There are few places an LGBTQ teen can turn for help – searching the internet at home leaves a potentially discoverable trail, teachers may condemn youth who seek their help, and certainly, in many cases, a teen’s parents are not an option. While there have been advancements in acceptance of the LGBTQ population, there is still a firm stronghold on discrimination and teens still face the fear of potential alienation. This leaves one of the only safe places for a teen to find information and, and indeed, find themselves in the context of the world – at the library. Serving LGBTQ Teens offers the librarian a practical guide to library service to LGBTQ teens – from collection development, understanding terminology, dealing with censorship issues, programming and outreach, readers’ advisory, and even to creating welcoming displays, librarians will find the tools they need to offer exceptional services for LGBTQ teens.

In our shared efforts to serve every member of our YA community, this new title is an important addition to your professional collection. This innovative guide will help you make informed collection, service, and programming decisions about materials for the growing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) YA population. The authors provide an overview of LGBTQ literature, address concerns for serving these patrons, and help guide you and your colleagues through the benefits and challenges of collecting materials. This breakthrough new publication offers: - An A-Z annotated guide to 50+ fiction, nonfiction, and multimedia works - 30+ ready-to-use programming ideas and booktalks that will help you welcome and provide a more inclusive environment for all teens - Tips and suggestions for handling challenging situations, such as the placement of books, patron privacy, handling parents' questions, and more

This exploration of effective practices to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) and gender-diverse students in elementary, middle, and high school contexts focuses on curriculum, pedagogy, and school environment. Narratives and artwork from the field are framed by sociocultural and critical theory as well as research-based elaboration on the issues discussed. Applications of antidiscrimination law and policy, as well as learning skills like creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking help teachers tackle some of the most significant educational challenges of our time. The stories of real-world practices offer encouragement for building inclusive environments and enhancing social-emotional relationships among youth, families, and schools. Gender Diversity and LGBTQ Inclusion in K-12 Schools provides a helpful roadmap for educators hoping to create safe and empowering spaces for LGBTQ and gender-diverse students and families.

How do we break through and truly reach our young adult patrons? It begins with understanding them. Librarians who work with teens need information and a big-picture perspective on adolescence that reflects the latest knowledge of cognate fields and the contemporary realities of young people's lives. In this greatly revised and updated edition of her popular guide Burek Pierce provides exactly that, selecting and synthesizing emerging information from multiple fields of research to effectively support librarians' work with teens. Far-reaching but pragmatic, this book discusses such important topics as identity and community, sex and sexualities, what experts can tell us about the adolescent brain, and how teens use technology to mediate the world; replaces outdated developmental theories that have been discarded in their home fields but are still sometimes used in the LIS world; looks at how to blend what research tells us about teens with day-to-day work in libraries; reflects new norms of professional practice, such as the increased importance of community engagement and partnerships, offering librarians a path towards cooperation and collaboration with peers outside the library world; and includes a bibliography of essential reading for YA librarians. Educators and practitioners, as well as students preparing to enter the field, will all benefit from this compact overview of contemporary research on adolescence.

Young Adult Resources Today: Connecting Teens with Books, Music, Games, Movies, and More is the first comprehensive young adult library services textbook specifically written for today’s multidimensional information landscape. The authors integrate a research-focused information behavior approach with a literature-focused resources approach, and bring together in one volume key issues related to research, theory, and practice in the provision of information services to young adults. Currently, no single book addresses both YA information behaviors and information resources in any detail; instead, books tend to focus on one and give only cursory attention to the other. Key features of this revolutionary book include its success in: Integrating theory, research, and practice Integrating implications for practice throughout the book Integrating knowledge of resources with professional practice as informed by research Integrating both print and electronic formats throughout—within the resource chapters (including websites and social media) Latham and Gross accomplish all this while, paying particular attention to the socially constructed nature of young adulthood, diversity, YA development, and multiple literacies. Their coverage of information landscapes covers literature (with detailed coverage of both genres and subgrenres), movies, magazines, web sites, social media, and gaming. The final chapter cover navigating information landscapes, focusing on real and virtual YA spaces, readers’ advisory, programming, and collaboration. Special attention is paid to program planning and evaluation.

Notable teen experts and stellar practitioners from across the country explain why library service to adolescents in this age range is so important, and how you can enhance your collection and services to accommodate and win over this important group. Topics range from understanding adolescent informational needs and building and promoting a winning collection, to creating programs with tween appeal. Contributors include Sheila B. Anderson, James Rosinia, Deb Taylor, Robyn Lupa, and Kristine Mahood. Brimming with valuable insights and fresh ideas, as well as nuts and bolts directions, this is a must read for all librarians who work with young adolescents. If someone is described as a young adult, what image comes to mind? In fact, a young adult can be a twelve-year-old middle-schooler or a high school graduate. Libraries have traditionally offered a variety programs and services for YAs, and although more emphasis has been given to serving teens in recent years, little has been done to distinguish between groups within the category, and meet the specific developmental needs of this broad range of library users. This collection complements Anderson's previous collection, Serving Older Teens, by focusing on the needs of tweens and young teens, ages 11-14. This is the age range when many young people stop using the library and lose interest in reading. Notable teen experts and stellar practitioners from across the country explain why service to adolescents in this age range is so important, and how you can enhance your collection and services to accommodate and win over this important group. Topics range from understanding adolescent informational needs and building and promoting a winning collection, to creating programs with tween appeal. Contributors include Sheila Anderson, James Rosinia, Deb Taylor, Robyn Lupa, Brenda Hager and Kristine Mahood. Brimming with valuable insights and fresh ideas, as well as nuts and bolts directions, this is a must read for all librarians who work with young adolescents.

We are only now coming to terms with how common trauma really is; a landmark Kaiser study that surveyed patients receiving physicals found that almost two-thirds had experienced at least one form of abuse, neglect, or other trauma as a child. Though originating in the fields of health and social services, trauma-informed care is a framework that holds great promise for application to library work. Empathetic service, positive patron encounters, and a more trusting workplace are only a few of the benefits that this approach offers. In this important book Tolley, experienced in both academic and public libraries, brings these ideas into the library context. Library administrators, directors, and reference and user services staff will all benefit from learning - the six key principles of trauma-informed care; - characteristics of a trusting and transparent library organization, plus discussion questions to promote a sense of psychological safety among library workers; - how certain language and labels can undermine mutuality, with suggested phrases that will help library staff demonstrate neutrality to patron ideas and views during information requests; - delivery models that empower patrons; - advice on balancing free speech on campus with students’ need for safety; - how appropriate furniture arrangement can help people suffering from PTSD feel safe; - guidance on creating safe zones for LGBTQIA+ children, teens, and adults; and - self-assessment tools to support change toward trauma-responsive library services. Using the trauma-informed approach outlined in this book, libraries can ensure they are empathetic community hubs where everyone feels welcomed, respected, and safe.