Public libraries - what do you need/want?

[Guest Homeschool librarian]

What do you need and/or want the most from your public library?

 

What do you find most useful at your library now?

 

What do you wish your library provided?

 

Hi! I'm a homeschooler (12th grader, 8th grader going to public school this fall (sniff), 7th grader) and I'm also a librarian for our state library program. I'm presenting an in-service to our librarians on Homeschooling and want to hear from YOU about what you'd like your libraries to do to serve the homeschooling public.

 

Thank you in advance!

 

Kate  :)

[SparklyUnicorn]

Books

 

Sadly the book collection in my local libraries is dismal. 

 

I don't find anything useful there. 

 

[meena]

Programming for older children (middle school/high school) that's actually about books! In my area I would say that 98% of programming is unrelated to books or literacy. Instead it's all about gaming, STEAM, movies/TV/pop culture, and crafting. I understand those things are popular, but so are books and reading. My DD just got back from a long road trip with kids from her church and she told me about book conversations they had on the ride, which shows that older kids like books enough to chat about them unprompted.

[Lara in Colo]

I have a great library-- they have meeting rooms I can use and they let us bring in food and drinks and such, they have a lot of the Great Courses on file, they have a nicely stocked sale room.  They have programs for learning in the summer.  Like I said they are a great, user-friendly library.

 

I wish they had more of the "homeschool" books--- I couldn't find Seth of the Lion People or Boy of the Painted Cave -- or a lot of the recommended books for historical fiction that are on at least three Google searches I ran for children's historical fiction.

 

I would also like a "homeschool" account with longer checkout runs and bigger checkout amounts--- say--- 6 weeks and 150 books.

 

I would also like to be able to put stuff on hold-- for when I need it-- I think I can do this if I work it, but it would be so much easier to put it on hold in May-- but need it in November and in November I automatically become #1.

 

More of the Schlessinger Science videos-- they are the best (I have no idea if I spelled that correctly)

 

[Jackie]

Things I already love about my library:

- Online reservation system

- Drive through for returning and picking up holds

- Typically a good selection of books, including classics

 

Things I wish my library had:

- higher limit on number of holds - I'm allowed to schedule holds for the future, but with a max of 30 I can't actually do that

- common non-consumable homeschooling material (Life of Fred and Story of the World pop to mind as examples)

- a sane ILL policy. Mine won't ILL anything if it's available at any library in the county including the university libraries. People not affiliated with the university have very limited access to those books.

 

I wish the librarians were more apt to steer kids to classics instead of fluff. A few times my daughter has asked for recommendations, listing out really good books she has liked as examples. She keeps having the librarians steer her toward stuff like Fancy Nancy in response. Blech.

[MrsRobinson]

Improvements to ILL. I need to be able to predict when my ILL requests will be available for pick up. There have been so many books that go with our lessons that were available through ILL but it took forever and we were way beyond that topic by the time they came in.

 

So say ILLs are delivered on Mondays, expect your reservation to process in 7 business days. So if am picking up on Monday then I place that weeks requests 2 Fridays prior. Something like that so I know when to request to have the right material for the current lessons.

 

I agree with pp about stocking non consumable homeschooling materials. STOW, Life of Fred, IEWs TWSS and more books on home education. My library has TWTM, A Charlotte Mason Companion, and The Everything Homeschooling Book and that's it! The rest is test prep resources.

[Guest mrskatiefitz]

I'm a former children's librarian, current SAHM, and future homeschooler. 

 

It seems to me that many librarians don't really know how to handle kids who like to read, or parents who are involved in their kids' reading. The fact that librarians are handing Fancy Nancy to a child who has obviously read books of higher quality says to me that the librarians are not reading broadly enough to know what else is available. I also know many librarians weed books I would consider to be classics because supposedly kids are not interested in older books and would prefer to read whatever only the newest, most popular series happens to be. I have been doing a reading project this year where I am reading 52 children's historical fiction novels, and it is surprising to me how few copies are available of books that are commonly included on homeschool reading lists I have found online. 

 

I also think librarians - at least the ones I encounter in professional forums - tend to be quite liberal, and they are intimidated by conservative homeschooling families. I've worked with librarians who purposely hand kids books they know their parents don't want them to read in order to "save" them from their parents' "oppressive" lifestyle. I also notice that whenever librarians consult colleagues (on Facebook or in similar forums) for help with a request from a more conservative parent, the colleagues' responses often include not just book suggestions, but advice for the parent on how to change their ways. It feels very much like librarians want to side with children against their parents, and that makes me think twice about whether I will bother sending my children to a librarian for a book recommendation. 

 

Overall, I guess I would like to see the library providing better service to all patrons, not just to the reluctant readers and the parents who share the librarians' beliefs. 

