Sunday, September 26, 2010

Banned Books Week 2010

One of the first tasks I accomplished at my new job was to clean out one of my storage closets to see what goodies lived in it. Lucky for me, I found a little caution tape and knew immediately I needed to use it for my annual banned books display in the teen area.

But before that, I needed to make a catchy sign for the display. I loved this year's graphics from ALA, so I used it and modified it just a tad to give it a little personal flavor:

Signage

After printing it on heavier card stock and slipping it into the acrylic holder, it was time to go to work. I pulled out about 12 titles that had been banned or challenged in the last year (the list being readily available here). I picked titles with hard covers so they'd stand on their own and placed them on my makeshift display space with only the spine showing. Then it was time to use the caution tape:

Teen Display

As you can see, my display area right now is tiny. Before I did some shifting in the uniquely designed teen area, there wasn't a display space, so I carved one out on a single shelf above the register. But it's smack in the middle of the teen area, and it definitely stands out.

I didn't include any hand outs or book marks this year, but perhaps next year, it's something I'd be able to put together. I originally wanted to add something about the Speak Loudly campaign, but there weren't any good readily-available things I could grab for a book mark. It's something I certainly plan on posting to our teen Facebook this week, though.

Welcome!

Because I've been so lucky to run across many a fantastic blog and website to come up with some of the programs I've offered for teens and children, I wanted to give back and offer my ideas and plans with others. I'll share my successes and misses, my ideas and planning, my costs and resources, and my inspirations where applicable.

About me: I'm in my second job out of graduate school with my masters in information science. I'm currently the head of youth services in a very small public library, with a real passion for serving teens. I just began this job encompassing all of youth services and it is a challenge for which I'm excited.