Librarians Pop-Up on Groundhog Day

You never know where the WoW! Pop-Up Library will pop up...or when.


Fairwinds and fun reading.

On Groundhog Day, Kenny Abramowitz, Joanna Chase, and Terrance Mc Arthur set up a Pop-Up at the Fairwinds-Woodward Park retirement community in north Fresno, bringing more than 100 books and videos to peruse and check out.

What Is This?
People have questions about the Fresno County Public Library's Pop-Ups:

The WoW! Pop-Up packs a lot of library into a little space.

• Is this a book sale?--These are library books, DVDs, and CDs to check out. It's a mini library branch for lending books, not selling them.
• How do I return the books?--The Community Pop-Up Library goes to different places at different times, instead of on a schedule. Library materials may be returned to any of the public library branches in Fresno County, or as far away as Merced, Mariposa, and Bakersfield.
• Do I have to have a library card?-- Materials are checked out with a user's library card, and  WoW! processes new library cards on the spot. Cardholders who don't have their cards with them may check out with proper ID.

  

  Joanna makes a card at Fairwinds.

• What if I don't see what I want?-- The Pop-Up Library is a sampler of library services and materials. Each event helps our staff learn what people want, and the goal is to match the books to the people we meet: children's and parenting books at a school night, cookbooks for a gardening group.
• How can I request a Pop-Up Library near me?--The Pop-Up Request Form on this blog site is designed to help library service users sign up to have a pop-up at their location or event. Filing a request more than two weeks in advance increases the chances of WoW! staff being available. Back-to-School night, church potluck, or shopping center--the Wow! Pop-Up Library can be there!

Why Pop-Up Libraries Pop Up--Part Three

What does it take to make a pop-up library? Pop-up libraries are able to go where no bookmobile has gone before, from out in fields to inside buildings. Pop-up services need to be planned and prepared before they go out in public.

It's like a whole library in the back of one Prius.  

 

You Need...

 

Library Personnel--Librarians and Library Assistants help the public with services and decisions. Sometimes, there are community volunteers, and they can be a lot of help.

 

How many volunteers does it take to assemble a table?

 

Laptop computer(s) (with software that lets you make library cards and check out books outside of the library).

Hotspot (Portable Wi-Fi connection), Barcode Scanner (for checkouts, checkins, and checking up on stuff), Receipt Printer (if a plug-in is available), and Due Date Reminders (if a plug-in isn't available).

Library Cards, Card Applications (We want more people to be able to use our libraries).
Tables, Shelves,  Chairs, Floor Cover/Cushions (for storytime events), Canopy (Just in case).

30-200 library books/DVDs/Books on CD (for checkout, so you can take things home for a few weeks).

Pop-up libraries include a wide variety of books and media. Check it out, then check them out. 

 

Flyers/giveaways (Library information, stickers, buttons, pens, bags)

Tally Sheet (So we know how many people we talk to, how many library cards we make, and how many items people check out)

Transport Dolly (to carry more stuff in less trips)

Here are the building blocks that make up a pop-up library.

 

Here is how it all fits together for a Community Pop-Up, outdoors.

 

This is a Senior Pop-Up, indoors.

 

Do you have an event or place that needs a pop-up? Fill out our WoW! Pop-Up Request Form.

Why Pop-Up Libraries Pop Up--Part Two

The Fresno County Public Library has two pop-up programs--the Senior Pop-Up Library and the Community Pop-Up Library--bringing services to events and people that might not be able to use a regular library building. Around the world are other pop-ups, too. Here are some of the different ways books and people can get together....

 Colorado--Pedal-powered library.

 

 

Texas--Supermarket storytime.

 

 

  New York City--Seats and shelves.

 

England--Old booths, new libraries. 

 

 

 France--Books on the beach.

 

 

Mongolia--A pop-up camel?

 

 

 Fresno--Community Pop-Up.

 

 

Fresno--Senior Pop-Up

 

 

Pop-up libraries come in many shapes and sizes, but they always have exciting things to see, hear, or read. The FCPL Pop-Up Libraries are loaded with cool stuff. Watch for them.



 

Why Pop-Up Libraries Pop Up - Part One

Pop-Up Libraries

A pop-up library uses technology to provide library services in remote locations. It can be indoors or outdoors, be a card-table set-up or resemble a full-service library. A pop-up library can provide many services in many combinations, including:

·         Making library cards—The first step in library use is getting a library card. Library software and wi-fi access at an event means you don't have to go to a library building to get a library card.

·        Library checkout/checkin—The materials brought to an event fit the occasion: children’s books to a summer-reading kickoff, cookbooks and books on plants at a gardening center, and more. With a library card, you can check out and take home books, CDs, and DVDs.

·         Demonstration of library resources—with an Internet-connected laptop, tablet, or a smartphone, the library home page and online resources are a click away.

·         Explanation of library policies—Many people are surprised to learn that most items they check out do not have to be returned to the branch where they were borrowed, that our online databases are free, and you can get e-books for most devices...free. 