[silver]

The hold and checkout limit at my library are something like 100 books--I like this. I like being able to place holds and easily get them from any library in the county. I like that I can "suspend" these holds so that it isn't active in the system until the suspension runs out (so I can place books on hold a month or more ahead of time).

 

I don't like the selection of good elementary level non-fiction. The books are usually either easy-reader level or grade 5+. It's hard to find things that offer interesting information without being long and dry.

 

I wish I could request a book to be purchased that is older. My library will only purchase books that have been published in the last year. Sometimes a book in a series will get lost and they won't replace it. My children will have read up until the missing book and suddenly not be able to continue the series.

 

I wish I could search the online catalog by where in the library a book is. If I search for elephants, it will bring up all books remotely related to elephants. I want to be able to narrow it down by picture books (which are in their own area), non-fiction books (it's rather odd to me that I can't specify if I want fiction or non-fiction in the results), or early readers (again, in their own section). They system has this information if I click on an individual record, so why can I not include/exclude based on it?

[ikslo]

I wish I could request a book to be purchased that is older. My library will only purchase books that have been published in the last year. Sometimes a book in a series will get lost and they won't replace it. My children will have read up until the missing book and suddenly not be able to continue the series.

:iagree:

[FairProspects]

1. Librarians who are knowledgeable about classics, reading levels, and their general systems. They should know how to use their own computer systems and answer questions. They should also read widely in children's lit and not recommend the most recently released title just because. Libraries should be about gaining access to knowledge and too few know what to do with advanced readers & learners.

 

2. Computers situated away from the children's book section. I bring my kids to the library to find BOOKS not to fight with them about more computer time (which is now one of the reasons I avoid the library).

 

3. A children's non-fiction shelf section. Possibly also a children's graphic novel section. Our library shelves juvenile and adult non-fiction books together (and graphic novels) which I personally find disheartening to boys, who are often interested in non-fiction over fiction. Children's fiction is shelved separately, but children who want to read non-fiction have to wade through the entire library to find books at their level on topics of interest.

 

4. Books. Good classic books along side newer releases. New does not necessarily = better. Enough said.

 

5. Book clubs by age (with good selections).

 

6. Interesting classes or seminars for a variety of ages, not just Lego builds or preschool events. Programming for older kids *at their level*.

[shinyhappypeople]

 

• IEW DVDs

 

Great Courses

 

modern homeschooling how-to books (and shelve them in a special area in the kids' section for convenience's sake)

 

expand the science and history sections

 

add board games

 

plan more activities, reading incentives, book clubs, etc. geared toward tweens and teens (currently everything they do is focused on kids 10 and under)

 

special homeschool or educator card with extended check-out times

 

ONLINE LANGUAGE LEARNING (e.g. Mango) please!!!

 

[Amira]

Ebooks and a very good interlibrary loan system with as many libraries as possible participating.

[HomeAgain]

Topic books for various ages.  If you add a long book about Mexico, for example, a short, brightly colored picture book in the same area would be appreciated - not having the only ones for young children available in fiction. On that, keep the non-fiction out of the Easy Readers.  Yes, I know they *are* easy readers, but put them in with the non-fiction!

 

Supplemental resources too pricy for using only a little while at home would be nice to see: LOF, Oxford's Ancients & Middle Ages, Disney Imagineering, Letters of Note...

 

Cataloguing audio books with reader's name available on the screen (seriously peeves me at our library).

 

[idnib]

Welcome!

 

There was a similar thread in 2013 you might find helpful. 

[Michael12]

There is plenty of evidence in library threads here at WTM that there are quite a few homeschoolers who really dislike their libraries - to the point where some simply refuse to let their kids use the library.

 

Homeschoolers are potentially the best users of the public library, but in some cases they get thwarted by library mission. When I was a child, the vast majority of public libraries still viewed themselves as "the people's university" - they built collections full of the best materials and didn't much care whether those were circulating. If you wanted a classic, it was there. I could read a book and return a decade or more later, and that exact copy would still be there for me. Nowadays, there is a mentality among many public library administrators that views libraries as free bookstores. Barnes & Noble stocks what sells. And what sells is what B&N stocks, to some degree. Libraries with this model buy based on anticipated circulation and are not at all afraid to weed unpopular books. If it hasn't been checked out in 5 years (say), it gets tossed. There is no real belief in a permanent collection. Everything is transient and flavor-of-the-month. Homeschoolers (especially classical ones) tend to think differently. It's really a shame to hear people mention reluctance to acquire items older that a year or so. How shallow can they be? Maybe Billboard can replace the old Carnegie money and they can be called Billboard Top 40 Libraries. For me, the whole point of the library is to keep the books that *aren't* readily available to purchase on Amazon or at B&N. If you base your collection on what's popular, you don't need any collection development expertise. I fear that this is where we are in some cases.

