Cool Ideas for Hot Summer Teen Programming
Dodie Ownes -- School Library Journal, 6/17/2009
This month marks the start of summer reading programs across the country, and it’s clear that this year’s Collaborative Summer Library Program theme for young adults, Express yourself @ the library, is a winner with both teens and youth services librarians. But there’s more to summer programming than books! Here’s a quick round-up of some fun, low-cost programs that will have teens returning to the library again and again.Hoover Public Library in Alabama is challenging teens to “create a brand-new summer soundtrack.” How? By sponsoring a used CD swap! And while the rewards of getting a new-to-you CD may be prize enough, the library has rounded up prizes for the person that brings in the “cheesiest” CD. And Albany County Public Library in Laramie, WY, is sponsoring a “make your own play list” night, where teens can make a soundtrack for their favorite book.
The Teen Summer Passport Program sponsored by Oakland Public Library in California encourages young adults to visit Bay Area hot spots and get their passports stamped in order to win prizes and enter a raffle for cool tech tools. Travelers can also get passport stamps for writing reviews, submitting artwork, or volunteering at the library.
King County Library System in Washington knows that teens will be reading a lot of books this summer, and wants to get their opinions on the record—via YouTube. The Read.Flip.Win Video Book Review Contest asks middle through high school students to make a short video, post it on YouTube with a special tag, and enter to win. The prizes are Flip video cameras, of course.
Young people ages 5 to 18 are invited to contribute their writings to the Magic Story Box at Pima County Public Library in Tucson. As summer draws to a close, stories will be chosen and made into live performances by Stories That Soar, a local nonprofit literacy and performing arts group.
Teen thespians can celebrate the Bard for a full week in August at Memorial Hall Library in Andover, MA. The afternoon workshops include set design, costuming, and, of course, acting. Adams County Library System in Gettysburg, PA, is running a Teen Summer Shakespeare film series, including a marathon of movies based on Romeo and Juliet and other classics.
At Point-Claire Public Library in Québec, Canada, teens will have the opportunity to play Monopoly on a life-sized game board! Each participant will be a playing piece in the game, and teams will have the chance to win prizes. Are TV game shows more your style? Then check out the Wizard Jeopardy event organized by Indian Prairie Hills Library in Darien, IL. Fans of J. K. Rowling’s books can score big and win a pass to the Harry Potter exhibit currently at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
Sports fans will have celebrities delivered to them in College Station, Texas, as part of the Larry J. Ringer Public Library’s teen summer program. Eight athletes from Texas A&M University will take part in the Autograph the Stars event. Best part? Free snow cones!
