With so many people returning to school right now, reference services are needed more than ever. This week, a lady came in needing materials in order to answer a take-home essay test. She is a non-traditional student enrolled in the child education program at a local community college.
The patron's test had six questions and she wanted one reference for each question as back-up for her answers. This was a bit challenging, as it was a sociology course and I had Sociology 101 about sixteen years ago (grimace). Luckily for me, she had brought her text book. Using the text book, I was able to find the right subject terminology to find the reference materials she needed. Hopefully, I managed to get her off to a good start.
Next, she needed to use a computer to type a paper she'd written. One thing concerned me: like many folks around here, this patron had no computer at home and did not appear overly familiar with computers and their accessories. In other words, if something went wrong with the computer, this lady had no way to back up her work. I suggested she get herself a thumb drive and carry with her to save her work. I also told her she might look into Google Docs, which she could access from anywhere with nothing to have to carry with her.
This encounter got me thinking about suggesting that the library offer a class in using Web 2.0 apps. I'll have to speak to Melissa about it when she has a moment next week.
Every month, the local library holds a "Lunching with Books" event, which happened to be this week. The event featured author and illustrator, Laurie Parker, a native of Mississippi. She reviewed her latest book, Garden Alphabet. Parker's medium for her books is collage art. The end result is beautiful.
During the event, Melissa spoke to the audience and explained that the library will hold a community-wide event, "Tupelo Reads." The book of choice is Tuesdays With Morrie. The library has already obtained several copies of the book and will hold several events involving the book.
With the beginning of August coming up, Gamers' night will be here soon (second Monday of every month). I hope to make one some time, I want to see the turn-out for this event as many libraries have reported much success with gaming events.
Until next week, Library Lovers!
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