 

I think it would be helpful to break down different aspects of the library to understand where the problems are and how they could be fixed. There have been suggestions here that fit into several categories: resources (what is in the library collection), service (programs and staff interaction including reader's advisory), and policies (check-out limits, borrowing terms, etc.).

 

Of these, resources is the area where libraries could easily help homeschoolers better. Stock the books homeschoolers want. It's that simple. But how do they know what is wanted? The same way many homeschoolers know. You read the books and the lists. I especially find the combined lists helpful, myself. Libraries, of course, do their own lists (you often find them with summer reading programs). The problem is that in some cases, they have their agenda and you have yours and they do not coincide. (It should be obvious that an activist collection development librarian can do just as much as an activist public services librarian, but this kind of agenda often is more visible in the service area.) In some cases, this becomes antagonistic. Worst case, the library stocks nothing but junk, and homeschoolers avoid the library and badmouth it to all who will listen. One strategy is to find out how to suggest additions to the collection. Might be an online form, might be a little card to fill out. You hope that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Some bigger libraries with lots of branches have centralized purchasing and the individual librarians don't get a lot of input. But there are some real no-brainers that people have mentioned like ensuring you collect an entire series (assuming we're talking a reasonable number, not necessarily every single Hardy Boys title) - that's just failure if you can't manage that. And I think libraries would be happy to add that missing title if you point it out to them (you really shouldn't have to, but....). They apparently thought the series was worth collecting, so you're just reinforcing their decision.

 

Extended borrowing terms or item limits don't help much if the library doesn't have the book you want. But if they do, then absolutely it would be great to have a couple more weeks to get through those weighty tomes. Personally, this isn't too bad for the libraries I use as they allow multiple renewals. It could be easier, though. Other areas where policies could affect homeschoolers a bit more than the typical patrons might be room use. Because homeschoolers don't have a school library, there might be more demands on the public library, and public libraries should consider this.

 

Service is the toughest aspect to address. Mostly, I think, because you are now dealing with staff on an individual basis. First thing that should be recognized is that in most libraries there is a hierarchy. Not everyone working in a library is a librarian. You can go from high school kids who are there as part-time pages, shelving books, maybe manning the circulation desk, to library assistants who are full-timers with no library degree (maybe not even college) who are manning an information desk and answering reference questions and doing reader's advisory (sometimes not knowing their own limitations), to fully qualified librarians who have master's degrees in library science from an accredited university. Some libraries make use of volunteers too. And of course, as with anything, there's experience and knowledge of that particular community that doesn't come with the degree or the job position. And then there are administrators (usually, but not always, veteran librarians). And there are areas of specialization. I wouldn't hesitate to ask to speak to "the children's librarian" (not just whoever is sitting at the children's desk). That's theoretically the person in that library who has the most knowledge of children's resources. It doesn't mean that you will always get a *good* children's librarian or the ideal children's librarian you have always dreamed of, but you'll likely get the best you can get at that library at that time.

 

The problem with this is that along with the traditional library mission going by the wayside, the veteran librarians with all kinds of stockpiles of wisdom accumulated over decades are being replaced with newly-minted graduates of library science programs who often aren't on the same page as their patrons. Library schools aren't teaching the practical basics. In many cases you have children's librarians who don't know children's literature (they themselves only read Young Adult and this is the closest they could get to a teen librarian job). They have some stock responses when patrons ask for suggestions ("How about Fancy Nancy?") and aren't any more help than doing an online search yourself. Sadly, many of them use the exact same shallow searching to answer questions.

 

It's difficult to change the reading habits of these librarians, but hopefully the more conscientious ones would at least recognize that it would be good to familiarize themselves with those reading lists. The worst are the activists who feel it is their mission to indoctrinate your children. They want to seem "cool" to the kids and not like those stuffy old grown-ups. I'm afraid I don't have any remedy for them. My only advice would be to find out as soon as possible if you are dealing with one and get a name so you know whom to avoid. In some cases, they may not even recognize their bias, but in other cases, it is 100% calculated.

 

Programs are again, hit or miss, depending on the individual. I think homeschoolers might have to admit defeat on this one if there is not a critical mass of interested kids in that community. The public schools are (theoretically) covering the literary/intellectual side of reading for kids. So libraries feel they don't need to provide it. They are dealing with the little babies who haven't yet been ripped from their parents' arms and sent off to daycare/pre-school/etc. The computer games entertain the public school kids in the afternoons. And the high schoolers do all their research on Wikipedia....

[kirstenhill]

We have an awesome large metro library system (I think it is one of the top ten or so largest systems).

 

Great things - qualify for an "organizations" library card with a higher checkout limit, great selection including many older classics, wonderful statewide ILL system that finds us many books, relatively fast service on books arriving from other branches or the main library to us.

