This week, the activities at the library were a little slower than normal. For my hours this week I worked answering children's reference questions and I hosted an event. Many of the questions were about locating biographies. Apparently a majority of the elementary schools in my area are having their students read biographies and work on a project or a report. Many of the students I helped were in the third grade. What was different was the subject of the book. Since February is Black History Month some students needed to find a book on African American individuals. Other kids just needed biographies on any person of their interest. I have worked with children before and answered reference questions, however, this week I really realized how different the reference interview is with children versus adults. While both require similar questions, the responses from children differ greatly than those typically given by adults.
In addition to children's reference, I hosted event this week. A co-worker of mine hurt his leg this week so he was out sick. Due to this, I unexpectedly had to host Anime Club this afternoon. Normally, an episode or two of a Manga episode is shown. Unfortunately our projector is out of service this week. So, I had to scramble to find an activity for the participants. After speaking with my mentor, Christina, we decided to have the children draw their own manga cartoon. We provided them with several books from the collection on how to draw manga and cartoons as well as snacks and treats. The picture below is of the room and the tables I set up for this event. Overall I think it went well. I do think it would have been much better if I had had more time to prepare. It did teach me though that I can create an event last minute! Which can be a good skill to have!
