Crackers and Cheez-Whiz Construction

by Bethany Dietrich

This program was an idea I totally stole from TikTok! And it turned out even better than I expected! 

 

Y’all know that beginning-of-the-year build that middle school teachers do? With gumdrops (or mini marshmallows) and toothpicks?

 

 

Think that concept… but instead of toothpicks, you use different kinds of crackers and pretzels. And instead of gumdrops, you use cans of Cheez-Whiz!

 

 

We started off easy with the building challenges. I had small rubber-y/plastic animals, and they had to make a doghouse for whatever animal I gave them. 

 

We progressively got harder: challenge number 2 was a lighthouse. Then, a bridge that a LEGO car can go across

 

 

The last two challenges, I had them work in teams, and I passed out famous structures that they had to recreate. These were Hard (challenge 4) and Harder (challenge  5). They actually did super well! 

 

And for those so inclined, I included an Encyclopedia Britannica blurb about each structure, which ranged from well-known ones like the Leaning Tower of Pisa and Big Ben to ones that aren’t as well-known in general American purview like Wat Phra Si Sanphet in Thailand and Sucevița Monastery in Romania. 

 

 

Have my program plan! 

 

Have slides of the famous structures! 

 

Have you had any programming wins from watching TikTok? Share them in the comments below!

DIY Compost Planters: By Teens for Anyone

When a former library board member and community activist (I’ll call her C for anonymity’s sake) approached me with an idea for a teen-led program related to climate change, I jumped at the opportunity to work with her. I’ve had a surfeit of teens interested in volunteering, and I knew they would love the chance to lead an event. Teens in my town are also incredibly interested in environmental causes. It seemed like a win-win.

The project was inspired by the book The Carbon Almanac, a community-created book all about climate change. There is an accompanying Educator’s Guide designed for classroom use that C helped design. Eager to test out one of the activities, she modified one related to food waste and compost for us to use at the library. We both loved the idea of having teens lead the charge since they are already passionate about this issue.

The activity was called “I Didn’t Eat the Whole Thing” and had two parts. First, C created a chart for participants to use to calculate what portion of the leftovers of their last meal was compostable, and what portion would be going to the landfill. We wanted to sneak in the food waste knowledge without the program feeling too much like school. Next, there was information about using your food waste at home to make your own tiny composter out of an old plastic cup/bottle. We provided cups and bottles, had a station where participants could decorate them, and then provided seeds they could take home to plant in their compost. We also had pre-prepared kits people could bring home as Take and Makes. 

Here are the instructions we handed out for people to use at home:

We hosted the activity outside of the library on a Saturday morning that coincided with Farmer’s Market and ended up connecting with about 75 people. I had 10 volunteers running the show. Most of them had been trained in advance so they all had some good talking points to share about food waste, composting, etc. and felt knowledgeable enough to take charge. We mainly had younger kids who wanted to come chat with us and decorate planter bottles, but we talked to people of all ages and even adults were grabbing the Take and Make kits. 

Normally my programs tend to be more silly and fun, but it was great to change it up and do something a little more educational, and the volunteers (I had about 10 total) did an amazing job. The program was low-cost too–cups and bottles were all donated by staff, the seeds were really cheap, and we used supplies on hand to decorate. This definitely inspired me to have more teen-led events in the future.

Tower Challenges

by Bethany Dietrich

This is a program I did for ZERO DOLLARS using supplies we already had. It took very little prep, and went over really well! 

 

Supplies:

• LEGO’s
• Crayons
• Pipe cleaners
• Index cards
• Clothespins 
• Paintbrushes
• Masking tape
• Toothpicks
• Elmer’s glue
• Rulers (2-3 per team)
• Prizes 

 

I set up four tables with two chairs per table. As additional teens joined us through the 90 minutes, I slowly added a third person to three of the four teams. About half-way through, I switched up the teams because some were getting complacent, some teams were overly competitive, etc. 

 

Objective: How tall can you build a _____ tower in _____ min?

• LEGO’s, 10 min. 
• Crayons, 5 min.
• Pipe cleaners, 10 min.
• Index cards, 10 min.
• Clothespins, 10 min.
• Paintbrushes and masking tape, 10 min.
• Toothpicks and Elmer’s glue, 15 min.

