Smokey Bear
Throughout 2024, New York State partnered with the Collaborative Summer Library Program and the USDA/Forest Service to promote and support the Smokey Bear Reading Challenge in libraries across the state and the country. A survey offered in fall 2024 was responded to by 134 libraries. These public libraries indicated that during the summer and fall of 2024 over 6,000 people engaged with the challenge at their libraries. Libraries used the free materials, resources, and reading lists made available through this partnership with the USDA/Forest Service and CSLP in many different events and learning activities for all ages. Libraries found creative ways to promote the challenge and raise awareness and appreciation of nature and outdoor activities as well as fire safety and prevention.
Youth Services Basics Course
A new and comprehensive Youth Services Basics online course will be available soon on the NYS Library’s Moodle platform. This course is appropriate for public library staff who are brand new to Youth Services or for staff who are looking for a refresher in specific areas. There are four different sections in the online course, and staff will have an opportunity to complete selected modules or take the entire course at their own pace. Staff will be able to earn a certificate of completion that can be used towards professional development hours by taking a short quiz and completing a brief survey after each section. The course is designed so that it can be updated as needed and appropriate content can be included or changed.
Additional Opportunities
Update on training and professional development opportunities for public libraries: the State Library is coordinating a Transforming Teen Services in-person workshop training to occur April 15 at Mid York Library System – attendees will learn about Connected Learning and ways to reach underserved teens in their communities. A 5-week session of Supercharged Storytimes for All early literacy training will be held online this spring, for public library staff working with young children and their families. An early literacy statewide webinar on sensory storytimes is being planned for April 2025.
On February 11, the NYS Library will host a statewide webinar on the Erie Canal bicentennial taking place in 2025. This webinar is intended to help libraries with program planning at their libraries and in their communities and will share information on Erie Canal resources to engage youth and families to learn more about this important transportation route in American history. Full details and a link to register can be found on the NYS Library Calendar of Events.