New Article on Teen Bullying

A new article out this week on how teens perceive bullying in their lives:

"Bullying" Has Little Resonance with Teenagers
By Danah Boyd - November 15, 2010

The cultural logic underpinning bullying is far more complex than most adults realize. And technology is not radically changing what's happening; it's simply making what's happening far more visible. If we want to combat bullying, we need to start by understanding the underlying dynamics. And we need to approach interventions with an evaluation-based mindset. ... here's what makes bullying so difficult to address. So often, one person thinks that they're not at fault and that they're simply a victim of bullying. But those who are engaged in the bullying see it entirely differently. They blame the person and see what they're doing as retaliation. None of this is communicated, of course, so things can quickly spiral out of control without anyone really knowing where it all began.

I think the book Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia captures this beautifully, and heartbreakingly. Lack of empathy and a self-righteous sense of justification are a dangerous combination. I like to think that books and reading can be of help, but who is to say? But it can't hurt to try. Here are some bullying books for middle school kids.

Top Myths About Marketing to Teens

An interesting article from MediaPost's Engage:Teens blog.

9 Myths You Thought Were True
by David Trahan

There are some myths about marketing to teens that every marketer can learn from.

Myth #1: All teens want smartphones
Myth #2: Texting is the way in
Myth #3: Teens use Facebook the way we use Facebook
Myth #4: Teens are going to join Twitter
Myth #5: If you build it, teens will come
Myth #6: Teens are online all the time
Myth #7: Teens don't watch TV
Myth #8: Teen word-of-mouth happens online
Myth #9: Teens love online video

I found the article interesting for breaking down some "common knowledge" about teens, but also it is the first article I've seen separating teens from Millennials! I wonder what the generation following Millennials will be called?

The Response to "Successful" Gaming

"We have a wide assortment of games available with some of the most popular being Super Smash Bros. Brawl, any Naruto title, Uncharted 2, Madden NFL, NBA 2K, Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Ghost Recon 2, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, Little Big Planet, and Batman: Arkham Asylum."

With the possible exception of Uncharted 2 and Madden, I guarantee those are not games teen boys are actually talking about. It's all well and good to talk about building community and providing stories in all forms, but many of those teens are coming to the library to play PS3- exclusive games (like Uncharted) because they do not have the console at home. After gaming they go home, sign onto Xbox Live and play Halo or Call of Duty(which no one in the profession can talk about because they are rated M).

Houston has a great program and kudos to them, I'm not writing this to critique their idea. But is does the profession no good to keep publishing the same article about gaming over and over. This is not Gaming 2.0, it is not progress to reaching new populations or imparting new knowledge to the readership. The most successful part of this program is the purchase of the PS3, a console that has not yet saturated the gaming market. Providing teens what they want is essential. Providing what they already have is no way to convince new users to leave their rooms and play at the library. Of course that is not mentioned in the article.

"children today have entire conversations that take place using a cultural frame of reference that comes from video games."

That is a great defense for providing access to gaming, but it isn't backed up by the choice of games Houston is offering. Teens are not talking about the narrative of Little Big Planet or the sports titles because there IS no story. And they aren't talking about Ghost Recon or Mortal Kombat because they don't care. If Houston was concerned with being relevant to today's teens they would not have selected games teens are actively not playing by choice and not by limited access.

Listing unappealing titles like Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe and Ghost Recon are just going to encourage librarians to buy those games for their own gaming programs. At some point libraries have to deal with the fact that Call of Duty and Halo are the most played, most demanded, most recognized titles. Teens ARE playing these games, teens are talking about them. Why aren't we?

Successful Ongoing Gaming

Here is an interesting article this week in American Libraries, revving folks up for National Gaming Day @ Your Library (which, no, we did not plan anything for...should we next year?). It focuses on the work the Houston Public Library has done to incorporate gaming into both their kids and teen spaces.

I love how it focuses on the community that has evolved around teens who are fans of the program:

What we discovered after a month or two was the formation of a community.... Players encourage each other through the most challenging games and play in a good-natured way that encourages others to join in. We have a library full of engaged teen boys and our only real issues have been language and trash from our two vending machines.

Many of our teens ride the bus for at least an hour or more to get to the Central Library and they do it on an almost daily basis. They have learned to cooperate and participate with other teens from all over the city. Race, age, and ability have little to do with whether or not they can join a group playing. They teach each other and learn from each other daily.

I wish we could offer ongoing programming like this...sounds like a great idea!

Apple Tries to Censor Teen Sexting

Salon (and a variety of other sources) ran an article this week on Apple's attempt to introduce anti-sexting software. Aside from the ethical issues around trying to control the communications of people, this article nails a couple of very good points:

Good luck trying to keep up with ever-mutating teenage slang; they will find a way to say naughty things, even it means subversively co-opting wholesome phrases. If anyone can turn something as benign-sounding as "I'm going to church to pray" into secret code for nefarious behavior, it's teenagers.

and

I can't help but think that parents' best bet in trying to protect their kids will be as it has always been: to communicate with them -- preferably face-to-face.