 

Improvements I could think of - more copies of books that are obviously popular among homeschoolers because they are listed in lit curricula or are just considered classics by homeschoolers. It doesn't help sometimes that the library has a copy of a book if there are 8 people waiting for it ahead of us. If they each keep the one copy the full three weeks, it will be many months before we get it. I would love it if they would have some curricula or teacher training materials that I would love to see but don't necessarily feel the need to own - like Life of Fred and the IEW DVDs.

[Guest Homeschool librarian]

These responses are just what I needed to hear - keep them coming!

 

I'm presenting as a homeschooler to public librarians in our region, so I know what I want (and have been very lucky to have gotten at our local library).

 

What kinds of programs and services would draw you and your kids in? Several people have said age-level book clubs and reader response style groups for older students. Would a daytime "how to use the library's electronic resources" class be something you'd attend? Would you join a homeschool "Show and Tell" group that met during the day?

 

What about volunteering at the library? Do you participate in your library's Friends of the Library group? Do your kids shelve for service hours? Would your older kids be willing to be the contact person for a book club/reader response group?

[idnib]

We like our book club (the other students and the teacher) but the books are dumbed down. Books that they have been given a month to read are often finished in 24 hours. I think part of the problem is that the levels are not granular enough. When you have a level for 6th-8th grade, the 8th graders will be bored. I have made suggestions about more granular levels and/or a "classics" group for kids instead of all contemporary but no changes have been made. A rigorous book club of classics would definitely draw us in.

 

We would go to a "how to use the library's resources" class. It wouldn't even have to be electronic. Just finding out what reference books are available, meeting a friendly reference librarian, an intro to cataloging techniques, etc would be nice. I do teach them those things, but I'd love a class to make sure I'm not missing anything.

 

We like the leave a magazine/take a magazine box for library visitors to exchange with each other.

 

We don't volunteer. I'm too busy and the kids are too young but it's something my DS has talked about for the future. I could see him wanting to be the contact person for a book club.  And we support the friends of the library through food and book sales. 

 

 

[Insertcreativenamehere]

We have an extensive ILL system available at no charge and it is extremely helpful!

 

I would like to see more classic literature in our libraries rather than the typical Junie B. Jones and Wimpy Kid.

 

I would love to see activities and events catering to homeschoolers during the day -- maybe on Friday afternoons.

 

Definitely need a higher checkout limit and a higher limit for books on hold! 

[itsheresomewhere]

These responses are just what I needed to hear - keep them coming!

 

I'm presenting as a homeschooler to public librarians in our region, so I know what I want (and have been very lucky to have gotten at our local library).

 

What kinds of programs and services would draw you and your kids in? Several people have said age-level book clubs and reader response style groups for older students. Would a daytime "how to use the library's electronic resources" class be something you'd attend? Would you join a homeschool "Show and Tell" group that met during the day?

 

What about volunteering at the library? Do you participate in your library's Friends of the Library group? Do your kids shelve for service hours? Would your older kids be willing to be the contact person for a book club/reader response group?

 

Honestly, we would not attend any of those classes.  Our library would not allow teens to shelve books until they are 18 (insurance reasons).  We do not join the Friends of the Library program as they do not have the right things in mind for the library,IMO.  It is all about getting the latest and greatest.  They hardly have any classics and we have had too many library issues ( lack of properly checking in the books, books ripped in the middle when we got them, etc). Our library Friend sales are crap- 5 dollars a very used paperback, etc.

 

 Until the library becomes what the library was, we do not use the library.  

[FairProspects]

These responses are just what I needed to hear - keep them coming!

 

I'm presenting as a homeschooler to public librarians in our region, so I know what I want (and have been very lucky to have gotten at our local library).

 

What kinds of programs and services would draw you and your kids in? Several people have said age-level book clubs and reader response style groups for older students. Would a daytime "how to use the library's electronic resources" class be something you'd attend? Would you join a homeschool "Show and Tell" group that met during the day?

 

What about volunteering at the library? Do you participate in your library's Friends of the Library group? Do your kids shelve for service hours? Would your older kids be willing to be the contact person for a book club/reader response group?

 

We would not attend a Show and Tell group. An electronic resources class would be useful and we would probably attend that as long as they really got into how to do research using the library and it was not just how to use the electronic card catalog or request ILL.

[Momto4inSoCal]

We are in a really big county and our library system allows us to find a book at any library in the county and have it shipped to our local branch. I love this since it gives us much bigger selection. I also like that we have access to audiobooks online. I would love that selection to be bigger. There are quite a few popular homeschool help books that we don't have stocked. I think actually TWTM wasn't at our libary (although I'm glad since that pushed me to buy it).