 

At time, they measured it, and the winning team could pick either one item from  the “stuff” bowl (aka leftovers from my book subscription goodies) or two items from the candy bowl. One teen was super excited about the mini tube of sunscreen! Lol

 

When a team finished early, they had a tendency to walk around and “look” at the other teams. I made them stand against the wall after one team accused them of  “accidentally” bumping against the table and making their tower fall down.

 

It was a lot of fun, and you can easily adjust what they build their tower out of with what you have on hand.

More Outdoor Programs

In late April, Bethany posted some great Outdoor Program ideas and I’m going to add some of my recent and upcoming offerings to her excellent list!

For summer, my library’s also doing outdoor programming (although a lot less than usual summers) and I’ve got a handful of ideas, some have been successful and some are still coming up and I hope will be successful!

First, I’ve moved my Dungeons & Dragons outside to the lawn. We’ve got some shade in the afternoon, and doing D&D outside adds an element of LARPing to it (especially for my younger participants who don’t like to sit still that long). It does involve a few added considerations as well: what do they roll dice in? My solution was copy paper box tops for a communal rolling area. I asked them to bring chairs or blankets and I’ve provided water bottles but most have brought their own. Overall, it’s worked really well and the kids have enjoyed it.

Second, I did a Stop Motion program outside. We were lucky enough to just get five iPad minis to use, but the app Stop Motion (logo an old fashion reel camera) is free and extremely easy to use on any device so if the teens have phones or devices they can use them easily. The kids paired off (most wearing masks but also outside) and I brought out some of our legos for them to set up things. They made great use of the background – grass or our brick plaza – and what I found was that although the advice is to keep the camera still, even moving the cameras freestyle made for some pretty cool videos.

Next, I did Minute to Win it. This one was a little harder outside, because I don’t have the tables the same way I do inside (and I have my inside set up down to a T) but I was able to use a combination of the tables we have outside and the ground to set up all the challenges and the kids loved doing some new challenges because we were outside, like a water sponge relay. I steered clear of any challenges that involved eating (no cookie face!) but did have them blow up their own balloons for two challenges.

Upcoming, I have a few more outdoor programs:

My messy science program is always run outside because it makes clean up so much easier! This year, I’m doing lava lamps, exploding sandwich bags, mentos & various kinds of colas a few others. I find most of my experiments for it off Science Bob’s site. I’m trying a new one this year with a homemade water fountain!

I’m going to do an Animal Craft Wars (Wars is a bit of a misnomer but the kids like the idea of feeling they’re competing) where each kid will get a bag of recyclable supplies plus masking tape and scissors. They will then have to make a toy for an animal using those supplies – whether a wild animal at a zoo or their pet or an animal in nature to help them with something – and describe to the others what their contraption does. Usually I have a common table they can take additional supplies from but this year I might not to maintain distancing and not touching all the same things.

Tie Dye and sidewalk chalk is another one of my usual summer programs that I do outside and I’m doing it again this summer. My plan is to use the sharpie and spray version so again, there’s no sharing of materials.

Like Bethany mentioned, I’m going to make ice cream, using the bag shaking method later in the summer too.

 

And that’s what I’m doing outdoors for the summer. Fall will be a different thing (although it’s been hard enough in the northeast with all our rain and/or extreme heat!)

You Can’t Please Everyone: When a Patron Complains about a Teen Program

Have you ever had a patron complain about a teen program? If you haven’t, count yourself lucky, but know that it’s a bit of a rite of passage in the field of youth librarianship. I’d like to share a recent experience I had with a patron complaint to shed some light on how it was handled, and what I learned from the ordeal.

The Program and Marketing:
Last winter, my library’s Technology Librarian, Jenni, came to me with an awesome idea for a program that we could partner on together: voodoo dolls with eyes that light up when you stab the doll’s heart! I knew my teens would be totally into this concept, and it would provide a fun way teach them about circuitry and sewing. Jenni got the idea from a few other local libraries (we’re located in the Denver-Metro area) who had tried this program before including Denver and Broomfield. Here’s the image we used as our inspiration:

Jenni and I actually anticipated potential complaints for this program. Though our community, a suburb of Boulder, is quite liberal, there is a considerable Catholic population, and there is a Catholic K-8 school just a few blocks away. We thought some of these folks might take umbrage with the inclusion of voodoo. We decided to come up with a new name for the activity, and to be sure to stay away from the word “voodoo” in our marketing. We also wanted to stay away from anything that sounded too boring or educational, so the very literal title of “Sewable Circuit Dolls” was out.

