Selections

The newsletter of the Sarasota County Library System

~ May 2008 ~ Volume 3, Issue 2

Read Selections online each month or sign up here to have it delivered to you by email.

In this Issue:

• Events
• Holiday Closings
• Volunteer News
• Featured Internet Sites
• Local Library News
• Featured Databases
• Community Connection
• Featured Stories
• Reference Question
  of the Month
• Staff Picks
• National Library News
• Your Feedback

This month's issue is brought to you
by the Sarasota County Youth Librarians to highlight this summer's Florida Library Youth Program.

Volunteer News: Attention all teenagers! Do you need community service hours for the Bright Futures Scholarship or to put on a college application? Some local high schools will award up to one credit toward graduation for volunteering. (Check with your district or private school.) The Sarasota County Library System is an excellent place to earn these hours while doing a wonderful service for your community. Each of the 8 libraries (Elsie Quirk Library, Fruitville Library, Frances T. Bourne Jacaranda Library, Gulf Gate Library, North Port Library, North Sarasota Library, Selby Library and Venice Library) has teen volunteer programs. Job duties include shelving, craft preparation, assisting with children’s programs, typing and creating flyers. For more information about volunteering at one of the libraries in the Sarasota County Library System, contact the Call Center at 941-861-5000 or visit us on the web at http://www.sclibs.net.

Events:

Children, Tweens and Teens:
Plan for an Exciting Summer at Your Library!

Programs for Children Pack your bags and get ready to travel around the Whole Wide World! Join fellow travelers and explore the geography and culture of other continents through stories, crafts, music and more. Enjoy guest speakers and special performers such as John Storms' World of Reptiles, Battersby Duo, Land of You, Earthlings Washboard Band and storytellers Gladys Varga and Kwabena Dinizulu. Check the library calendar for information about summer programs at your local library.	Programs for Tweens and Teens What's new? What's popular? What's the next BIG thing? Computer, IM, Wii, DDR, blogs, text messaging, MySpace....explore it all this summer at programs just for tweens and teens. Check out the library calendar for programs at your community library and get in on the action. Blogging, web design, Internet safety, babysitting, sword fighting, craft programs, Dance Dance Revolution, Wii games, reading incentives and more!
Summer Reading Programs for Both Children and Teens Summer is a time to enjoy reading. It's a time when childen and teens can catch up on all of their favorite books and authors. Younger children who participate in the summer reading programs at the libraries are provided reading logs so they can track the number of days they spend reading and also record the titles of the books they read and listen to. Experts agree that those who read during the summer while school is not in session gain valuable reading skills. According to studies, those who do not stay mentally active during the summer risk losing what they learned during the previous school year. The goals of summer reading programs are to create lifelong readers and library users. The value of the public library and the services that are offered are emphasized. It is an opportunity for children to explore the wealth of information and fun that is waiting in a friendly, encouraging atmosphere. This year's summer program will help to expand the knowledge of the world while enhancing literacy skills. The State of Florida provides planning tools and resources for the Florida Library Youth Program through a federal grant. Statewide workshops, graphics, program ideas and reading incentives are also provided. So, if you are traveling around the State of Florida this summer, you will find many others who are also traveling around the "Whole Wide World" or enjoying "TechnoPop" at their libraries.

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Featured Internet Sites:

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Websites for Teens http://www.secondlife.com Second Life® is a 3-D virtual world created by its Residents. Since opening to the public in 2003, it has grown explosively and today is inhabited by millions of Residents from around the globe.   http://pandora.com Type in an artist you like, and Pandora creates a “radio station” just for you which plays songs by similar artists. http://teenink.com  "Teen Ink,” a national teen magazine, book series and website is devoted entirely to teenage writing and art. Distributed through classrooms by English teachers, creative writing teachers, journalism teachers and art teachers around the country, Teen Ink magazine offers some of the most thoughtful and creative work generated by teens and has the largest distribution of any publication of its kind. It has no staff writers or artists and depends completely on submissions from teenagers nationwide for content. On Teen Ink, teenagers have the opportunity to publish their creative work and opinions on the issues that affect their lives--everything from love and family to teen smoking and community service. http://www.runescape.com  RuneScape is a massively multiplayer on-line role-playing game (MMORPG), it is also the name of a virtual world with monsters to kill, quests to complete and treasure to win. RuneScape is more than just a game: it is an evolving world of remarkable depth and flexibility. Players control a character and train them to improve and become more powerful or simply to become more skilled. A player may even decide not to improve at all and simply trade goods in one of RuneScape's many markets. What a player does in RuneScape is entirely their decision: nothing is predetermined. http://sclibs.net/Teens /PlanetTeen.aspx Check out a list of sites related to education, life issues and more at the Sarasota County Libraries website link, Planet Teen!

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Websites for Adults (or All Ages) http://lii.org Librarians' Internet Index provides "websites you can trust." This site has more than 20,000 entries verified by librarians, organized into 14 main topics and nearly 300 related topics.   http://weather.com Find your local weather forecast or prepare for travel by checking the forecast at your destination. Also, check traffic reports. This site is affiliated with The Weather Channel.