[Critterfixer]

This seems kind of silly, I guess, but I sure would like adult sized chairs and tables in the children's area. I'd love to be able to go to the library and actually get a little studying done. But all the tables for the adults are over in the adult side of the library, so I can't sit and write or work on anything while the boys browse.

[Farrar]

The things I appreciate most about my library system are that a few of the libraries have good retrospective collections, that the system as a whole buys a few of a lot of titles (not a lot of a few titles like in the system north of us), and that the attitude of the librarians is to encourage more use of the collection in part by not being sticklers about fines. In fact, there are no fines on juvenile materials. I think this is pretty key - what does a library want more? More patrons or more bitterness toward the library?

 

The first two on that list are especially useful for homeschoolers. I need a broad children's nonfiction collection in order to homeschool without spending a boatload. I also really appreciate that homeschoolers can get educator cards, which allow us to have more books out (though the limit is already very high) and more forgiveness on lost books.

 

There are so few homeschoolers in my jurisdiction that I get why this isn't the case, but I do wish we had more homeschool books - books about homeschooling, and especially books that are typically used as part of a curriculum, such as the FIAR books or books listed for SOTW. I know that many libraries won't buy textbooks, but some books, like, say, The Life of Fred books or the Joy Hakim series would seem to be books that get temporary use or double as books kids can just read or reference. I have found that my library is very uneven about this. They have the Hakim books, for example, but they've refused to get other books that they say are "textbooks." It's a little frustrating.

[Jackie]

This seems kind of silly, I guess, but I sure would like adult sized chairs and tables in the children's area. I'd love to be able to go to the library and actually get a little studying done. But all the tables for the adults are over in the adult side of the library, so I can't sit and write or work on anything while the boys browse.

Oh my, yes! I forgot about this. There are a few adult-sized chairs in our children's room, so ours isn't quite as bad. But there's a nice playroom for littles that has about 15 tiny kid chairs and 3 adult chairs. The kids are almost never in a chair in that room because they are up and playing, but there's always plenty of uncomfortable adults!

[idnib]

The things I appreciate most about my library system are that a few of the libraries have good retrospective collections, that the system as a whole buys a few of a lot of titles (not a lot of a few titles like in the system north of us), and that the attitude of the librarians is to encourage more use of the collection in part by not being sticklers about fines. In fact, there are no fines on juvenile materials. I think this is pretty key - what does a library want more? More patrons or more bitterness toward the library?

 

Yes, one of our library systems has no fines on juvenile materials either. One time I returned a book late explaining it had made its way through 4 households by being passed from friend to friend, and the librarian told me that's what they're hoping for when they don't charge.

[Jackie]

These responses are just what I needed to hear - keep them coming!

 

I'm presenting as a homeschooler to public librarians in our region, so I know what I want (and have been very lucky to have gotten at our local library).

 

What kinds of programs and services would draw you and your kids in? Several people have said age-level book clubs and reader response style groups for older students. Would a daytime "how to use the library's electronic resources" class be something you'd attend? Would you join a homeschool "Show and Tell" group that met during the day?

 

What about volunteering at the library? Do you participate in your library's Friends of the Library group? Do your kids shelve for service hours? Would your older kids be willing to be the contact person for a book club/reader response group?

I would just like to see regular programming offered. The stuff my library offers for any kid age 5+ tends to be one-time programs. There's no book club, which I think my daughter would love. I vaguely remember the occasional school day in elementary school when we would have a library day and we be taught something about how the library worked - how I locate materials, use the card catalog, etc. I would happily sign her p for something like that.

 

Some of the programs offered have an age limit but are also ability-specific. For example, there's a read to a dog program periodically, aimed at beginning readers, that is for ages 5-8 only. My daughter would have loved practicing her reading at the program when she was 3, but she wasn't allowed due to age. She fits the age now, but not the ability level. Pick one - either base the program on age *or* ability.

 

We have a million commitments, so I'm not interested in yet another volunteer gig. I would be willing to volunteer for a direct benefit. For example, I would lead the book club one month of the year in order to have a book club.

[WTMCassandra]

I don't have time to read the other replies, but here's my knee-jerk response:

 

Less of a internet cafe vibe and more of a study/quiet vibe. At least have a quiet room (a quiet 'area' still has lots of noise bleed in). Maybe a glass wall room for safety's sake.

 

Don't get rid of more and more and more books to install more and more and more computers! Keep a balance.

 

Don't get rid of classic children's literature. Limit graphic novels and teen faddish literature. Again, a balance. Yes, circulation numbers are important, but Newbery winners and the typically agreed upon children's classics should have a place on the shelf so new generations can discover them.

[mamajag]

More classic children's literature you'd find on homeschool history reading lists. When I'm looking for these types of books and resign myself to once again buying them, don't see that as a chance to beg a donation when my child is done with them. I have more following them. I'll need the books.

