Did I say last week was busy? Silly me. I meant THIS week. THIS week was busy.
Our story times got so crowded, we finally added another one. We spoke with the director of one of the day camps, and instead of sending 30 or so kids each day, they will send them all together on a new morning, and they will have their own private story time. This will free up some space in the regular story times, and I won't literally be stepping on children (not to mention violating that pesky little fire marshal sign on the wall.)
They were REALLY nice about rearranging their entire schedule, I know it took a lot of shuffling when they had just started getting into their summer groove, and we appreciate it! I know some libraries (just a few) seem to feel like daycares are the enemy, and some won't even allow them to come to programs. That seems a bit counterproductive to me - any groups that work with children should be allies, not adversaries, and if the daycare doesn't bring them to the library, who will? Obviously, their parents work during the day, and I know once I get home in the evening, the last thing I want to do is run back out again, for whatever reason.
That brought us to this morning's family program, magician Tall Paul. Since we wouldn't need tables for crafts, I figured there would be plenty of room for everyone to sit and watch. Wrong. We had...well, let's just say a number that was not quite consistent with the maximum capacity.
Leetle bit crowded. And warm. Very warm! But the kids were all fantastic, and Tall Paul handled the crowd beautifully. Parents had nothing but good things to say afterward, and we will definitely want to have him back.
Next week we have Andy Mason (aka The Pizza Guy), who I think we can safely call a summer reading staple. We are going to try this one outside on the library lawn! Today would have been perfect weather for it - nice cool breeze, families enjoying lunch under the trees. Anybody predicting rain for the 22nd??? We'll make it work somehow! With the city pool temporarily out of commission, we seem to be 'it' for entertainment most days, and that's great. One of our stated goals is to give kids of all ages something free and productive to do over the summer, and the more we can do that for, the merrier!
(But, if any philanthropic millionaires are reading this, we REALLY could use a bigger meeting room.)
We had a bad experience with a daycare - I told them they could bring 5 kids and even with 2 or 3 adults they couldn't control the kids! That was when we discovered the walls were, indeed, washable...now my director does not want any groups to attend storytime. We couldn't have them anyways - our storytime room holds 80 and once the craft tables are out really only 50 with comfort. Our toddler storytimes sometimes hit the 70s and everything else averages at least 40.
ReplyDeleteUgh, nothing is worse than groups with clueless adults - be that families or daycares. Each Spring I send out a friendly but stern letter to the daycares/camps letting them know about signups, etc., and reminding them to stay with their charges. I tell them basically that if other parents are shushing their kids, it's past time for them to step in! Then when we have groups that are really on the ball, I call the director and let him/her know. I know one director has gone out and bought slushies for the group leaders after such calls. It has taken a couple years, but I rarely have to remind someone now to take care of their own kids (daycares, anyway - parents are still a whole 'nother story!)
ReplyDeleteThat sounds good - it's no longer an issue since that daycare closed and there is now no daycare within walking distance. Occasionally the big daycare/preschool outside of town buses kids in, but they are super well-behaved. Parents are indeed another story...
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