Are you a vampire expert?

In traditional vampire folklore, there are numerous ways to kill a vampire. Which of these methods were not valid ways of destroying a vampire?

A.Pouring gasoline on the vampire

B.Decapitating the vampire

C.Burning the vampire

D.Driving a stake through the vampire’s heart

E.Exposing the vampire to bright sunlight

Tonight’s Agenda

● Weeding: discussion, activities & questions● Break● A (Brief) History of YA literature● Twilight and other current trends in YA lit

Collection Stats from the Illinois Study

● Average collection size:

● Elem: 9,000

● Middle: 8,700

● HS: 11,500 

● Average age of collection:

● Elem: 1990

● Middle: 1989

● HS: 1983 

● Average amount of budget:

● Elem: $4,500

● Middle: $6,250

● HS: $10,255

In the words of the great Doug Johnson…

"Weed! I’m not telling you again."

http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/blue-skunk-blog/2009/2/2/minnesotas-aging-school-library-collections.html

But what if we need that later?

“…I quickly began to see that having too much un-useful stuff around clutters up the actual usable stuff and decreases ease of use. I thought at first I was being helpful by saving but realized that saved junk was actually preventing my students from finding what they needed.”

“I'm now cursing those people [who didn’t weed] for leaving me all the work by convincing this staff that it was okay to run a book museum and have no circulation!  So, when I go to the principal and say, we need more money to buy books, he's looking at full shelves and thinking, "Why do we want to buy more books when kids don't checkout the ones we have?”

“If you went to a store that didn't rotate their stock, would you continue to shop there?  I know that when I buy bread and eggs and milk, I'm looking for expiration dates.  Weeding does increase circulation because it helps you see the gems that are hiding in the rubble.”

Weeding was my greatest dread...At First....  (I am a book lover)  When I finally realized that libraries are not

supposed to be MUSEUMS but useful LIBRARIES, it became easier.” 

“In my outside life, I'm a historian and preach the value of saving and maintaining and archiving. As a librarian, I had to learn to fight the urge to do so… One of the things that made the most impression on me was a teacher who said "A library is not an archive." …We harm our students when we do not commit to weeding; misconceptions and incorrect information they pick up when they are young will stay with them forever.”

And one final reason to weed…

THE CREW GUIDELINES FOR WEEDING YOUR COLLECTION

● The first figure refers to the years since the book's latest copyright date (age of material in the book)

● The second figure refers to the maximum number of years since its last recorded circulation

● The third refers to the presence of various negative factors, called MUSTIE factors.

For example, the formula "8/3/MUSTIE" means: "Consider a book in this Dewey class for

discard when its latest copyright is more than eight (8) years ago; and/or, when its last

circulation or inhouse use was more than three (3) years ago; and/or, when it possesses one

or more of the MUSTIE factors."

MUSTIE Means…

M = Misleading (and/or factually inaccurate)U = Ugly (worn and beyond mending or

rebinding)S = Superseded (by a truly new edition or by a

much better book on the subject)T = Trivial (of no discernible literary or scientific

merit)I = Irrelevant to the needs and interests of your

communityE = The material may be obtained expeditiously

Elsewhere through interlibrary loan or reciprocal borrowing.

Some Weeding Practice

● Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care● Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte● Footprints on the Moon by The Writers and

Editors of the Associate Press● Weapons by Edwin Tunis

A resource you shouldn’t miss:The Sunlink Weed of the Month

Archive:http://www.sunlink.ucf.edu/weed/

And don’t miss the book,

Less is More: A Practical Guide to Weeding School Libraries

Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Footprints on the Moon by The Writers and Editors of the Associate Press

Weapons by Edwin Tunis

Things that make you weed a book Things that make you keep a book

Weeding Roleplay

The library’s books fill the shelves from end-to-end. Most of the books have been part of the library collection for years; the previous

librarian did not weed. The library has a small budget for books.

The new librarian has begun to weed. The custodian alerts the principal to the piles of books being pulled off the shelves and

discarded. The principal is concerned and decides to approach the librarian.

Principal: “Ms Smith, I notice you’ve pulled a lot of our library books off the shelves and are throwing them away. I’m a little concerned that you’re throwing away good library books.”