 

 

Please have more knowledge of children's literature than Dork Diaries or the various fairy books. My kids like meatier titles, and they are disappointed when you are out of suggestions in 2 visits.

 

Adult chairs in the children's section. I'm not allowed to leave the children's area while my kids are there, and I'd love a cozy place to sit and let them explore what you do have. Unfortunately, I also have a physical disability that makes standing for long periods difficult, so our visits are too brief.

 

 

[meena]

@Homeschool librarian We would only attend an electronic resources class if it went beyond basics. My kids have been using the online catalog for years, so a class would need to be beyond the intro stage to be worth our while. We probably would not attend a Show and Tell program. At this stage in my children's schooling, programs that are during the day displace something in our academic schedule so they need to feel educationally "worthy", if that makes sense?

 

I have not volunteered at our city's library, but my younger sister lived with us and volunteered there for college service hours. She was treated poorly, there was a lot of departmental drama, and the volunteer coordinator was a "misery loves company" type of person. Not a positive experience for my sister who is a diligent worker, which scared me off from volunteering and even going there. I definitely wouldn't have my kids shelving there and subjecting them to the cattiness my sister described.

Instead I now usually go to a neighboring city's library (part of our county cooperative so we have the same library privileges there) where the facilities aren't as nice but the staff is friendly and the atmosphere is warm.

 

The Friends at our city's library usually caters its activities to people with money or age so not much for us there. I wish our Friends operated like one several hours north of us that has a gigantic book sale twice a year. They seem very community-oriented. If I'm going to invest time and money into an organization, I like to feel like it's serving the entire community not the select elite who buy in.

 

My kids might be interested in assisting with book clubs but would need a strong leader/mentor to guide them. It would be better to have an adult volunteer (perhaps a college student) lead the group and have a teen volunteer committee be the hands and feet.

[athomeontheprairie]

I'm really short on time, but I wanted to chime in to this conversation. I'm a homeschooler AND I run the local library.

You have great ideas listed up thread. If you'd like to know what we've done here that has been a great success I wouldn't mind sharing, but I *think* I read something here I want to acknowledge...

Buying books that only homeschoolers would want (at least I think I saw this in the thread? Now I can't find it!)

There are exactly two libraries in my system (of 54) that cater to homeschoolers. We look at lists from major curriculum providers and buy those books (books, not curriculum). We make sure that between the two of us we carry many parent (homeschooling) resources.

Our system has a fantastic Patron ILL program. These homeschooling books are ALWAYS checked out. There may not be enough people in my town to justify the purchase, but across 54. You bet there is!

If you don't mind spending money on people who live outside your tax area, and have a way to easily get them these books, even if you are in a small town, they will check out (My town is under 400 and the other library is of a similar size)

 

[lots of little ducklings]

 

I would also like to be able to put stuff on hold-- for when I need it-- I think I can do this if I work it, but it would be so much easier to put it on hold in May-- but need it in November and in November I automatically become #1.

 

 

:iagree:

[Sarah0000]

I like the story times and other events, but the age range needs to be enforced, at least for group activities. For instance, older kids should not be allowed to participate in the preschool story time.

[ScoutTN]

Things I like about my library:

Our branch is only 1.2 miles from my house. 

Good collections, though somewhat weaker on classics, historical fiction and audiobooks than I might like.

Good ILL

Online holds and notification of books due or ready to be picked up.

Educator card with longer checkout limit, more holds etc.

Some good programming. Fabulous children's librarian for the preschoolers!

The building is light and comfortable and has adult chairs in the children's section!

Very responsive to requests to purchase books. 

High checkout limit, 100!

Lots of branches and downtown is a spectacular building.

Playground with picnic tables and some shade.

Twice a year fine forgiveness - summer reading and with donations to local food pantry in the fall.

A large meeting room and study rooms available to reserve.

Friendly staff.

Clean bathrooms!

 

Things I don't like:

Loud!

Unrestricted internet access on computers in the children's section.

Too many computers in the children's section.

Few current homeschooling books - how to and why should we type books. The ones they have are all 10+ years old.

Branches  are not open on Fridays, only downtown.

Parking at the downtown main library is not free. 

 

 

 

My kids are already good at how to use the library basics, so a class would need to go well beyond this to be worthwhile.

We don't volunteer because you have to be 18, so my kids can't participate.

We don't join the friends of the library because the ALA agenda is very present and we have strong theological and moral objections to many of their priorities. We love the library, but give our limited funds to organizations we can support wholeheartedly in every aspect of their work.

 

 

 

 

 

[scoutingmom]

I agree with adult chairs in childrens area. I have one of my kids move one from the adult section as I use a cane and must sit if we are there for nore than picking up holds. Our library was just moved to a new building and the old one had a couple of adult chairs in the childrens area and the new one doesn't.

