New to TRW? Getting Started with Great Programs

by Amy Alessio

Teen Read Week is an initiative of YALSA, the Young Adult Library Services Association. In 2003, the sixth year of the event will be celebrated.

Why is it important to celebrate? For a lot of reasons! Teens are not really reading for fun these days, and reading scores have not been improving for this age group over the last few decades.  Also, it’s a great chance to let your school or your public library communities know how important teen services are! Let teens know the possibilities that exist within your doors, and within the covers of books.

More than 1,400 school and public libraries have registered to participate in TRW each year. Join the fun!

Theme Party

Members of a YALSA committee work with ALA Graphics to produce a theme and supporting products each year. For example, in 2002, the Get Graphic theme inspired school and public libraries all over the country to stock and program around graphic novels.

In 2003, the theme is Slammin’ @ your library. Products will include posters inspired by poetry and verse, journals, bookmarks, magnetic poetry words and a CD-ROM that will enable you to print your own buttons, posters, signs, bookmarks, and more! A portion of ALA Graphics revenue goes back to YALSA to help them bring more initiatives to you!

The theme should limit no one; it’s just a place to get started. For example, Slammin’ could actually be a sports or basketball theme.

Programs That Run Themselves

Teen Read Week promotions can be simple or elaborate. Almost anything you would like to do with your teen services can be done during this week! Busy school libraries and public libraries with no teen specialist may find it easiest to have some simple, stand-alone programs.

Surveys are always a good idea, and can be tied to raffles. YALSA offers an official TRW survey each year through SmartGirl.org, or design your own. Find out what teens are reading, or find out what they would like to see the library offer. Be sure to collect names and mailing or e-mail addresses for a mailing list, to highlight future library teen services.

Book review forms are a great TRW promotion and can also be used for a raffle! To tie in with the theme, have teens review a favorite poem or sports book. After TRW, reviews can be posted around the library or compiled in a book or Web site for readers’ advisory.

Offer a display to tie in with the theme or ask teens for input about their favorite books to highlight during the week. A fun poetry display could have a magnetic poetry kit and magnetic board in the center. Teens will gravitate around it to play with the words and will then notice the books!

A hidden bookmark or hidden book with a special cover is another easy game. Teens can look for the item each day and turn it in to the desk for a prize. Don't make it too hard to find, though, or else you'll be spending a lot of time tidying up the teen area as people look for the item.

Have each desk in the public library or each office in the school hand out something fun to a teen during TRW, either a piece of candy with a bookmark attached, a raffle ticket, and so on. Many schools and libraries have had check-out promotions where a prize is awarded to teens checking out certain books or to every tenth teen checking out a book. These activities lend a celebratory, customer-appreciation feel to the week.

Power of Programming

Power up your TRW with a teen program! From simple to elaborate, programs for teens show that age group that they are getting the deserved time and attention they deserve from your facility.

A simple program could involve putting out snacks for teens that come in and read for pleasure during a study hall or after school.

Another beginning program could be starting a teen advisory board during TRW. Offer food, ask teens who attend what they would like to see the library do and when they would like to meet regularly. Even if only a few teens show up at these events, their input will be valuable. Offer those teens a small prize or incentive to bring a friend to the next meeting.

Have a themed-book discussion. Poetry or a hip-hop rap reading sessions would lend themselves well to the 2003 theme.

More elaborate programs could include having a local author come in and read to teens or lead them in a poetry-writing workshop. Or, a poetry contest could be held prior to the event, with the winners announced during TRW.

Lots of other program ideas are available on this Web site.

Getting the Word Out

Teens have to know that you are celebrating TRW from the moment they enter your facility, either visually or through announcements. Banners and signs are a good start, but other fun decorations should definitely be prominent throughout the facility. Having staff wear t-shirts and/or buttons will also remind patrons that something exciting is going on!

It is really effective to get the community involved in the event. Letting elected officials and newspapers know about the week and why and how it is being celebrated is an important step. Posters should also be placed where the teens are—retail outlets, marquee signs, restaurants, local teen centers, park districts, police stations, the YMCA—anywhere a teen or a teen’s parent will see it.

School and public libraries should help each other promote TRW events. If the school is not celebrating, the public library can help by sending kits or bookmarks with suggested reading lists and activities, or by having booktalks in the schools. A public library can match the displays and help promote school activities during this week too. In 2003, this might mean highlighting sports teams with a display of school jerseys or photos!

The Off-Season: Getting Ready for the Big Event

Yes, an effective TRW can involve months of planning. Here is a possible timeline:

May: Public and school libraries should begin planning, as schools will not have much time when they return in late August to get ready for TRW.

June/July: TRW products should be ordered from ALA Graphics, as they often run out by the end of August. This is also a good time to get teen input at public libraries about what they might like to see for TRW. Don’t forget to register! Lots of publishers send free things to the libraries who do this!

August/September: Promotion, promotion, promotion! Brochures, signs, press releases, letters to teachers should go out increasingly until the end of September, for a start of the TRW campaign. If possible, have a direct mailing to teens close to the date of the programs, either through postcards or e-mail.

October: Celebrate! Don’t forget to have teens fill out the YALSA survey!

November: FEEDBACK. Let us know what you thought of the theme and what you did to celebrate this year! The most original programs are compiled into a biannual manual and includes more than two hundred program ideas from school and public libraries!

The Next Step

After your fun TRW, evaluate what you can do to make it even better next year! Joining YALSA and getting involved is a great way to keep the momentum going. Network with other professionals or get lots of good book and program ideas off the many electronic discussion lists.

Remember Teen Read Week is just the beginning. We all know it’s important to promote teen reading ALL the time. A noticeably exciting and popular TRW at your facility may gain positive attention from staff, teens, and administration. Support for future teen programs and services may grow from your TRW initiatives.

So take the first step.