he summer reading program is the focal point of a children's librarian's year, requiring countless hours of preparation and nearly year-round promotion. Summer reading programs for teens and adults are also offered in many communities, adding to that workload and bringing together librarians from different departments to accomplish the required tasks. In a single volume, Successful Summer Reading Programs for All Ages: A Practical Guide for Librarians provides the tools necessary to put together successful summer reading programs for each of these different age groups. Key elements include: * Sample program ideas for early childhood, school-age, teen, and adult readers to suit any summer reading theme *Best practices for promoting summer reading to the community *Troubleshooting for common difficulties associated with summer reading programs *Tips and tricks for using software programs to manage registration and track readers' progress Public librarians serving children, teens, and/or adults will find everything they need to put together a successful summer reading program in this comprehensive handbook.

Story time is a popular activity in public libraries. Unfortunately, many librarians (and not just children's librarians) are thrust into the role of providing this service have not taken a course or had the necessary experience of performing story times. Story times are so popular that they are now offered to children of many ages, not just to preschoolers. This book will help librarians who have never done story time to learn to promote, plan, and perform story times, and will be useful to experienced librarians to build on their story time repertoires. Because story times are essential components of library service to children and in such demand, in many libraries, even librarians who have never done story time before are being asked to step into that role. Story Time Success: A Practical Guide for Librarians is comprehensive handbook which can help any librarian learn to promote, plan, and perform story times even with no prior training or experience. Key elements include: *Customizable planning templates *Hints for choosing appropriate books and other materials *Suggestions for overcoming performance anxiety *Troubleshooting for common story time problems and pitfalls *Evaluation rubrics for performers and supervisors Veterans and beginners alike will find many useful pointers for establishing and improving their story time skills and repertoires.

If you have ever waded through a rambling case summary, a jargon-heavy program description, or a poorly organized training manual, you are aware of how important it is for human service agencies' written materials to be clear and concise. Whether in print or electronic format, most agencies must provide information to a variety of audiences. Ames and FitzGerald have developed a guide to help human service professionals clearly communicate valuable information to board members, funding sources, volunteers, and-perhaps most importantly-clients with limited literacy skills. The book highlights how readers can apply readability guidelines to improve all of the print and electronic materials agencies use to communicate with internal and external audiences. Whether creating a brochure, sending an email, writing a grant, or documenting case records, human service professionals can make their messages clear and understandable by following the guide's simple rules and practical suggestions.