·         Placing holds—You want a book we didn't bring? Request items and pick them up at a local branch. It's easy to do with remote computer access.

·         Storytimes—Library staff love to read stories to groups of children. Our storytimes model early literacy techniques that families can use.

·         Crafts—Simple craft projects attract children and adults.

·         Flyers and brochures—They promote library events and services, providing a reminder of what the public has seen and heard.

       



Today's technology helps the library take its services into the community. The Pop-Up library uses technology and library know-how.

Stay tuned for more posts on Pop-Up Library services, why they are done, and how a Pop-Up Library is planned.

If you would like the WoW! WithOut Walls Library to Pop-Up at your event in Fresno County, fill out or request form-  WoW! Pop-Up Request Form 

WoW! on the Air

The WoW! Library team will go anywhere to tell people about library services. On October 5, Terrance Mc Arthur appeared on KMPH-26's "Great Day" morning program. on their "@ the Library" segment, he talked about the WoW! program, the Community Pop-Up Library, and the Senior Pop-Up Library.

http://kmph-kfre.com/great-day/at-the-library/at-the-library-105-wow-program

The Pop-Up Library program takes library service outside of the branch buildings and brings it to events and locations all over Fresno County. If you see us, walk up and say, "Hi!" We're friendly.

WoW!

Signing off.

Pop-Up Senior Library Pilot

Once a month, a couple of WoW! librarians load up 200 items into a WoW! car and hit the road.  We’re taking our services inside several senior residences in the county – bringing library services to people who cannot always make it to a local branch on their own. 

 

It all started with this question: how can we better serve the seniors in our community?  The FCPLCommunity Bookmobile had been visiting a number of senior residences.  It seemed like such a simple idea of taking the services of the Bookmobile inside these locations.   We have six select locations that we are visiting during our pilot program.

 

The response has been fantastic.  We’ve made dozens of library cards for new users.  In some locations, we’re getting to more users because they no longer require a staff member to assist them outside to the Bookmobile – we come to them in their activities room!  We are building some great relationships with our new friends, some of whom are voracious readers. 

 

Our collection for this pilot program includes:  fiction, non-fiction, large print selections, audio books and DVDs.  Also included are New & Now selections (newly published and popular books). 

Each time we visit these locations, we spend time doing some one-on-one readers' advisory with the residents to find out what items they’d like to see us bring the following visit.  Many residents also make specific book requests each month, too.  These requests are delivered to WoW! and added to our collection of materials that we’ll take out that month. 

Some of our new friends face barriers to reading – physically holding a book or a visual impairment.  Each time we make a visit, we are coming across seniors who we can sign up for the Talking Book Library. Because we’re bringing our services inside to them, we’re able to talk to new people every time we visit, and figure out if there are ways for FCPL to provide some services to them.

So far, the Pop-Up Senior Libraries have been a great success, both for the library and for the seniors we're serving.  Response from the seniors and the staffs at the residences has been overwhelmingly positive.

Some Days Are Special

Some people think that librarians are boring, that they don’t want people to have any fun, that they practice shushing exercises in their free time. Being a librarian can be a downer, but there are some days————

 

When I was at one of our Pop-Up Library events, a woman came to the library table and said, “Do you see that boy?”

She was pointing to a young man who was near high-school age, and she said, “I used to bring him to storytimes at your branch!”

I felt old, because it has been a long time since I read stories at that branch. She talked with me for a while, excited about the library’s new services like e-books and databases. It was a pleasant chat.

After she went away, I tried to tidy up our display. There were books to check out, information flyers about the library, and library giveaways: stickers, pens, and bags. I also had a stack of magnetic white-boards for note-writing on your refrigerator. One of them had some writing on it. I almost erased it until I read the message:

“Thank you Library”

 That was one of the special days.

Pop-Up Here, Pop-Up There, Everywhere....

Even with more than 35 locations all over Fresno County, sometimes you can’t get to the Fresno County Public Library. With all of today’s technology, there ought to be a way to set up a mini- library in places where a bookmobile wouldn’t fit.

AHA!

Introducing the Pop-Up Library!

We take some library staff, tables, shelves, books, computers, and a wi-fi hotspot, and we have an instant library. Add an awning for outside events, and the Pop-Up Library is ready to make new library cards, check out materials, and make people happy.

Last week, a Pop-Up Library was part of the Summer Reading Challenge Kickoff at Fresno’s Discovery Center. Mark Halvorsen and Terrance Mc Arthur (librarians from the WoW! Library division) made 17 library cards and checked out more than a dozen books in three hours.

Right now, the Pop-Up library is in its testing stage.  You might find it at a gardening center, loaded with books on plants and cooking. It might show up at a farmer’s market with popular novels. It could even be at a child-centered location, packed with picture books, beginning-reader books, and kid fiction.

So, look for the Fresno County Public Library’s Pop-Up Library. You never know where it will Pop-Up!

WoW!