Monica LaVold started at the River Falls Library just before the Summer Library Program hit, and she's still with us, which is a great sign, I think! You'll all enjoy getting to know this thoughtful, enthusiastic person! Here she is, all agog as she holds an original painting by Clement Hurd from Good Night Moon at the Kerlan Collection at the University of Minnesota.
What
is something you’ve discovered you really enjoy about your job as youth
services librarian in River Falls?
I think my favorite
part so far is meeting and getting to know the families that come in. I am new
to this position – I was hired in April – and fairly new to being a Librarian,
so I have been learning and discovering new aspects of the job almost nonstop.
Being in youth services is very much a dream job for me, so it is equally hard
to think of a part of this job that I don’t
enjoy. I love people, so being able to be a part of a community and to support
that community through my work is a huge joy for me. I really like book clubs,
because I think so much happens there – literacy development, social
development, communication skills, and relationship building. I love to watch a
shy or introverted kid find a way to express themselves or feel like they are heard
and respected.
What’s
something you’d like to do at the library if you had unlimited time and money?
Great question! And so
hard to answer. I feel like I have been so immersed in figuring out what I am
doing and how I am want to change things here in River Falls (or not change, as the case may be) that I
am more focused on the here and now than on the “what if” of the future. One
thing that I would love to do would be to bring in some writing programs –
poetry, creative writing, etc. that kids and teens could attend and practice
writing in a fun way. I also would like to start an Anime and Manga program for
teens here at some point. I am sure as I am here longer, my “wish
list” will grow even larger.
How
do you think your experiences as a teacher and mom are informing your current
work as a librarian?
I worked as an
Elementary teacher for a few years before becoming a stay-at-home mom for 5
years. Both of these have been invaluable to not only getting this job, but
being successful at it. Being a teacher gave me a lot of insight into
development – and how that is SO different for every child. I have actually
worked as a special education teacher, focusing mainly on Emotional and
Behavioral Disorders, which is a huge umbrella covering a number of disabilities
such as Autism, ADHD, and even Conduct Disorder. I think the most important
thing I have taken from that experience is that everyone, no matter the label,
is an individual and needs to be respected as such. We do not fit into perfect
“boxes” – none of us. Being a mom has really backed this up! I have two boys,
ages 10 and 12, and they are SO different. They learn differently, grow
differently and even communicate differently. I can’t assume that if one child
responds to something, the other one will, too. I think that has made me a
better librarian, because I am prepared to adjust and be flexible with
programs, ideas, and even book choices. We are just not a one-size-fits-all
world, and I don’t want to fall into the trap of working that way.
Tell
us about a book you’ve read or audiobook you’ve listened to recently that you
really enjoyed. Why was it so good?
I recently read John
Green’s entire body of work and am completely blown away by him as an author. I
can’t stop telling people to read him. I think that The Fault in Our Stars might just be one of my top favorite books
ever. I was trying to figure out why it was so amazing, and I think it is
because he handles such a touchy subject – death – with humor and with a voice
that is so realistic and genuine that it just strikes a perfect emotional
chord. Not over sweet and simpering, but not dismissively funny either. I think
it just felt beautifully and terribly true. I also need to try to read some
“grown-up” books from time to time, just to remind myself that I am an adult,
and I have been listening to Jim Butcher’s Furies
of Calderon series
lately. It is pure escapist fantasy and does a nice job of distracting my brain
from daily worries. I just checked out InGenius:
A Crash Course on Creative Thinking and am pretty excited to start that one
next.
What is something that makes you excited (in life and/or at the
library)?
I am a HUGE extrovert,
so I get excited pretty easily and no problem showing it. I am excited by so
many things that are happening right now. My family and I moved to River Falls
just 2 months ago and I am excited to be a part of this community and to see my
kids succeeding in school and making great friends.
At the library, we started
a Young Adult for Adult book group this summer, and I am very excited about
that. It has been a great way to get parents and other adults in the community
reading Teen books – and we have the most amazing discussions about them –
discussions that delve much more deeply into the philosophy and background of the
books that I normally get in a teen book group.
I am excited when I can connect
a child or a teen with a book that really resonates with them – because I think
that is the heart of what we do. I LOVE that! When I can really turn someone on
to a great book, and they then seek out more, it just makes me want to do a
happy dance right at the library (and yes, I do dance a bit).
What
is an activity/action rhyme/book/song that you have found works especially well
with kids?
In this, I have to give
a huge THANK YOU to Jodi Bird in Menomonie who is acting as my mentor and has
given me a few tips and ideas for doing story times. I had very little story time experience when I started this past spring
and it is an area that I still want to explore and learn more. But, Jodi gave
me a number of short activities she and her coworkers have used over the years,
and I have borrowed and adapted a few.
One of them “What do I have in my bag
today” I have taken and made a central part of both my toddler and preschool
aged story times. I have a “letter of the day” kind of theme, and we
do finger plays and stories that feature that letter. Then I have a bag of
items that start with that letter, and I sing “what do I have in my bag today”
and pull out those items. With the preschoolers, I have them guess and come up
with ideas of things that might start with the letter of the day, while with
the toddlers, I simply pull them out and have them name them and say the words.
I think the kids enjoy it.
Anything
more?
Being so new, I
think it is easy for me to feel overwhelmed and wonder how I can be doing
“better”. I think one of my favorite things about choosing librarianship as a
career is that we are so helpful and communal. Also, I think this is the best
job in the world for someone who wants to keep growing, learning and trying new
things. I wish I could thank every librarian who has ever helped me out, freely
shared tips, techniques, and ideas, and given me things to think about and
ideas to learn from. I am so honored to be numbered among you.
Labels: meet a librarian