Bingo!

Of especial interest to teen librarians: "The average 13- to 17-year-old sends and receives 3,339 texts a month -- more than 100 per day." If we can't find a way to connect with teens at this level, will we disappear completely below their radar?

What do you think?

Video Gamers and Reading

David found a useful article that came out of the 2010 ALSC Institute:

Redefining Story
Jennifer M. Brown

Is there a difference between playing a video game and reading a story? Both have characters and a plot, and involve picking up visual and textual clues in order to move forward. Does it matter if one is on a screen and the other is on the page? Are gamers also readers? These questions formed the crux of the discussion at a panel called "Transforming Gamers into Readers" at the 2010 ALSC (Association of Library Service to Children) Institute held September 23-24 in Atlanta, Ga...

Includes suggestions for getting gamers reading, including book recommendations, magazines and podcasts.

Databases on smart phones

This blog post on SLJ gives you a bit of a heads up on things we'll only see more of in the next few years.

Here's a demonstration:

Telling Teens It Gets Better

How many times do you hear of a tormented teen who has ended their life, and wish you could have told them it will get better? Dan Savage and his partner Terry created the It Gets Better Project, specifically in response to the suicides of bullied gay teens and their wish to prevent others from doing the same. They are encouraging others to make their own videos of love and encouragement, and a large number of people have already submitted one.

Here is Dan and Terry's:



Honestly, I think any struggling teen could benefit from hearing this message.

Please share with kids you know.

SnoGLOBE Gay-Straight Alliance Event

SnoGLOBE and PFLAG are sponsoring a a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) event for "youth, advisors, friends and family who might want to attend. It will be an "open mic" event for youth to participate in spoken word poetry, music, comedy or other forms of entertainment. It is also a way to meet other youth participating in GSAs. We hope you can join us."

This will take place Saturday October 2nd, from 3-6pm in Everett at 2804 Grand Ave.

Please share this with youth you feel might be interested!

Skype and Libraries

I'd heard about Skype for ages, but never tried it myself until I was at a family reunion in Texas last month and had the opportunity to chat with my cousin in Japan. It was so wonderful, we talked for 2 hours! By the end of the conversation, I felt like I knew her much better, and had the basic plans for a vacation underway.

Now I'm twice as determined to find ways to use this simple tool to enhance our library services. I'm been hoping to organize some author visits with bookgroups, but now with Skype's announcement of 10-way video/audio calling...I'm thinking it is time to try some online bookgroups with it!

Do any of you have experience with it? What would you like to try?

CAYAS Workshops

This fall's CAYAS Workshop focuses on teens. From the CAYAS website:

Meeting the Challenge of Supporting and Engaging the Teens in Your Library

Presented by David Wilmes, Director of St. Paul Youth Services and Karen Kolb Peterson, Youth Services Coordinator, Saint Paul Public Libraries.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010
King County Library System Service Center
Issaquah, WA
9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Thursday, November 4, 2010
North Central Regional Library Headquarters
Wenatchee, WA
9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

More info to come on the CAYAS site.

Mukilteo Library to be a Teens' Top Ten

Congratulations to the Mukilteo Library, whose combined teen book group and teen writing group have been selected by YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) to be a Teens' Top Ten nominating group! For the next two years this group will receive ARCs (Advance Readers Copies) of upcoming books to review, discuss and nominate to be part of YALSA's Teens' Top Ten list, which is voted on in August to September of each year.

Happy news for the enthusiastic readers of Mukilteo :)

Emerging Adults at the Library

Recently in Teen Services circles there has been a lot of talk about how we can best serve 18-24 year olds. Many of them do not want to leave the comfort of our teen areas or stop going to teen programs. Libraries across the country have come up with a variety of approaches. Some feel that to best serve both teens and these young adults continuing to keep firm boundaries of age limits at programs aids in emotional development. Others feel that to stop serving teens once they turn 19 is a type of abandonment. Will we hurt services to teens if we try to cater to this group? Should adult services be working harder to provide for them? What do we do when teen areas are filled with 20 somethings fraternizing with 13 year olds? How do we help them set appropriate boundaries?

These are questions we will be discussing at our September Teen Services meeting. Until then I'm hoping everyone attending will read this article and be prepared to discuss:

What is it About 20-Somethings?
By ROBIN MARANTZ HENIG
Published: August 18, 2010

There is a movement: movement to view the 20s as a distinct life stage, which he calls “emerging adulthood.” He says what is happening now is analogous to what happened a century ago, when social and economic changes helped create adolescence — a stage we take for granted but one that had to be recognized by psychologists, accepted by society and accommodated by institutions that served the young."