Ms Smith: “?”

Weeding: Point/Counterpoint Roleplay

● The class will divide into pairs.

● Each partner should assume a roll (principal or librarian)

● Take 1-2 minutes independently to list the points your character might make to make his/her case.

● Pick up the conversation where the role play scenario leaves off. Using your list and other points/ideas that emerge during the conversation, make an argument from your character’s point of view. Think about what questions you might ask each other and what arguments you might make to win the other over to your side.

● You have 10 minutes for your conversation. If you finish before time is up, switch roles and try it from a new perspective.

● Be prepared to share your best points from both perspectives with the class

● Who do you think would have “won” the argument if it had really happened?

Points Worth Sharing

What do we do with what we weed?

● Investigate recycling options in your community.

● Clear the project with your administration so you can discard a large number of books at one time.

● Weed and discard in small sections. Sometimes it is easier to manage a smaller number of discards.

● Keep the books in storage for a year. If you need one, pull it out of storage & put it back in the collection. At the end of a year, discard the rest.

● Use for art projects or decoration

What NOT to do with what we weed

● Do not donate, sell or give away school property without permission. Most schools do not allow this.

● Do not give books with out of date information to classrooms, other libraries or charities. If it’s not good enough for your collection, it’s not good enough for them. If you are discarding due to lack of circulation, and if your school allows it, you may want to consider selling or donating materials.

More questions about weeding

● Is it worth buying books to strengthen a particular area (as an analysis might suggest you do) if the faculty and students won’t make use of those books?

● How does budget influence weeding? Do you throw away old books even if it means you have bare shelves?

● Others?

A (Brief) History of YA Lit

1946

1955

1998

Betty Cavanna Still

“Going On Sixteen”

Still Crossing Over

But now in both directions…

Are you a Twilight fan?

● Yes – I couldn’t put it down, even if I had some issues with it

● No, I just don’t get what all the hype is about.

Twilight Survey

Please indicate which books in the Twilight series you’ve read

A. Just Twilight

B. Twilight & New Moon

C. Twilight, New Moon & Eclipse

D. All four books

In front of us….

And behind us….

Take 2Take 2 minutes to write down

• 2 things you loved about Twilight• 2 things you didn’t love about Twilight• 2 reasons you think teens love Twilight

Talking About TwilightPlease visit the class wiki and watch the “Talking About Twilight” video. Make note of any comments that

particularly stand out; be prepared to discuss them with the class.

You may copy & paste this link into another window to access the video, or access it through the link on the class

materials page of the wiki.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Pln63UZfE

Stephen King on the Appeal of Twilight

“Both Rowling and Meyer, they’re speaking directly to young people. ... The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephenie Meyer can’t write worth a darn. She’s not very good."But then King recalls that when his mom was alive, she read all the Erle Stanley Gardner books, the Perry Mason mysteries, obsessively when he was growing up. "He was a terrible writer, too, but he was very successful," King says. "Somebody who’s a terrific writer who’s been very, very successful is Jodi Picoult. You’ve got Dean Koontz, who can write like hell. And then sometimes he’s just awful. It varies. James Patterson is a terrible writer but he’s very very successful. People are attracted by the stories, by the pace and in the case of Stephenie Meyer, it’s very clear that she’s writing to a whole generation of girls and opening up kind of a safe joining of love and sex in those books. It’s exciting and it’s thrilling and it's not particularly threatening because they’re not overtly sexual. A lot of the physical side of it is conveyed in things like the vampire will touch her forearm or run a hand over skin, and she just flushes all hot and cold. And for girls, that’s a shorthand for all the feelings that they’re not ready to deal with yet.“

“I don’t think I’m a writer; I think I’m a storyteller.”

- Stephenie Meyer

What are some ways we can build on book blockbusters like Twilight?

The Supernatural Craze…

For next week

● Choose a Gossip Girl or Clique series book to read

● Bring one manga book to class: your choice; you don’t have to read it in advance. See the recommended reading lists on the wiki for manga suggestions.

● YA book publishing

● YA book marketing

● Reviewing YA books

● What’s the line between middle school & high school appropriate?

● Manga – what is it and why would I want it in our library?