Another great rumpus, with lots of new families and, like last week, one structure that was added to, tweaked, and played with throughout the evening.
Continue reading Wild Rumpus East Week Five
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Wild Rumpus East Week Four
Over 150 people came out to the rumpus this week, with lots of new families stopping by for some great play. Our parent/child survey questions this week centered around learning something new, and the majority of kids who responded said they learned something new, with the majority of grownups agreeing that they watched their kid learn something. I heard one mom telling her daughter, “That’s AnjiPlay baby!”
Wild Rumpus East Week 3
Finally we had the perfect weather for a wild rumpus! It was a hot afternoon, and lots of families who came to the park for the splash pad found the rumpus and played with us too.
Wild Rumpus East Week Two
This week started off cold and dreary, but the sun came out and we powered through! With no (ok, only a little) threat of rain, we branched out our play area toward the playground, and had double the crowd from week one!
Wild Rumpus East Week One
Let the wild rumpus start: an anjiplay experience
Last summer my colleague/friend/co-conspirator/taco buddy Carissa started a new program at her neighborhood library (ok, not actually in the library, in a park near the library): A Wild Rumpus, based on AnjiPlay. The program was a hit (read more about it here), and this summer we are expanding the Wild Rumpus to a second park on the east side of town. I’ll be leading this program, and I’m really excited to see what happens in a completely different neighborhood as we strive to reach new kids and families.
Follow along here for the east side weekly report, and make sure to check out Carissa’s west side reports. Let the wild rumpus start!
Storytime for Social Justice
This year, Storytime Underground is issuing a new blog challenge: Storytime for Social Justice. We are asking youth services librarians to use their storytime power for social justice, to take a long hard look at their programs, displays, and services, to make sure we are fighting every day for empathy, inclusiveness, and social justice, and be a #StorytimeJusticeWarrior.
Here is what I promise to do as a Storytime Justice Warrior:
Use at least one book featuring and/or written by people of color (or other marginalized, underrepresented characters) in every single program. I’ve actually been trying to do this for a few months, and it isn’t always easy. Sometimes I don’t make it, but then I push even harder to make sure my next program uses only books with/by POC. Also, representation is way more important than some cutesy theme, so get over that excuse. But also, check out Everyday Diversity which includes themes with book suggestions.- Book talk and recommend more diverse books with POC and #ownvoices books. This means reading more diverse books too. If you aren’t reading diversely, then go read this post.
- Make my storytimes and other programs more inclusive by using language to offer alternate activities (“If you are able, lift your baby in the air. This can also be a snuggle song!” and “If you want to, let’s jump for this verse.”), asking parents to correct me if I mispronounce their child’s name, being intentional about the songs and activities I choose (we no longer clap our crazies out in my library!), and always listening to people telling me new ways to be inclusive.
- Seek out new favorite standby songs and flannel boards that include diversity. Got a suggestion? Please share!
- Continue to feature displays highlighting diverse books.
- Follow more blogs about diverse books and by librarians and authors of color, and follow more librarians and authors of color on Twitter.
This is just a start! As I continue to learn and challenge myself, I will continue to add to this list.
