Index
- SCLS February ‘Talk of the Town’ airs on CW 57
- New Digital Content/Digitization Resources web page
- Member/Staff News
- Five things to remember when opening a makerspace
- Sisters In Crime awards monthly library grants
- Apply to host a space, earth science or technology exhibition at your public library
- Continuing Education Calendar
SCLS February ‘Talk of the Town’ airs on CW 57
South Central Library System has become a News Partner on CW 57 in Madison, and each month has a 5-minute interview on a topic related to library services and or programs. The February interview featured Madison Public Library’s Molly Warren talking about OverDrive.
In addition to the monthly interview, SCLS also receives two 30-second commercials that run throughout the month, as well as a message on a news feed during daily news programs.
The February interview is now available on the CW57 YouTube page (watch below), and you can link to it from your website and/or Facebook.
The March “Talk of the Town” interview will feature Baraboo Public Library’s Penny Johnson, who will talk about Teens and Libraries.
If you have topic ideas, please send an email to either Martha Van Pelt or Mark Ibach.
New Digital Content/Digitization Resources web page
At the recommendation of the Digital Content Work Group, a new web page has been added to the SCLS website offering suggestions for library staff seeking hosting for digital content projects. Digital Content/Digitization Resources includes brief overviews of affordable hosting options such as OverDrive Local Content and Recollection Wisconsin. As new resources become available they will be added to the page. A link to the new page is included on the Web Services page.
The Middleton Public Library Media Maker Lab is a hands-on, mentor-led 21st century technology learning environment designed for students K-12 to come together to learn, collaborate and create. The inaugural workshop series was held in February and focused on video-editing concepts using Adobe Premiere software on graphic-powerful laptops over a period of four weeks. (read more)
Five things to remember when opening a makerspace
by David Lee King
My library just opened our new makerspace, called the Make-It Lab. If your library has opened a makerspace, or is thinking about it, remember this -- it’s a very different type of service to create, and you most definitely will be surprised by something.
Here are some things we have learned through the planning and opening of our makerspace (I’m sure there are more than these!):
- You can’t train for everything.
- You don’t have all the equipment your customers want.
- You have more stuff than you realize.
- There are a TON of details.
- 3D printers are persnickety.
- Bonus point -- have fun!
Get more detail about each bullet point by reading David’s blog.
Sisters In Crime awards monthly library grants
Enter your library in the We Love Libraries lottery, which awards grants of $1,000 monthly through December 2015. At the end of each month, a winner will be drawn from entries received at the Sisters In Crime website. Only U.S. libraries may enter the drawing.
To enter, simply complete the entry form and upload a photo of one or more of your staff with three books in your collection by Sisters in Crime members. You can find a list of our members who are authors, or by navigating to our top menu drop-down menu and look under Resources --> Authors Search.
After the random drawing on the last business day of the month, the winning library will be contacted and announced. All branches within a larger system may enter; however, once a library in the system has won, no other libraries within that system can win the grant. Those not successful in one month will automatically be entered for subsequent drawings. Grants must be used to purchase books and may not be used for general operating expenses. Book purchases are not restricted to the mystery genre nor to those by Sisters in Crime members. There is no cost or obligation other than allowing us to post winners' photos on our website.
All libraries are welcome to enter. Click here for the entry form. For more information contact Beth Wasson.
Apply to host a space, earth science or technology exhibition at your public library
The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office, in collaboration with the Space Science Institute’s National Center for Interactive Learning, the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the Afterschool Alliance, invites public libraries to apply to host one of three science- and technology-focused traveling exhibitions.
The interactive exhibitions are designed to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) learning opportunities for all ages.
Each exhibition will travel to eight sites in 2016 and 2017. Roughly 800 square feet of space is required for optimal display. Applicants should apply for one of the following exhibitions:
- Discover Space will teach audiences how stars and planetary systems form and the role that gravity plays in our universe. Visitors will learn the similarities and differences between Earth and Mars and be introduced to the tools scientists use to explore planets. The exhibit will examine asteroids and comets, look at the sun as a dynamic star, and reveal electric and magnetic changes that occur in space. Exhibit components will include a 42-inch touch table on which visitors can play a variety of astronomy simulation games; a collection of meteorite specimens, including a touchable, 10-pound meteorite and a solar monitoring station. A Tinkering Station will include various hands-on activities such as designing and building robotic devices using Lego bricks.
- Discover Earth focuses on local earth science topics -- such as weather, water cycle and ecosystem changes -- as well as a global view of our changing planet. Visitors will learn how the global environment changes -- and is changed by -- the local environment of all exhibition hosts’ communities. Interactive, multimedia displays -- such as an 18-inch-diameter Magic Planet globe and a 42-inch touch table -- will allow visitors to interact with digital information in a dynamic way, encouraging new perspectives on our planet. The exhibit components will incorporate personal narratives, stunning graphics, video, animations, weather artifacts and animal specimens. A Tinkering Station will include various hands-on activities such as puzzles and art projects.
- Discover Tech will help audiences understand the nature of 21st-century technology and engineering -- both high- and low-tech -- and their potential for helping to solve many of the world’s problems. Through interactive displays, the exhibition will illustrate that engineers are real people who, through a creative and collaborative design process, arrive at practical solutions to help solve society’s problems. Visitors will learn about the fundamental principles of energy, become aware of their own energy use, and understand the impact of engineering on communities worldwide. For example, using a hand-crank generator, they can produce electrical energy that can be used to power various types of light bulbs and learn which one uses the least energy to operate. Nearby, the Solar Power station will demonstrate the basic functioning of solar energy by allowing visitors to experiment with a light source and a large solar panel. A Tinkering Station will include various hands-on building activities, including an explanation of how gears work.
All grantees will receive:
- one exhibition for a 12-week display period; shipping is free for grantees;
- a cash grant of $1,000 to cover the cost of public programming related to the exhibition;
- a Discover teacher guide, family guide and hands-on activities for different age groups to help libraries develop programs and support classroom visits;
- a two-day, in-person orientation for two exhibition coordinators per site;
- periodic webinars on timely STEM topics to support programming in libraries;
- promotional materials to aid in local outreach; and
- access to the STAR_Net Online Community and a national network of STEM-oriented organizations.
Grantees will be required to plan public programs related to the exhibition and to participate in the STAR_Net Online Community throughout the exhibition period.
Full guidelines and an online application are available at http://apply.ala.org/STARNet-Discover. The application deadline is April 7, 2015.
For libraries that do not have the space to display an 800-square-foot exhibition, ALA and its partners will accept applications for smaller versions of the Discover exhibitions in summer 2015. These smaller exhibitions -- Explore Space, Explore Earth and Explore Tech -- will require roughly 200 square feet of display space. Check http://www.ala.org/programming/ in June 2015 for further details.
The Discover exhibitions are made possible through the support of the National Science Foundation. The exhibition and its educational support materials and outreach opportunities are part of the STAR (Science-Technology Activities and Resources) Library Education Network (STAR_Net), a hands-on learning program for libraries and their communities developed by the National Center for Interactive Learning at the Space Science Institute. For more information, visit www.STARnetLibraries.org.