Coming up with a new name proved to be a very difficult task! We decided to get our Teen Advisory Group kids involved. Together they helped us come up with the name “Stabby Valentines” since the program would take place in late February. The teens also helped us write this program description, which we thought was silly but with high teen appeal:
Didn’t have a great Valentine’s Day? Take out your frustrations on these little dolls! Learn how to use sewable circuits and make a cool doll whose eyes light up when you stab it!

Here’s what our final poster looked like:

Since all our regulars knew about the program either from Teen Advisory Group or from word of mouth at the library, I didn’t work too hard to promote this program. I hung the poster on the entrance to the teen area, printed out some handouts to leave by the OPAC and that was it. These marketing materials were out for about 3 weeks before we received the complaint. Up until this time, I had heard nothing but positive comments from patrons about the program. Teens were excited, and parents who looked at the poster thought it was funny and often encouraged their kids to attend.

The Complaint:
About a week before the program, my supervisor texted me before my shift to let me know that we’d received a complaint. I gathered my thoughts in anticipation for dealing with the situation on my drive in, and in so doing, made a lot of assumptions about the situation. I assumed that the complaint would be from a parent, and figured that the issue would be with the fact that we were essentially planning to make voodoo dolls. I was wrong on both fronts. The complaint actually came from a regular patron in her 70s with no children or grandchildren. She hadn’t made the voodoo connection at all. She was upset with the use of the word “stab” and felt that because the doll was shaped like a person and we were associating it with Valentine’s Day, we were sanctioning an event promoting violence and murder.

Steps Taken:
We set up a meeting between myself, the Library Director, and the patron. I met with my director beforehand and she was 100% supportive of the program. We agreed that while the language of the marketing could be taken the wrong way, the idea for the program was a fantastic one for our teens. We agreed to emphasize the educational aspects of the event as well as teen involvement in the planning process. We also agreed that we would not cancel the program. We spent most of the meeting letting the patron share her concerns, and ultimately agreed on the following compromise: I agreed to take down the current poster (I knew that all the kids who planned to come had already made their plans to attend), I’d use the word “poke” instead of “stab” in my instructions, and we let her know that if we offered this event again in the future we’d use different language and encourage doll-shapes other than human body shapes. She was happy with that compromise.

The Day of the Program–More Drama, but Success Too:
The morning of the program we found out that though the patron had told us she was okay with the compromise, she actually continued to complain to many other community members. My Director saw her in the library and confronted her about it, and the patron said she hadn’t “felt heard” despite the fact that she told us she had. Oh well! Luckily, my Director and the rest of the staff felt that ultimately it was more important for us to please our teen patrons than this one patron, and we decided to continue with the program as planned.

At the program itself, we had 10 regular teen patrons. Neither the frustrated patron nor any of her pals showed up to cause a stir or anything (though our Director hung out for a bit just in case). The teens were all super psyched to make their creations! This was a really challenging activity. It required them to learn about circuits, to learn some sewing skills, and had quite a few steps. They were all very absorbed in each step and no one seemed to become a violent murderer despite having to stab their dolls with needles! Several parents who came to pick up their teens at the end even commented on how cool and innovative the program was.

Wholesome, non-murderous teens learning about sewable circuits!

Lessons Learned:

• Even if a program is geared to a specific population, remember that the general population will see the marketing materials.

The marketing for this program was perfect for our intended audience, but not for the community at large. We had not considered the fact that people other than teens and parents might read about this program. Though the complaining patron is a regular who must’ve walked by our poster at least a dozen times, she actually read about the event in a small local paper. Turns out, this newspaper had included it in their weekly calendar of events, unbeknownst to us. We intentionally don’t send most of our teen programs to newspapers since teens will not see them there, so it was good to learn that occasionally papers looking to fill out events pages will seek out local community event calendars and include events without asking.

• Tread carefully if you’re planning a potentially controversial event, and consider all possible objections or concerns.

Though Jenni and I knew our program might ruffle some feathers, we did not spend a ton of time thinking through all of the potential concerns that people might have. It would have been helpful to share our ideas with other staff members to see if they could anticipate additional potential issues.

• Remember that you’ll never please everyone.

Know that despite your best efforts, it’s impossible to keep everyone happy. In that case, remember whose opinion matters the most–your teens. While it is a good idea to anticipate patrons concerns, the ultimate goal should still be to attract teens to a good program.