 

I don't know how this could effectively be done.... but when books are pulled to be sold.... I wish there was a way that I could know. I realize though that they are basically ust pulled from the shelf, scanned through the computer, stamped, and put on the sale shelf. But seriously.... if I'm the person who took it out the last 5 times.... well maybe I'd like to buy it?? If it is the local branch then maybe I'd see it for sale, but not at some other branch. I also remember planning to use a library book for school... it was in the system in September, but when I went to put a hold in October it was gone from the system. Cry....

 

Our library system only does ILL pickups and dropoffs at the downtown branch so I rarely do them.

 

I wish our library had an educators card with longer times or priority holds or lower fines or something....

 

Programs we probably wouldn't do.

 

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[oneangelwaiting]

Our library has a fantastic selection, easy reservation and inter -library loan system, a wide variety of ebooks available. I love our library!

 

The one thing we don't have is drive through book pick ups. It probably sounds terribly lazy but there have been many times I'd have used the library but the thought of getting 5 small children out of the car, wrangled through the parking lot, through the library, etc. was just too much. This is a service I'd even be willing to pay a small fee for.

 

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[athomeontheprairie]

I don't know how this could effectively be done.... but when books are pulled to be sold.... I wish there was a way that I could know. I realize though that they are basically ust pulled from the shelf, scanned through the computer, stamped, and put on the sale shelf. But seriously.... if I'm the person who took it out the last 5 times.... well maybe I'd like to buy it?? If it is the local branch then maybe I'd see it for sale, but not at some other branch. I also remember planning to use a library book for school... it was in the system in September, but when I went to put a hold in October it was gone from the system. Cry....

Tapatalk

Here, you can ask for a book. (I'm a librarian) if someone wants a book when we weed it I just make a note on the computer attached to the items record. Then when I we'd that note pops up and a quick phone call later that book has a new home.

 

Have you ASKED if your library could do something like this for you? Maybe they would

[tm919]

I dislike the conversion of the children's collection to electronic. I have a kindle, but my daughter reads a lot and I don't want her staring at a screen that long. They got the entire set of companion books to magic tree house, for instance, but as electronic. 

 

I agree with others that I wish the library would buy the usual suspects as far as classic literature, even if they have low circulation -- but I think they should then promote them. They do a neat thing for really little kids where they package together things like: books about trains, train building set, train puzzle and you check out the whole bag at once. I could imagine them doing something like that for slightly older kids to promote some of the classics.

 

The things I love are the reduced prices to museums, and the librarians themselves -- who are AWESOME!

 

[lllll]

nm

[SamanthaCarter]

Please don't get me started. This is an invitation to go on a tirade about all of the stupid computers in the children's section loaded with "educational" games. Worst thing public libraries could have done for literacy. I'll stop. Have to stop. Deep breath. 

 

I would like lots of little nooks to read and study. Lots of classics and good children's literature with attractive covers (because yes, kids judge a book by it's cover. So do adults!) Go back to puzzles and some toys for little ones. One of our libraries has a bunch of the Lakeshore letter and number toys in bins for the preschool age set. Very nice.

[CelticHaiku]

Here are a few positive things at libraries I have used:

~50% Fiction 50% Non Fiction

~Monthly display books circulation (Every month the library has a theme such as music, trains, inventors, Autumn, or pets. The books highlighted on display are a mix of classics, award winners, and new books. It is a great way to get exposure to different titles. You could check out the books on display and they would just fill the empty space with another book on that months topic)

~One library had child sized table's and chairs as well as adult sized booths. It was common to see homeschool family spread out at a booth to work and read (the booth is easer for a young child to kneel on than an adult chair)

~A fantastic children's librarian 

~Wooden puzzles (not book related but my daughter loved sitting at a table and doing the puzzles and it allowed me to take a closer look at books without her randomly pulling things off the shelves.

~A family bathroom in the children's section

~Board books section not directly alongside regular books. The board books had a separate display away from the other books but still in the children's section. 

 

 

 

[happypamama]

1. Willingness to help people, especially homeschoolers, with ILL, locating books, whatever. Our librarians are sooooo lovely! They always are happy for me to check out a gazillion books. And they're so gracious if they have to hold onto my holds for a little while extra, until I'm able to pick them up, which they know I do once a week on the same day. Attitude goes so far!

 

2. Easy ILL/branch connection. E-books, preferably in Kindle form.

 

3. Play area for littles, and time that the library is open in the morning. The library closest to where my children take their homeschool martial arts class isn't open the mornings of the class. That would be SO useful to me, because I could order books to be sent there, drop my big kids off, and take my toddler to the library for an hour. It's a very small town; everyone knows everyone, so I wish they'd coordinate the library better.