If you won't be attending this meeting, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this complex subject in the comments!

Perhaps Twitter Can Help?

I'm personally a fan of Twitter, so while I've read that almost no teens use it and only a slim minority of Internet users in general even dabble in it, I found this article heartening:

Twitter Users Get Up Close and Personal With Brands by Jack LoechnerA new study released by ExactTarget finds consumers who are active on Twitter are three times more likely to impact a brand's online reputation through syndicated Tweets, blog posts, articles and product reviews than the average consumer.

The study supported the general findings that microbloggers have many reasons to follow brands they like. Though discounts and sales are toward the top of the list, news and information about a company and its products are primary. The survey of more than 1,500 consumers identifies top motivations for following brands on Twitter and provides new insight into consumers' expectations for interacting with brands online.

I was surprised when I spoke to a group of 7th graders yesterday to find some did use Twitter. I'd be interested in seeing how we might be able to connect with these kids and use their feedback and enthusiasm to strengthen our brand and spread the word. Ideas?

Hotels Join the Struggle to Captivate Teens

Hotel resorts are struggling to find entertainment options for teens, otherwise they get bored and do things like "take pool chairs and throw them in the pool".

The Toughest Guest: a Teen
Hotels Try to Make Family Trips Fun; Mocktails Are OK, Dark Bonfires Aren't
By ANDREA PETERSEN

The key to attracting teens, some hotels say, is giving them grown-up experiences—and setting limits. When Atlantis did a focus group with 50 teenagers earlier this year to find out what they wanted in a new teen club, the participants asked for the oversized beds popular in some adult spots, hot tubs and "cages to dance in," says Amanda Felts, vice president of guest activities and resort planning. "That's not going to happen."

Much in this article reminds me of lessons libraries have already learned. Kids who enjoyed programs in their single digit years, won't necessarily just go along with programs aimed at teens. One kid saying the activity is stupid can drive out a whole crowd. And one cute girl can have the opposite effect. And bribery works ;)

YALSA's President's Program - Free and Online

This year YALSA's President was Linda Braun and her theme was Risky Business. One of the risks she took was endeavoring to put the entire 2010 President's Program online for free. It is a great program, with excellent speakers. If you can find an hour to watch it, I highly recommend doing so. We have also purchased Linda's new book: Risky business : taking and managing risks in library services for teens which is available in our professional collection.

The part I find most exciting is what the guests from the Search Institute have to say about their new initiative focusing on Sparks. The 40 Developmental Assets talk about what kids and teens need to thrive, but this is about what next? How can we ignite the hidden talents and strengths of the teens we work with? What are those secret things they get excited about, but are scared to bring forth because no one believes in them? I think this could be a wonderful follow up action for our Teen Project. I'd love to hear what y'all think of it, too.

Banned Books Week Coming Up

Banned Books Week is September 25−October 2, 2010. If you are planning a program for your teens, don't forget our publicity deadline for September is July 22nd.

Perhaps you would like to show movie versions of some banned books? Or maybe have readings of passages from banned books?

Or maybe you just want to make a display? Here are some ideas!

What fabulous things have you done in the past for this event?

Interesting Article on Dystopian Fiction for Teens

There is an interesting article on the New Yorker site this week about teen fiction:

Fresh Hell
What’s behind the boom in dystopian fiction for young readers?
by Laura Miller

The adult dystopia extrapolates from aspects of the present to show readers how terrible things will become if our deplorable behavior continues unchecked. The more utterly the protagonist is crushed, the more urgent and forceful the message. Because authors of children’s fiction are “reluctant to depict the extinction of hope within their stories,” Sambell writes, they equivocate when it comes to delivering a moral. Yes, our errors and delusions may lead to catastrophe, but if—as usually happens in dystopian novels for children—a new, better way of life can be assembled from the ruins would the apocalypse really be such a bad thing?

What are your thoughts? Favorites?

Our Post-Apocalyptic and Dystopian teen fiction list, created by Jocelyn.

Steampunk and Teens

Steampunk certainly does seem to be growing. But does it have the strong appeal with teens that has been forecast?

Here is a panel from BEA with Scott Westerfeld, Cherie Priest and Cory Doctorow that explores "Steampunkery: Why are today's teens embracing 19th-century technologies?"

Steampunk Panel - SLJ Day of Dialog, BEA 2010 from School Library Journal on Vimeo.

What do you think? Are your teens into it?

Adorable Teen Clique: Texas Werewolves

Ok, this isn't groundbreaking news. Teens want a group they can feel is their own. This clip from a local San Antonio news show captures this perfectly.



I'm amused that they claim they are not trying to get attention.

Any interesting groups evolving in your communities?