Galactic Crafts for Summer Reading

In honor of the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, the 2019 Summer Reading theme is A Universe of Stories. Lucky for us, there is a ton of space themed crafts for us to make with our teens this summer. Here is a selection I think are pretty awesome, including two I have done in the past.

Galaxy in a Jar

Click here for more.
I made this with my tweens and teens at my previous library and it was a hit. The link included is similar to the instructions I followed. This will be something that the teens will need to follow step by step. The glitter may also cause a bit of a mess.

Galaxy Snow Globe

Click here for more.
If you like the idea of the Galaxy in a Jar but looking for something a bit more interactive, try a snow globe instead.

 

Galaxy Bath Bombs

Click here for more.
Another fun and useful craft for teens to try their hand at this summer.

Galaxy Soap

Click here fore more.
Not a fan of bath bombs? Try diy soap instead.

 

Galaxy Magnets

Click here for more.
Keep up the space theme all year round with these awesome magnets your teens can use in their lockers come the school year.

 

Light Up Constellation Canvas

Click here for more.
Allow teens to choose their own constellation or choose one for everybody. Can’t afford the lights? Use glow in the dark paint instead.

Space Cupcakes/Cake Pops/Cookies

Click here for more.
It’s no secret that teens like food related programs. If your library allows make Cupcakes, Cake Pops and/or Cookies at home. Then have the teens decorate them as planets or the galaxy. If you are going cookies you can find space themed cookie cutters for more designs.

Star and Moon Painting

I came up with and lead this painting with tweens at my old library. We simply painted the background dark blue and added streaks of black blended in. We then splatter painted white dots for smaller stars. We used stencils for the larger stars and crescent moon. While I originally planned on using yellow paint, I decided to mix it up and allow them to paint in their choice of neon colors. Lastly, we painted over the moon and stars with glow in the dark paint.

Try Your Hand at Stop Motion Animation

S.T.E.M. in the Library

S.T.E.M. programming as become an important part of library programming. Most, if not all libraries are finding ways to add such programs for their patrons. The programming that takes place is based on one’s budget and knowledge of the topic.

Back in October I decided to try my hand at Stop Motion Animation during my monthly S.T.E.M. program. It was filled with some ups and downs but ultimately was a fun success. It’s also very simple and possibly inexpensive for you to do yourself at your public or school library.

What is Stop Motion?

“An Animation technique that uses a series of shots showing small movements to make characters or objects appear to move.” (Source: Sports Claymation by Emily Reid)

“Stop motion is a type of animation. It is created by taking many photographs. After each photo, the animator moves the characters just a little bit. The process is repeated over and over. At the end, the photos are used to make a movie.” (Source: Filming Stop-Motion Animation by Zoë Wilkinson Saldaña)

Different Types of Stop Motion:

• Claymation/Clay Animation
• Lego

What you need to make a stop motion film:

• A smartphone or tablet with a camera and the app Stop Motion Studio
  • The version above is free but you can also purchase this version of the app with more features
• An idea
• Props and other materials
• Desk Lamp (if needed for better lighting)
• Masking Tape (optional)
• Tripod or another type of stand to hold your device (I used book stands)
• Pencils (optional)
• Paper (optional)
• Patience

Steps for creating your stop motion film:

• Come up with an idea
• Create a storyboard and characters (if time allows)
• Build your set
• Prepare characters and props
• Set up your smart device in a spot best for taking the photos
• Begin taking your photographs
• At some point along the way, give your film a title

Useful Knowledge:

• For this app., your film must be shot in order
• Don’t move your camera while filming a scene.
• One second is about 8 photographs.
• Remember to move each object slightly. You may want practice before filming.
• If having a character raise its arm have it go up further than you want and then go down a bit. This will give it a more realistic look.
• The more characters and movable objects in your scene, the more work.

How it went at my library:

Fortunately my library had iPads and I had the app loaded onto a few of them. I had more teens then I expected so I allowed a group I trusted to use my iPhone which I had previously uploaded the app to in order to test it out.

The Children’s Department at my library had a bunch of Legos, so I decided they would be best to use. Unfortunately I didn’t discover until the day of that they didn’t have any Lego people. Instead I allowed the teens to use my Funko minis as the characters in their film.

I did this program in my normal one hour S.T.E.M. program which I think was a mistake. If I do it again (which I hope to) I am thinking of trying it as a longer special S.T.E.M. program.

The Final Products:

Feel free to head over to my library’s teen blog to check out the final video products by clicking here.