Local Library News:

Campers, Get Ready to Read! This summer all children attending camps at Sarasota County Parks will participate in summer reading incentive programs offered by Sarasota County Libraries. Libraries will create mini collections of age-appropriate books to be kept at parks holding summer camps. All campers will be encouraged to spend some of their time reading and will be able to work as a team to “Read Around the World” by recording all the books read. Campers will also be invited to track minutes read and come to the libraries to receive prizes and sign up for library cards.

Sea Turtle Adoption Program Wins the Florida Library Association Special Projects Award Congratulations to the Friends of Elsie Quirk Library for winning the Florida Library Association's Special Projects Award for the Sea Turtle Adoption Program. The award was presented at the Friends, Foundations and Board Members luncheon during the 2008 Florida Library Association Conference. The Sea Turtle Adoption Program was developed by youth services staff to encourage children to read and increase participation in completing their summer reading goals. By participating in the program, children felt they could make a difference in the world. Each week when they brought in their reading log, children were given two stickers to place on our "sea turtle" board. When the board was filled, the Friends adopted a sea turtle from Mote Marine Laboratories.  The program was such a success that the Friends decided to adopt an adult loggerhead sea turtle as well as a loggerhead hatchling in the library's name. A contest was held to name the sea turtles. The adult turtle was named "Myrtle" and the hatchling was named "Squirt." Photographs of the sea turtle mother, the hatchling and the adoption certificates are now hanging on the wall in the youth program room to remind the young readers of the turtles they adopted. This summer, through the support of the Friends of the Library, the summer readers will have a goal of adopting a manatee.

North Port Library Offers a Gift Spiderwick, tai chi, crochet, volleyball, music, nature walks, scrapbooking and Donald Duck’s nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie…. The North Port Library will be rolling them all out for children who attend the Silver Lining Summer Camp at the library. The North Port staff decided to hold a summer camp because so many of the residents of the North Port community had a hard year last year. A slowed economy and construction industry have presented a real challenge to North Port, and the library wants to be part of the solution. Each child in North Port between the ages of 7 and 12 can attend the camp for one week for a $10 registration fee to help cover the cost of snacks. The camp will serve 175 children and will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday for seven one-week sessions. Registration starts May 1. The Summer Reading Program, “Spiderwick Summer,” which is meant to encourage all children to keep reading over the summer will still take place at the library and end with a “Spiderwick Party.” A backyard campout and a book fair have been planned, also. So how will the library manage to pull off these projects during the summer? Everyone is pitching in. The library’s circulation and reference staff and the library manager have joined with the youth staff to make it possible. The Friends of the North Port Library are supporting the effort with hard-earned funds. The library manager, Carolann Palm-Abramoff says, “We want to respond to the needs of our community. This camp is our gift to our patrons.”   More information on the Silver Lining Summer Camp and Spiderwick Summer is available by calling the North Port Library Youth Services Department at 941-861-1312.

Selby Library Summer Programs Selby Library Youth Department is offering over 160 free programs from May 30 to Aug. 9. This summer’s “Think Global!” theme gives kids from 0 to 18 an opportunity to participate in a variety of programs. Children will tour the world of seven continents, investigate cultural differences through books and programs, engage in enlightening environmental exercises and network with the global community via the information superhighway. This year Selby is offering three camp-style programs. The Teen Drama Camp to be held July 30 through Aug. 6 from 2 to 5 p.m. will allow teens to explore theater improvisation, dramatic poetry interpretation and musical theater. During the Story Writing Camp offered from July 14 through July 17 from 1 to 5 p.m. for ages 8 to 11 years, children will be introduced to the art of story writing. They will learn how to create characters, plots and plan a story through fun activities. For children ages 7 to 9 years and having tremendous difficulty with reading, two Reading Improvement Camps are offered. The first runs from June 16 through June 20 and the second from July 21 through July 25. Both are from 2 to 4 p.m.  Beside camp activities there are story times for all ages, workshops, art activities and many presenters. Avid readers will want to sign up for the “Globe Trotters” Reading Rewards Program. Readers will have an opportunity to earn great prizes, plus watch the Youth Staff engage in daring, exciting, ridiculous and heroic feats.  For a complete listing of Selby’s Youth programs please visit http://sclibs.net/Libraries/Selbyyouthservices.aspx.

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Featured Databases:

Learn More About Four of the Library's Online Databases

Click the database logos below
for more information.

