating parts of being a librarian. I’m so glad Thunderbird is part of my librarian experience. I only hope the cadets and their staff get half as much enjoyment out of their visits as we do.
Read On! Saving Money
Lately, a lot of the library forums and email lists I follow have been talking about printing the “amount saved” on every checkout receipt. Your Pryor Library has had this feature for over a year and it’s pretty remarkable to examine how much the library saves us.
Your “amount saved” is calculated by adding up the list price for each item you’ve checked out. For instance, if you check out 6 kids books and a DVD, your amount saved is around $142. I know this because it’s what I’ve got on my account right now. This means that had I gone to Barnes & Noble (or another retail establishment) and bought the same items I checked out from the library, I would have spend about $142.
If this trend continues, by the end of the year, using the library will have saved my family $1,800. (provided my four-year-old doesn’t color in any more library books.)That’s a lot of money we can then spend on groceries, clothes, school supplies, LEGO sets, etc.
In addition to keeping track of how much money the library saves each of our patrons each year, our system keeps track of how much we’ve saved all of our patrons together. I ran a quick report looking at the last six months (Aug. 1 through Feb. 11). The Pryor Public Library has saved our patrons $331,089.64 total. In the first 11 days of February, we saved our patrons almost $18,000. That’s $1,636 a day!
The “amount saved” calculation does not include things like research and other assistance from our staff, ebooks or audiobooks downloaded from Overdrive, our Ancestry.com subscription, or internet and wifi usage – all services that are widely used and provided at no cost to you.
I often tell people, “The Library is the best deal in town.” This is my evidence to justify that statement. Be sure to look at your “amount saved” on the bottom of your receipt!
Read On: Better Than Amazon
I learned this weekend that Amazon has a subscription book box available for the kids in your life. For the low-low price of $20 per box, you can order books (four board books or two hardbacks) for children ages 0 to 12. The big bonuses for the subscription are that you’re getting the books at 40% discount and the boxes are “curated.”
I have two counter-offers to this deal.
First, if you’d like to get print books in the home of a child under five years old, I highly recommend the free Imagination Library subscription available through our Friends of the Library group. Children with this subscription receive one age-appropriate book each month that includes suggestions for how can teach their children vital early literacy skills. This subscription is free for the families who sign up. If you have a child under five you’d like to sign up, ask us about it at the library. We’ll get you the form and we’ll even turn it in for you!
My second counter-offer is also free, and ever more impressive than Amazon’s. Using only your library card, you or your child can have up to 20 books each month! Granted, you need to bring them back after 4 – 8 weeks, but still! 20 books! For free! You can even upgrade your selections to include audiobooks or DVDs at no extra charge. Our trained staff can help you curate the selections at any time. We’ll simply need to ask a few questions to understand your interests or the interests of your child, then we’ll offer helpful suggestions designed to give you the best reading experience possible.
Don’t have time to come to the library? No problem! Simply download the Overdrive app on your smartphone, tablet, or computer and check out up to six books, audiobooks, or videos for two weeks at a time. Overdrive even works for free on Amazon’s Kindle devices.
Read On: Kids in the Library
When school is closed but the library isn’t, I always have to refresh my memory on library policy regarding children in the building. Now that my son is old enough, by library policy, not to need me by his side while he’s in the building, it’s more difficult to say “no” to his requests to come to work.
I still have a little time before my daughter is old enough to enjoy the same freedoms so I’m using her restriction within the building and sincere jealousy that her brother gets to do things she can’t do as reasons to send him on to daycare. I have a feeling both the Rérat kids will make appearances once she’s six.
(In the spirit of full disclosure, my son has very little interest in hanging out with his mom while he’s here. He likes the library for the computers, books, and internet.)
The official policy on kids in the building is:
“Children five years of age and younger must be accompanied by a responsible caregiver at all times. Children eight years of age or younger may not be left in the building without a responsible caregiver under any circumstances. Library staff is not responsible for the supervision and/or safety of unattended children.”
Speaking of bringing your kids to the library, don’t miss our toddler storytime on Wed. at 10:30 AM. Our beginning song is all about moving making noise, so don’t worry if your kids have a hard time sitting still and staying quiet. It’s always an exciting time for the kids and a good opportunity to meet other parents.
For teens this week, we’ve got Teen Night on Thurs. at 6:30 PM. At the time of this writing, our plans are not set in stone, but I have it on good authority that this month’s Teen Night will involve the dismantling and reuse of technology.
Next Thurs. at 7:00 PM is our Bullet Journaling workshop for adults! Don’t miss it!