For books featuring more information check out the following titles:

• Herman, Sarah. Brick Flicks. (2014)
• Reid, Emily. Robot Claymation. (2016)
• Reid, Emily. Sports Claymation. (2016)
• Saldana, Zoe. Filming Stop-Motion Animation. (2018)
• Ternan, Melvyn. Stop Motion Animation. (2013)

 

Feel free to comment with any questions you may have.

Action Figure Terrariums: Partner with Parks and Gardens!

At my library, we are encouraged to collaborate with community partners as much as possible. Maybe that’s the case for you as well. If so, here’s a simple and super-fun program that you can do partnering with your local parks department. A local garden center or your local Master Gardener program are other options for partners here.

I wanted to host a program that would teach teens how to care for plants, and I remembered seeing a fandom themed terrarium on Pinterest. Instead of using soil and moss, I decided to use air plants instead. I was able to buy air plants in bulk online (I used http://www.airplantshop.com) and even specify the size that I needed. The terrariums were small glass candleholders from Oriental Trading, from whom I generally avoid ordering, but in this case, they had exactly what I needed. Drowning in daily catalogs was a price I was willing to pay for cheap terrariums.

I purchased the small figurines from Dollar Tree and Wal-Mart, but teens could also bring their own if they had one they wanted to display. Dollar Tree also had bags of colored sand and rocks that were approximately one million times less expensive than the hipster options at Home Depot.

I contacted the education outreach staff members at the major park in our county to give a brief presentation before the event. The staff member who attended gave a fun, interactive talk about biomes and adaptations, in case teens wanted to give their superhero figurine an ecologically correct terrarium home! I also explained how to care for their air plant and keep it happy and healthy.

After that, teens were free to assemble their terrrium however they liked. I provided hot glue to stabilize the figurines and create rock formations. Here are some of their creations:

 

 

 

 

 

This was a really fun STEAM program and a great way to build a relationship with the parks department. Got questions? Leave them in the comments below!

 

 

3D Printing Resources

We posted about 3D printing in 2015, but if, like me, you are new to the 3D printing game, a refresher course could be helpful. Not to mention, there are also some additional resources worth highlighting. All resources are free unless otherwise marked.

So enjoy some resources for getting teens engaged in making and learning with a 3D printer!

Printable files

Thingiverse

https://www.thingiverse.com

Thingiverse is a classic destination for printer files, but it’s still one of the best free resources for prints out there.

My Mini Factory (also an iOS app)

https://www.myminifactory.com/category/education

Much like Thingiverse, My Mini Factory provides free files for 3d printing. The education section (linked above) offers great manipulatives! 

NASA 3D Models

https://nasa3d.arc.nasa.gov/models/printable

Models of NASA spacecraft and other technology, in addition to models of lunar and Martian landscape, asteroids, and more

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Drawing programs

TinkerCAD

https://www.tinkercad.com

One of the great free all around web-based design tools. Requires creation of an account.

SketchUp

https://www.sketchup.com

Another free web-based tool, with the possibility to download software. Pairs well with Google Suite, which could make account creation easy in schools that use Google emails.

Sculptris (Windows/ Mac download)

http://pixologic.com/sculptris/

Shape virtual clay into 3D sculptures that can be printed.

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Mobile apps 

Makers Empire 3D (Android, iOS, Windows, Mac)

https://www.makersempire.com

Makers Empire offers easy-to-use mobile design software, lessons, and daily challenges. The app is free and downloadable for computers (not just mobile devices), and a paid school subscription with advanced teacher and education options like a grading dashboard is available.

Trnio (iOS, $.99)

http://www.trnio.com

Create 3D scans from photos! While this probably isn’t for true beginners because files usually need to be cleaned up and adjusted before printing, it’s a cool way to get to the next level of 3D printing and great to give motivated teens a challenge.

Qlone (iOS, Android, free but exporting files requires payment)

https://www.qlone.pro

3D modeling app that exports to a variety of flie types. 

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Lesson plans

Many lesson plans come from companies selling printers, so they recommend their own tools, but most can be adapted to use the tools and software you prefer.

Thingiverse Education

https://www.thingiverse.com/education

A classic for a reason. This is, to my knowledge the largest lesson plan database for 3d printing out there.

Ultimaker Lesson Starters

https://ultimaker.com/en/resources/21890-lesson-ideas-and-starters

These lesson ideas are a great starting point for programming or collaboration with teachers. 