Big League Reader 2008 Summertime is here again. Do you know what that means? Children can catch a Sarasota Reds’ baseball game, as well as read their favorite books at the local library. Since summer reading coincides with the Sarasota Reds’ baseball season, the Reds and Libraries have partnered for the Big League Reader program. This program encourages reading by offering children ages 6 to 17 a free ticket to a baseball game for reading four books. This partnership is a natural. The library offers special programs and prizes to attract children to reading during the summer to prevent summer learning loss. Students who don’t read tend to score lower on standardized tests at the end of the summer than they do at the beginning. Reading as few as 4 to 5 books during the summer can prevent learning loss. The Big League Reader program is yet another incentive to keep children reading. Here’s how it works: • Pick up reading cards at any Sarasota County Library. • Read four books and fill out the reading card. • Have the reading card signed by a librarian. • Present the reading card at Ed Smith Stadium to exchange for a free ticket! To top it all off, children ages 12 and under are eligible to compete for a 2009 Sarasota Reds General Admission Season Ticket by reading 100 age-appropriate books. Young adults ages 13 to 17 are eligible to compete for the season ticket by reading 24 age-appropriate books. The Big League Reader program runs through August 31, 2008. For more information, talk to the youth librarian at your library or visit KidZone’s Big League Reader page (www.sclibs.net/Kids/big_league_reader.aspx) for more information.

Forty Carrots Partners in Play   Forty Carrots Family Center in Sarasota has been partnering with the Sarasota County Library System since 1998, providing free parenting outreach classes for families with children from infancy to 5 years old. Jacaranda Library was the first library to be selected for the On-Wheels program, and since then all 8 libraries hold these parenting education classes throughout the week, Monday through Friday. Classes are held from September through May. They last an hour and class size is limited, depending on the size of the room where the program is held. Two specially trained parenting educators facilitate the classes that feature playtime, circle time and a chance for parents to find answers to parenting questions and spend time with other families. Visit Forty Carrots online at http://www.fortycarrots.org.

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Featured Stories:

First Graders, First Library Cards This year over 3,000 first graders in Sarasota County Public Schools will be invited to sign up for their first library cards if they do not have one already. First graders will take the applications home to have them filled out and will return them to the schools. Library staff will make all the cards and return them to the schools for distribution in the classrooms. This program is coordinated by the Youth Librarians of Sarasota County in partnership with Sharon M. Richert, Ph.D., the Sarasota County School Board Supervisor of Media and Instructional Materials. It will encourage first graders to participate in summer reading programs and become avid library users throughout their elementary careers and beyond.

Knit Wits Knitting Group February marked the first anniversary of the Knit Wits knitting class at the Fruitville Library. Youth and young adult librarian, Jennifer Hitchcock, thought this class would be a way for teens to meet, get to know each other and have fun while learning a craft that has been passed down for generations. The class started out meeting once a month, but due to popular demand has evolved into a weekly program. Both beginners who know little or nothing about knitting and experts who would like to share their knowledge can find something appealing in this hands-on, casual environment. Teens can bring in their own projects and materials or use the materials provided. Other experienced knitters and teen volunteers are usually on hand to answer questions and help everyone along the way. The less structured group meets in the Young Adult section of the Fruitville Library from 4 to 5 p.m. on the first three Thursdays of the month. A longer, more formal class is offered in Fruitville’s Meeting Room from 4 to 6 p.m. on the last Thursday of the month. There is always room for more people, so please come and check it out! Also, if you know how to knit and would like to volunteer to help, please contact Jennifer at 941-861-2525 or jhitchco@scgov.net. The Knit Wits look forward to seeing you there!

Reference Question of the Month:

When was ice cream invented? The earliest known form of this popular cold treat was made by the ancient Chinese, who combined fruit juice and milk with snow. The Roman emperor Nero sent his servants to the mountains to get ice for his brand of the frozen dessert. Much later, in 1560 the Italians experimented with a frozen milk and honey concoction. King Charles I of England tried “cream ice” in 1640 and liked it so much that he reportedly paid his chef to keep the dessert a secret only for his royal court. After Charles I was executed the chef’s ice cream recipe gradually spread among the population.  By the late 18th century, ice cream was popular in the American colonies. It was a favorite dessert of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. First Lady Dolley Madison served ice cream at the White House in 1812. The difficult production of ice cream was made easier in 1846, when New England housewife Nancy Johnson invented a crank for stirring it in a pot. Jacob Fussell is credited with starting the first ice cream factory in Baltimore in 1851. By the beginning of the 20th century, refrigeration had improved so that ice cream could be more easily stored and even shipped. The ice cream cone supposedly came along by accident at the World’s Fair in St. Louis in 1904 when teenage ice cream vendor Arnold Fornachou ran out of paper dishes. None of the other vendors had extra containers he could use. However, an Arab vendor of zalabias, thin sugar-coated waffles, gave him an idea. Why not fold them in the shape of a cone and plop the ice cream on top? It worked, and the ice cream cone was born out of necessity. Today Americans remain the biggest ice cream eaters in the world. The average American consumes about 23 quarts per year, and the U.S. ice cream business is an $11 billion dollar industry. The most popular flavor is vanilla, followed by chocolate. Finally, a piece of pure trivia, it takes about 50 licks to demolish a single scoop! Books used in answering this question: Everyday Things: An A-Z Guide by Christina Wilsdon   Ice Cream by Jules Older The Kid Who Invented the Popsicle and Other Surprising Stories About Inventions by Don L. Wulffson

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Staff Picks:

This month the staff of the
Selby Library
Youth Services Department 
shares their reading picks.