 

4. Longer hold period or more renewals for educators, possibly no fines for educators. Ours has a three week loan, but they also have a ton of renewals. This helps me a lot! But I'd also be in favor of a two month or semester lending period for educators, like maybe up to four books or something. I'm thinking of project books or something, where I might want them for a while as we cover a time period. Also, priority requesting for educators. If I need a book for school, I find it annoying to get it a few weeks in advance, only to have some one else request it as my three weeks are up, just as I've started using it. I'd even pay a yearly fee ($25ish) for those privileges. I can dream, right?!

 

5. More copies of books from common homeschool curricula, so that we aren't sharing the same ones. Frustrating to find that someone else is doing X program the same year you are so that you're both having trouble getting the books.

 

6. Game library! Yes!

 

7. Exterior return box for DVDs and CDs, not just books.

[Orthodox6]

What do you need and/or want the most from your public library?

 

What do you find most useful at your library now?

 

What do you wish your library provided?

 

Hi! I'm a homeschooler (12th grader, 8th grader going to public school this fall (sniff), 7th grader) and I'm also a librarian for our state library program. I'm presenting an in-service to our librarians on Homeschooling and want to hear from YOU about what you'd like your libraries to do to serve the homeschooling public.

 

Thank you in advance!

 

Kate :)

Up-to-date (because this changes rapidly) information about PSAT, SAT, professional certification exams (civil service, EMT, firefighter, etc.) and similar. Twice-per-year (fall and spring semesters) speaker panels about post-high school options.

[Guest Homeschool librarian]

Thank you so much to everyone who has replied. This information will be very useful for the presentation I'm putting together. if you live in Middle Tennessee, the librarians will end up hearing your opinions!   :laugh:

[happypamama]

Oh, one other thing that would be hugely useful to families: checkout area in the children's area! Our favorite branch is tiny; I can check out at the front desk and still hear/attend to my children in the children's area. Another branch has a bigger children's room, but I can check the books out at the desk there, no need to check out at the main desk. Those branches are fine.

 

But the big library with the biggest selection (and the strictest fines) has the children's room in the lower level. I wouldn't mind that, except that it has no checkout desk there. So we have to take everything to the main level, where the checkout desk is near the quiet study area and the automatic doors. It's very child un-friendly.

[rwilk]

We have 2 libraries that we regularly use. Neither is perfect, but it has really helped me see what I like/need in a library. 

 

1) A good children's librarian. Library A has a terrible children's librarian. She doesn't know very much about children's literature, can't recommend "read-alikes," and has repeatedly basically scolded my daughter that certain books "aren't for [her]" because of her age. I basically always go to that library without my daughter so I can look for books for her without getting bothered by the librarian.  Library B has a lovely children's librarian who is not only kind and patient, but knows so much about children's literature. She has repeatedly helped us find fantastic resources, and will help us find things even outside of the library if they don't have the right materials. She has been amazing at helping us find books at her level intellectually without being too intense for her emotionally. She also has the BEST story times, with kids ages 0-7 or 8 attending (at least in the summer). She does a lovely job of picking a theme, and having tons of related books available for check out on display.

 

2) Easy holds, with plenty of pick up time. And high check out limit.  Library A is near our house and has easy to use hold/pick up system. We can check out 80 books at a time.  Library B is further away and the holds are all behind a desk (so there can be a big line).

 

3) Reading history. Both of our libraries have this.  I LOVE getting to see what all we've read each month/year.  

 

4) We'd love to have book bags with groups of themed titles available for check out, especially for the younger kids. 

 

5) We'd also love quiet spaces/hours where it is ok to read softly but no yelling, jumping, running, loud talking or the like.

 

 

[Kalmia]

Books, books, books and more books. Nice unabridged, illustrated copies of the classics. Lots of non fiction history. Books on homeschooling. Books on nature study. Books on teaching art to children. Books on teaching writing to children (even unbound books like The Writer's Jungle by Julie Bogart, which is loose leaf). Literacy programming to help struggling readers of all ages. Ongoing literary and young novelist clubs for the bookworms who don't fit in anywhere else. Flexibility in finding good times for programming (survey your frequent borrowers, do they think a book club would be better on Tuesday at 4 or Saturday at 10, for example. Don't give up on a good program if you haven't tried it in a number of time slots). Special presenters on topics linked to books (esp. science presenters). Give homeschool parents larger check out limits (my friends often have out 90 books at a time!)

 

Feature some books turned cover out (especially those that are excellent but overlooked) like they do at independent bookstores. Pull quotes from good children's books and print them on small squares of paper and stick them in unexpected spots to encourage people to look at something new (or old!). Other fun little ways to point people in the direction of something different.