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Our next Children and Youth Services Meet-Up is happening on June 28th, Wednesday, at 10 am! Any and all are welcome - our topic of discussion is Parent/Caregiver/Family Engagement. Please see the ASPeN Event Listing for the Zoom link and registration information!
 The United States has two upcoming solar eclipses happening, in October 2023 and April 2024! Montana hosted two STEM Workshops focused on Solar Eclipse Activities for Libraries in May, and now have 4 copies of two SEAL STEM Trunks available for Montana libraries to use! The available trunks are:
- SEAL STEM Sun Spotter Trunk (2 copies) - good for all ages, but slight focus on younger children
- SEAL STEM Telescope Trunk (2 copies) - good for all ages, but slight focus on older children/teens/adults
These trunks are part of the MSL Trunk Program and are available to your library for FREE (all shipping costs covered by MSL). You can find out more about how to reserve a trunk by visiting the Lifelong Learning Page on the MSL Website, and scrolling down to the "MSL Trunk Program" section.
Some additional resources for Solar Eclipse Activities in Libraries:
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SEAL Main Project Page: Tons of great information about the upcoming eclipses, eclipses in general, and where you can also request solar eclipse glasses!
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Solar Eclipse Activity Collection: Browse here for a bunch of great ideas for solar eclipse-related activities to do with all ages!
Are you interested in improving your technology skills and learning more about Microsoft Excel? If so, please consider signing up for the Summer 2023 Intro to Microsoft Excel Cohort! This learning cohort is for any Montana librarian who is interested in learning how to use Microsoft Excel through the Universal Class course: Introduction to Microsoft Excel 2021.
The course opens on July 24th, 2023 and closes on September 29th, 2023. We will kick-off with a Zoom meeting on Monday, July 24th, 2023 at 2 pm
We will wrap up the cohort with a Zoom meeting on Friday, September 29th, 2023 at 12 pm
You can enroll in this class by visiting MSL Learn and enrolling yourself in the Summer 2023 Intro to Microsoft Excel Tech Cohort class. Please note that besides the Zoom kick-off and wrap-up meetings, this cohort is entirely self-paced.
Anyone who is interested is welcome to attend the kick-off on 7/24 to learn more about the format, as well as reach out to Amelea Kim at akim@mt.gov with questions.
We will also be holding another Excel Tech Cohort in the winter, from October until December, so if you aren't able to make the summer cohort, you can participate in the winter cohort!
For those of you who are looking for more early childhood development training, please consider signing up for the Reimagining School Readiness Training in November 2023!
What is the Reimagining School Readiness Program?
The Reimagining School Readiness Train-the-Trainer program is a professional development program designed to train library staff to use the Reimagining School Readiness Toolkit. The Toolkit, originally developed by the Bay Area Discovery Museum (BADM) in collaboration with the California State Library (CSL), is a set of free resources which includes tips and strategies for librarians, and activities for children and caregivers that prepare children for success in school. Montana first did a training with librarians back in 2022, and are excited to offer it again!
The learning outcomes for this training are:
- Learn and understand the six key findings of school readiness research, and how that fits in with early childhood development environments and opportunities
- Experience four hands-on school readiness activities that can be used in library programming
- Brainstorm, discuss, and share ideas on how to implement the school readiness toolkit and ideas in their current library work, and in future programs
When is the Reimagining School Readiness Training?
The Reimagining School Readiness trainings will be happening VIRTUALLY in November 2023 on the following dates:
- 11/2, Thursday from 9:30 - 11:30 am (Reimagining School Readiness Part 1)
- 11/9, Thursday from 9:30 - 11:30 am (Reimagining School Readiness Part 2)
- 11/16, Thursday from 9:30 - 10:30 am (Project Design and Goal Setting)
All trainings will happen through Zoom.
Who can attend the Reimagining School Readiness trainings?
Any Montana library staff member/trustee is welcome to attend these trainings! Trainings are free, and you are also welcome to invite any of your community partners to these events as well. These trainings would be most interesting and applicable to people who work directly with young children (0-5) and their families, but we are happy to have anyone with interest in this topic. Community partners are also welcome to attend!
Please note that all training participants will be expected to apply the knowledge they learn in a long-term project. MSL will provide support and resources over the course of at least a year to support librarians in their project work.
How do I apply?
Please fill out the 2023 Reimagining School Readiness Training Application by July 31st, and please pass this along to anyone who might be interested!
MSL Learn now has a new course available: Youth Services Basics and Overview! This course was designed as an introduction to library services for public library staff working with youth. Whether you are already working in a library or just starting out in a new youth services position, this content will help you consider why library services focusing specifically on youth are important, how to collect appropriate materials, the types of services and programs you can provide to your patrons, and the importance of outreach services.
In this course, participants will:
- Understand why library services focusing on youth are important
- Learn about the basics of collection development and resources they can use to help with collection development.
- Explore different approaches to library programming and program development
- Consider different methods of library outreach and how to apply it in their specific context.
Course Information:
- Estimated Course Length: 1 hour
- Continuing Education Credits: 1 for Library Services to the Public
- Self-paced
Check out the course and enroll at MSL Learn!
 We just did another print order for the Ready 2 Read Brochures, and we would love to share them out with anyone and everyone! There are three brochures available:
- Babies
- Toddlers
- Preschoolers
You can request a package of all of them up to 100 brochures of each type! Additional materials available include:
- Bookmarks
- Magnets
- Large Cards
Please fill out the 2023 - 2024 Ready 2 Read Package Request form to submit your request, and Amelea will follow up with more information!
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