The World Is Your Oyster

Take Gritty Teens and Turn Them

Into Pearls

Presented By Melissa Hager

Youth Services CoordinatorAlexander County Library

In Taylorsville, NC

Greetings from Mel’s Teens!

What Do These Folks Have In Common?• John Lennon • Paul McCartney • George Harrison • Anne Frank• Mick Jagger • Keith Richards • Warren Buffet • Katie Couric• Mark Zuckerburg• Bill Gates• Oprah Winfrey• Mozart• Renoir• Calvin Klein

1715141418181417131717141316

This is how old they were

when they began doing what they do

(or did) to be known

the whole world over!

Defining a Teen

• Never in your life will be so rebellious. • You have been alive just long enough to know

everything!• You know what older people do (what they

listen to, read, watch on TV, art), needs improvement.

• You haven’t been beaten down by the rules of society yet and aren’t afraid. Sometimes (see Lennon and McCartney), different wins.

Philosophic Rules of Dealing With Teens

1. KISS it!Keep It Simple, Sweetie!

2. Teens (or anyone for that matter) won’t care what you know, until they know that you care.

How Can You Show You Care?

• 1. Feed them. (See The Apple Bite recipe. )• 2. Remember their names. • 3. Remember what they like to read, or the

music they like, or their obsession with Justin Bieber, or Twilight, or The Hunger Games, etc.

• 4. Encourage their talents – art, writing, music, math, science…

• 5. Let them see you order a book for them. Make sure they know they’re first on the list to check it out.

Volunteerism The fastest way to get anyone

to love something is to get them directly involved.

Collaboration

• Never miss an opportunity to get businesses and other organizations involved in your programs. Friends of the Library and Trustees.

• Coffee houses, Wal-Mart, Target• Local restaurants – BoJangle’s, McDonald’s,

Wendy’s, Pizza Parlors• Don’t forget to give them lots of kudos publicly

on your FaceBook page, Tweets and news agencies.

The Program Is The Thang!

Field Trips

Book Store BuyathonSusie Serrano with Paradise Branch of

Butte County Library, in Paradise, California,

arms teens with budget money and takes them to book stores once a year to select books.

Talk about empowerment!

YAYA

TRIPS

Dinner and A MovieDining With An Author

Interested teens joined a field trip to the NC Museum of Art to view the

Rembrandt Collection. 35 teens were provided tickets,

transportation, food and fun for a day.

The Alexander Friends of the Library sponsored the trip.

Teen ProgrammingBook Clubs Manga and

Anime Lovers

Writers’ Groups Lock-Ins

Artists

Gamers

Poetry Slams Mad Scientists!

Let’s Make Videos!

YAYAs

“Too many adults wish to 'protect' teenagers when they should be stimulating them to read of life as it is lived.”

― Margaret A. Edwards

A Collaboration

A Whole Lot of Fun!

Teen Poetry Happens @ The Bean

Poetry Tips

• Acrostics Use letters of name to describe self with each letter

• Quatrains 4 lines with the 2nd and 4th lines rhymed and variations

• Couplets2 lines with the ends rhymed

• Rhyme Games• Word Circles• Blackout Poetry Use magazine page blacked out except for the words you keep

Lock-Ins

National Lock-In• Keep an eye out for news and sign ups.• First Friday night in August – all 50 states can be

involved. Alaska had a library participate this year.“Thanks for the great organization everyone! It was nice

to be a part of something bigger, especially way up here in Alaska.” – Claudia Haines, Homer Public Library

• Games are played by teens within your library and/or between other libraries.– Minute To Win It – Photo Scavenger Hunt – Wii/PS

• Author visits

Thriller Dance

We Are The Champions!Our teens won the national

Photo Scavenger Hunt at the Zombie Lockin!

Make Connections Across The USA!

• You have a great start here at ARSL to find other libraries with which to connect!

• Use Skype – It’s Free!• Troll the web for ice breaker ideas.• Plan Minute To Win It challenges.• Share friends codes and set up a Wii game online.• Make a video of the experience and post it to

share. <3(Remember to always obtain video permission!)

Meet Me In Paradise

Hunger Games Party Plan

• Let teens create video invite• Be sure to collaborate with a local business or

Friends group and give great coverage!• Have contests around the book– Rue Whistle Contest– Reenact Death Scenes– Wii Archery– Costume Contest– Free Form Creation (Poem, Song, Art, Photography)

Our Hunger Games Promo

Death Scenes Reenactment

Next Up!November 9, 2012 from 7 pm – 8 am!

7th grade and up…and we mean up!

(If you’re 65 and love Twilight, you can come, too!

We’re watching all 4 movies, playing Twilight trivia games,

and battling Team Edward vs. Team Jacob.

Alexander County Library’sAll Girls Twilight Slumber Party!

Use Your Social Media

Use Every Form of Media You’ve Got!

• Write those articles for your local newspaper. No one can get across the wonderful things you are doing like you!

• If you have a local radio station, get on there with a radio personality and pump up your programs.

• Use your local government channel if you have one. Make videos (or have a camera wielding teen do it) to promote programming.

• Blog about your programs. Blogs are free to set up.

How To Find Mel

• E-mail – mhager@alexandercountync.gov

• FaceBook at Mel Hager in Taylorsville, NC

• Miss Mel’s Blog at www.missmelsblog.blogspot.com

• YouTube at www.youtube.com/AlexCoLibraryYouth

• Twitter at HagerMel

The Apple Bite• 1 loaf of thin sliced white bread, crusts removed• ¼ cup sugar• 1 brick (8 oz) cream cheese• Yolk of 1 egg• 1 tsp vanilla• 1 cup prepared apple pie filling, diced• 1 stick butter• 3/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon, mixedBlend softened cream cheese with ¼ cup sugar. Beat in the yolk only of 1 large egg. Add 1 tsp vanilla and 1 cup of apple pie filling and mix into cream cheese mixture.Remove crusts from the bread slices and flatten each slice with a rolling pin.Spread heaping tablespoon of batter evenly over bread slice. Roll into a stick.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt stick of butter in one bowl. Have cinnamon sugar mixture in another bowl.Roll stick in butter and then roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture.Place on cookie sheet and bake for approximately 20 minutes. Cut into thirds.Bon appetit!

Art by YAYA/TPH member, Rebecca Chapman

Remember The GoalLibraries will survive as long as the next generation holds it

as a valuable institution.

Give those kids awesome memories of their library now

– for their future and yours!

Thanks for coming!Have a wonderful

conference experience!