Makerversity DIY

http://www.makerversitydiy.com 

Several standalone activities that would make great library programs, but could be built into a larger curriculum as well. Includes the printer files needed to make designs.

Dremel Digilab Lesson Plans

https://digilab.dremel.com/resources/lesson-plans

Lessons for Elementary through High School illustrate STEM concepts. While the Digilab partners with mystemkits.com for paid .stl files that go with each lesson, but lesson ideas could be built upon for use with other files if desired.

Learn By Layers (requires purchase of curriculum bundles)

https://www.learnbylayers.com

This curriculum does require purchase, but it’s very comprehensive and sequenced, starting from true beginner lessons and systematically moving up to advanced design challenges. Includes assessments.

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Inspiration/ Other

Functional Print Reddit

https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/

Seeing the functional designs from others could inspire teens to move beyond toys and trinkets and into the world of more functional printing.

Shapeways

https://www.shapeways.com

If your teens are motivated to work with materials beyond what your printer can handle, consider having them design their object and send it to Shapeways.

NIH 3D Print Exchange

https://3dprint.nih.gov

Scientifically accurate print files for prosthestics, neuroscience, heart disease and molecules. Teens might not have use for many of these prints because many are quite technical, but this showcases the potential applications of the technology. 

Bridging the Gap with 2 turntables and Microphone (where it’s at!)

So in today’s post we are looking at how two librarians with an innovation grant were able to bridge a gap in their service area.

Meet Greg Lewis and Hennie Vaandrager

 

They both work at the Richard L. Root Branch in Kentwood Michigan which is part of the Kent District Library system here in Grand Rapids.  Hennie has been with KDL for 19 years as a Youth Specialist and Greg has been working as a Teen Parapro for nine years.

The city of the Kentwood is a highly diverse area in Michigan economically and ethnically as over 80 different languages are spoken.  Many of the of the students in the area live at or below the poverty line and act as their family interpreters.

What spurred on this idea of getting DJ tables?

We wanted to give the kids something fresh and inspiring. We saw an article in VOYA about a similar program at the Las Vegas-Clark County Library and took it from there.

What was the process of requesting the grant money?

Applied for the KDL Innovation grant.

What equipment did you purchase and why?

• Native Instruments S2 DJ Controller
• Apple Macbook Air 13”
• Harbringer V2215 600W 15IN 2way Speaker
• Odyssey DJ Case
• Various cables and mikes

We wanted to give the kids a professional setup as well as stay within budget. We spoke with several local professional DJ’s, read tons of product reviews, and spoke with support specialists at the various vendors. We finally arrived at what we felt was the best equipment (within budget) for our needs.

 

Where did you purchase it from and How much did it cost?

We brought 3 stations at about 2000 each (including various cables/cords/mics).

The interesting thing is the stations and the Macbooks had a “set” price that was the lowest any vendor would go. We ended up buying the computers from Compucraft, a local business and supporter of KDL.

The DJ stations came from our local Guitar Center. The reason for this is we could pick up locally, and in the end they worked out the lowest quote by giving us previous sale prices on the speakers and cables.

 

How is it being implemented? What Programs are being done?

During the summer of 2017, we brought in a local professional DJ to bring classes to two of our local public middle schools. They have a summer school with academics in the morning and activities in the afternoon. We targeted these kids as one of our underserved populations. We offered a four week session with a culminating “DJ Showcase” here at the library.

DJ DuhJuanYay Did a great job training teens and staff on the machines

 

Starting in the fall, we had this same DJ train staff on how to use the DJ stations. The three stations are now available to branches who are interested in having the equipment for Teen Zones and other teen programming.

What was the community response?

Everyone involved, from teacher to students to library staff, have been very positive. It’s a new and hip way to get kids to create, socialize, and try something new.

What have been the biggest successes?

The “DJ Showcase” was so much fun with over 100 people attending. There was a lot of laughter and dancing as students showed off their skills. Some of these kids had some serious talent.

What have been the biggest challenges?

Tapping in to the full potential of what can be done with the stations has gone a bit slower than anticipated. We want to add “beat-making” with kids writing their own beats/making their own mixes eventually.

Would you recommend other library systems get DJ systems?

If the audience interest and budget is there, this is definitely a program we would recommended

Certainly this project is unique and expensive but if you have access to grant money and a population that could be served by offering a program like this definitely pursue it!