FYI, *_ _* *_Smokey the Bear Reading Challenge_* The US Forest Service has offered to provide materials for a reading challenge to celebrate Smokey the Bear's 80th birthday in 2024. The challenge (and accompanying materials) will be available January - December of 2024 and will be sent to the State Library for me to distribute to libraries in late January 2024. The materials each library will get includes 1 roll of 500 Smokey stickers, 1 pack of 50 Smokey cards, and 1 Smokey stamp.   This is a great tie-in t ...Continue Reading

Please excuse cross postings   FYI,   *ALSC’s 2024 Notable Children's Media Discussions in January*   Do you love book and media talk? Are you interested in observing media evaluation in action? Although ALSC award discussions are confidential, Notable discussion meetings are open! The 2024 Notable Children's Books and Notable Children's Recordings committees will be meeting via Zoom in January to discuss great titles from 2023. Observers can join in at any time throughout the sessions. The Notable Ch ...Continue Reading

*Talk Story: Sharing Stories, Sharing Culture Grant 2024 Grant Information *   *_Program Overview_*   */Talk Story: Sharing Stories, Sharing Culture/* is a family literacy initiative that connects Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI), and American Indigenous or Alaskan Native (AIAN) communities across generations. The Talk Story micro-grant celebrates and explores AANHPI and AIAN stories through books, oral traditions, and cultural arts to provide interactive and enriching experienc ...Continue Reading

Please excuse cross postings   FYI,   If you missed any of the CSLP Summer Symposium sessions from December 7th, the recordings and other resources are now available on the CSLP Summer Symposium 2023 page.   How did you enjoy the Summer Symposium? We would appreciate your feedback, even if you only watched the recordings and not attended the live sessions. *Summer Symposium Evaluations: *https://forms.gle/PqKDiTA8UM2tJecD7 We hope your New Year is full of adventures!   /CSLP Summer Symposium C ...Continue Reading

Hi, Everyone,   Sorry for all the discussion list emails you’re getting today. We did some server maintenance in early December and it wasn’t until today that I realized none of the emails had been going through on NJYAC since late November. Obviously, the problem is now fixed. Please disregard the old messages. Happy New Year!   ~Sharon     All the best, *Sharon Rawlins, MLS (she/her/hers)*/Youth Services Specialist/ /Library Development Bureau/*New Jersey State Library* *P.*  609 ...Continue Reading

Hi Everyone, I am wondering if anyone has a subscription to ComicsPlus for your library, and if so, what you think of it. We are considering it and our TAB enjoyed the free trial, but we wanted to get additional feedback from current users if possible. Thanks so much! Jen Jen Dunne Head of Youth Services Moorestown Library 111 West Second St. Moorestown, NJ 08057 856-234-0333 x 5 moorestownlibrary.org ...Continue Reading

FYI,   Just passing this along for informational purposes only!   ~Sharon   All the best, *Sharon Rawlins, MLS (she/her/hers)*/Youth Services Specialist/ /Library Development Bureau/*New Jersey State Library* *P.*  609-278-2640 x116    *E.*  sraw...@njstatelib.org*W. * www.njstatelib.org   185 West State StreetP.O. Box 520, Trenton, NJ  08625 *From:* The Whalemobile <i...@thewhalemobile.com> *Sent:* Thursday, December 7, 2023 1:02 PM*To ...Continue Reading

*FYI,* * * *CSLP’s Virtual Summer Symposium* *Thursday, December 7, 2023* *11 am to 4:30 pm EST* *To register: **https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_0GU8zqO3TrGkLs3hdMF7gw#/registration*   The CSLP Summer Symposium is a half-day virtual offering for public library staff to connect, learn, and collaborate as we plan for summer library programming around the 2024 theme of *Adventure Begins at your Library.* * * Sessions will include:     Simplifying the Adventure of Summer Reading: Ob ...Continue Reading

Please excuse cross postings   FYI, Miss Rumphius Award   The New Jersey Center for the Book proudly presents the annual /Miss Rumphius Award, /based upon the title character of the National Book Award winner by Barbara Cooney. In the spirit of Miss Rumphius, we seek to amplify the work of exemplary librarians, library staff, library students, and school librarians who implement creative and engaging programs to improve their environments. We hope the /Miss Rumphius Award/ inspires other ...Continue Reading

Please excuse cross postings   FYI,   I’m passing along this information from a YALSA announcement on ALA Connect: /Booklist/ is looking for reviewers for their YA section, specifically for YA romance and general fiction titles, and especially for YA nonfiction. Reviewers for /Booklist/ typically are assigned between 2 to 3 books per month, and their rate is $15/per review. Reviewers must be able to review from digital materials, and all /Booklist/ reviews are signed. If you're intere ...Continue Reading