Happy December! Here is an updated roundup of news and articles regarding literacy, libraries, and library professionals.
Literacy Night in Community-Host a literacy night that focuses on library services and the Five Activities to Raise a Reader to encourage children and their families who otherwise might not come into the library to further develop their literacy skills.
Striking the Right Balance: Opportunities and Challenges of AI in Metadata Workflows–ArtificiaI Intelligence (AI) holds significant potential for improving metadata workflows, offering tools to enhance efficiency, improve discovery, and address long-standing challenges in libraries. Yet, as with any transformative technology, AI adoption requires thoughtful consideration of its limitations, ethical implications, and impact on professional practice. The key is finding the right balance—one that leverages AI’s capabilities while maintaining the quality and professional standards that libraries depend on.
Solve This!: Gameify Readers’ Advisory with Virtual Escape Rooms–If you have never played a virtual escape room before, you are in for a treat! These programs are puzzle-filled adventures based around a theme. Instead of real-life puzzles, each is created and played on a computer. By solving each of the clues, you can “escape” the room. If you want to try one, a library in Kentucky has a full list of free online escape rooms for you to try!
Library of Congress’ New Anywhere Adventures Features Wyoming Monument–The 2025 Innovator in Residence project, Anywhere Adventures, has officially launched! The brainchild of comics artist and web developer Vivian Li, Anywhere Adventures invites the public to engage with the histories of three locations: Li’s home of Seattle, Washington, and two other communities selected through a crowdsourcing campaign earlier this— Southeastern Wyoming and Chicago, Illinois.
Exploring Literary Movements with your Book Club: Modernist Literature–The Modernist literary movement was a revolutionary force that fundamentally reshaped the landscape of literature. By moving away from traditional forms and embracing experimentation, fragmentation, and psychological depth, it captured the profound sense of change and uncertainty that defined the early 20th century. The innovations of writers like Barnes, Woolf, and Hemingway not only mirrored the anxieties of their time but also established a new artistic paradigm that continues to influence contemporary literature, ensuring Modernism’s legacy as a pivotal moment in the history of art and ideas. This blog post explains more about this important movement and how to incorporate its books and authors into your library’s programming.
News in Easy English: What is an AI librarian?-Visitors to a certain library in Japan’s capital were greeted by a poster reading, “Please try the ‘AI (artificial intelligence) librarian!'” But what is an AI librarian?
Evaluating Books About Youth with Disabilities-As librarians, it is essential to highlight individuals with disabilities in our programs and our collections. However, it is also necessary to critically evaluate titles that are in your collection or that you are considering adding to the collection to ensure that they portray people with disabilities in an appropriate manner. This blog explores how.
Homeschool Support with Library Programs-Libraries can do more to support homeschooling families through targeted programming. This blog offers a glimpse at the homeschool program developed by one library and how it has evolved to support off-site field trips and in-library meetings.