[Baynet] CLA and Infopeople present "Summer Reading Programs from A to Z" an online course

[Linda Rodenspiel]

CLA is pleased to partner with Infopeople to present an online course that 
will provide a good general background on summer reading programs. Because 
of the cosponsorship, CLA members can receive a discount on the 
registration fee. Please read the following announcement carefully so that 
you know how to take advantage of the discount. Since some people who may 
be interested in this course might not receive this notice directly, we 
would appreciate it if you would print and post or route this announcement 
to staff and colleagues. Thanks!


Title:  Summer Reading Programs from A to Z (online learning course)

Dates:  February 6 - March 5, 2007

To register for this workshop:  Use the online registration form at
http://infopeople.org/workshop/309


Fee: Because of grant funding, California residents can take this course 
for the subsidized fee of $75.00. The out-of-state fee is $150.00.  If you 
are a California Library Association member, you can receive a $10.00 
discount by clicking the "I'm a CLA member" box at the bottom of the 
Billing Information page.  This is the only time and place to take 
advantage of the discount.


This course is about how to do summer reading programs generally. It is not 
about the California Summer Reading Program, but complements it by 
providing staff with additional training and resources. The course is 
co-sponsored by the California Library Association.


It's only February and we're already thinking about summer reading 
programs! If you're new to libraries or to summer reading activities, or 
just need a little inspiration in this area, this course will allow you to 
explore:

--Why summer reading programs are important,
--How summer reading programs can be effectively organized and evaluated, and
--How to promote summer reading in your community.

We'll be sharing practical tips, innovative ideas, and reliable resources 
to make summer reading easier and more fun for everyone. Don't reinvent the 
wheel - join us as we focus on the fun, not the rules, and cover the 
fundamental skills that will help you survive summer!


Workshop Description: During this four week online course we will cover the 
full range of summer reading basics. In addition to each week's reading, 
you will spend time in online discussion forums sharing ideas for the 
successful planning, implementation, and evaluation of summer reading 
programs. The instructor will provide sample plans, templates, cheat sheets 
and a webliography, as well as practical, useful tips that can be applied 
immediately. There will also be ample opportunity to learn from others, as 
ALL students will be expected to share three of their ideas for programs, 
promotions, or some other aspect of summer reading success.

Preliminary Course Outline: Using your web browser and your Internet 
connection, you will log in to the Infopeople online learning site and 
complete the following learning modules:

Module One: Why Are Summer Reading Programs Important?
--What the research says
--The purpose and goals for YOUR summer reading program
--How to talk about the importance of summer reading to key stakeholders - 
library administrators, school administrators and teachers, parents, and 
children and teens

Module Two: Organizing the Program
--Ways to measure participation - reading books, counting time read, etc.
--To give or not to give prizes
--How many rules do you really need?
--Approaching community businesses for support
--One for all vs. two programs - one for teens and one for children
--Evaluation is as important as implementation

Module Three: Promoting the Program and Publicizing Summer Reading Events
--Working with the media - print and radio/television
--Flyers, public service announcements, signs, etc.

Module Four: Getting Some Help From Your Friends, or Don't Reinvent the Wheel
--Sample programs
--Cheap and cheerful crafts
--Resource lists
--What I am doing that works every time
--Utilizing volunteers

Workshop Instructor: Molly Kinney.  Molly lives in sunny and hurricane 
weary south Florida where she is the Director of Public Library Services at 
the Alvin Sherman Library, Research and Information
Technology Center. This is a joint-use public and academic library on the 
campus of Nova Southeastern University, the 8th largest private college in 
the nation. She is active in the Association for Library Service to 
Children, a division of the American Library Association. Her latest 
favorite activity is teaching classes on-line because she enjoys 'meeting' 
people and discussing children's books, delivering services to children and 
families, and exploring issues that are important to children's library staff.


Online Learning Details:
This four-week course will be taught online using the web. When you 
register, you will receive a registration confirmation that will include 
the URL to get to the course, as well as a username and password.

Every student proceeds through the online learning modules at his or her 
own pace. Students should expect to commit to spending a minimum of 2 to 2½ 
hours per week on this course in order to be successful. You can work on 
each module at your own pace, at any hour of the day or night. However, you 
will be expected to log in to the course each week to do that week's 
assignment. We ask that you log in sometime during the first week of the 
course to begin the course work.

Your instructor will be available for limited consultation support for two 
weeks after the official end date of a course, and the course material will 
stay up for an additional two weeks after that, to give those who have 
fallen behind time to work independently on the course. However, you will 
be expected to accomplish the majority of the course in synchronization 
with your peers during the first four weeks.

Prerequisites:
This course is taught over the web. You must:

--Have an Internet connection and Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher.
--Be able to save Microsoft Word .doc or Adobe .pdf files to your computer 
and print them out. (For .doc files, a free Word Viewer is available at 
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/search.aspx?displaylang=en. Search for 
"Word Viewer." For .pdf files, a free Adobe Acrobat Reader is available at 
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.html).
--Be comfortable navigating on the web and navigating back and forward on a 
website that uses frames.
--Having access to software to make pdf documents would be very helpful

To be most successful in this course you should be willing to share 
information with your colleagues and be willing to spend time reading and 
participating in the weekly discussion boards.

System Requirements: The online learning product that Infopeople uses is 
called Angel. The following are minimum system requirements for using 
Angel. You will need access to a computer that has at least these 
specifications to participate in an online course:

Windows:
--Internet Explorer 6.0 and above, Netscape 7.1 and above, or Firefox 1.5 
and above

Macintosh:
--Mozilla 1.4 and above (which is the same engine as Netscape 7.1), Safari 
2.0 and above, or Firefox 1.5 and above
--OS X and above (OS 9 will NOT work with our online learning product)

If you are not comfortable with any of the above, please consider taking 
this course with a colleague who does meet these requirements.

To view a complete list of Infopeople workshops and for general information 
about Infopeople training opportunities, go to the main Infopeople 
Workshops page at http://www.infopeople.org/workshop

If you have questions about registration or scheduling of workshops, please 
contact Linda Rodenspiel, the Infopeople Project Assistant, at 
assist at infopeople.org or by phone at 650-578-9685.