Jail North - Introduction

Background: The Mecklenburg County Jail - North

The North branch of the Mecklenburg County Jail is located on the north side of Charlotte, NC. More information about it can be found on the web at: http://www.charmeck.org/Departments/MCSO/Divisions/Detention/Jail+North.htm

Most of the inmates at Jail North are adult males. There is a small population of 16 and 17 year old guys that I will be working with. The population at Jail North is serving sentences of up to two years, so during the three months that I will be working there I can expect the population to have a lot of turnover. Teens at Jail North who haven't finished high school are required to work toward either their CMS high school diploma or GED.

Jail North has a great library for its size with a full time librarian. The library is one big room about 15 x 30 with a well-thumbed collection of about 4,000 volumes. Some of the more popular items in the collection are books by James Patterson, the Goosebumps series, and the collection of books on tape. There is no Internet access for the inmates.

The book club that I will be facilitating will be advertised in the library and in the PODS or housing units. Teens will need to fill out a short application of interest to participate. I'm not requiring the teens who participate in the book club to read every book or come to every meeting. Unlike their classwork the book club is a voluntary activity. The incentives to participate will be new books to read, time for free discussion and possible snacks.

I filled out an Intern Application to volunteer at the Jail, and had a background check. I also attended an orientation session and got an ID badge. My first meeting with the Jail North teens will be February 1st.

Yoga For Teens

January 24, 2006 - In the Library

"Life got you tied in knots? Come to the library for a quick and interactive introduction to yoga."

This program was the fitness part of Fit Lifestyle Month in January. I decided to do yoga because it was something that I felt capable of teaching if an instructor didn't show at the last minute. Also there are only so many fitness programs that can be done with a group of teens in a small (20 x 10) meeting room. I really like the meditation and breathing aspects of yoga; it's very helpful for dealing with stress which teens can have a lot of.

I wanted to bring in an instructor, because the teens always get me and I also thought it would be fun and different to participate too. My boss recommended that I look around for a male yoga instructor, because the majority of the teens at these programs are guys. I did find a local male yoga instructor, but his price was very steep. Then I saw an ad in a local paper and called Kelly. She usually teaches private in-home yoga classes, but agreed to come to the library for a program at the right price. January 28, 2006 was also National Yoga Day when yoga instructors and other enthusiasts try to educate others about yoga.

Kelly was great because she knew how to talk to and work with teens. She was infinitely patient with all of their questions and didn't mind when they interrupted or blurted out a question during quiet meditation. She was also about to give the teens general information about yoga like what the poses mean, what they are supposed to do, and and how to pronounce the names correctly. She was also flexible with her routine and when one of the teens requested a pose she worked it in. I wish that I had the kind of budget that would let her come every month and do a teen program.

Four guys and two girls attended this program.

Books that I pulled for a display during this program:

Ludy, Thia. Yoga For Teens, ISBN 157416032X
Finestone, Jeanne. A Girl's Guide to Yoga, ISBN 0764128396
Cooper, Evan. Um, like....OM: A girl goddess's guide to yoga, ISBN 0316980013
Capouya, John. Real Men Do Yoga, ISBN 0757301126
Pilobolus. Twisted Yoga, ISBN 1587171368
Christensen, Alice. The American Yoga Association's Beginners Manual, ISBN 0743219414
Austin, Miriam. Yoga For Wimps, ISBN 0806943394
Gordhamer, Soren. Just Say Om!, ISBN 1580625495

Movie Double Header

January 17, 2006 - In the Library

I decided to try to take advantage of teacher work days this semester by offering two movies from 3-7 p.m. on those days. I wanted this to be an informal program with no emphasis on punctuality. Teens could come for both movies, just one, or even parts; whatever they were interested in and during the 15 minute break between movies I could provide pizza and chat up other library programs or materials. Since I had to cover the circulation desk during part of this program I was also able to chat up teens who had come to the library for other reasons and invite them to check out the movie.

This program had a superhero theme; I showed Sky High (PG) and Batman Begins (PG-13). I also pulled an assortment of graphic novels for a superhero display in this program. Three teens came to watch the movies and three more walked in for a bit. I shouldn't have been but I was really surprised that six teens managed to eat three large pizzas.

A movie license is a great tool for programming in a library. I've heard that it's better to show new popular movies at library programs for teens because that's what they will be interested in seeing. But I've also heard that older classic movies are better because it is less likely teens will have already seen them. I've tried it both ways and try to show a variety now. The movies seem to be equally well attended whether it is Pirates of the Caribbean or Ghostbusters. Pirates of the Caribbean was well attended because there were teens at that program who were on a parentally approved date. Charade, which is an murder mystery/comedy, was also well attended I think because I sandwiched it between two Forensic Science programs I was doing around Halloween.

Healthy Eating for Teens

January 10, 2006 - In the Library

I felt that this topic would make a great teen program, because diet and body image are two things that teens are becoming more aware of. It is also easy to present this type of information in a fun, interactive way. It tied in nicely with New Year's Resolutions and January being Fit Lifestyle month.

I provided a variety of interesting an unique food that I pick out at a local health food grocery store. This included mangos, chard, 5 varieties of apples, almond butter, ginger salad dressing, blue potatoes, chard, free range chicken chili, oatmeal, nuts and seeds, two types of tea, and unsweetened cranberry and grape juice. The teens could sample most of these. They sampled the food first and then we talked about things like looking at the serving size on packages and reading the ingredients.

Next we talked about the new food pyramid from the United States Department of Agriculture. The new pyramid is available on their website and it is interactive. Teens can go to the site and put in their age, sex, and level of physical activity and see their customized daily calorie requirements and also how many cups/serving of grains, vegetables, fruits, dairy, meat and beans are recommended. The new food pyramid website is located at www.mypyramid.gov.

We talked about what they usually ate and exercised each day in a positive way. I encouraged the teens to get involved in helping with grocery shopping and preparing meals if they didn't already. Planning and cooking meals for their family is a great way for teens to be involved in what they eat rather than counting calories. I also showed a clip from the movie Supersize Me, as a way to bring in other library materials besides big old health books.

I should have planned an ice-breaker activity at the beginning of the program or some type of moving around in the middle. It was hard for some of the teens to sit still and not be silly. I had 6 teens, 5 guys and one girl.

The resources that I found most useful were:
www.mypyramid.gov
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/label.html
http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content3/ific/ific.teen.trends.html

Books that I used to put together my presentation:

Lopez, Ralph, The Teen Health Book: A Parents' guide to Adolescent Health and Well-Being. 2002. ISBN 0393020460

Henner, Marilu. Healthy Kids: Help them eat smart and stay active for life. 2001. ISBN 0066211123.
This second book had a chapter on teens. It also had easy recipes and food themed games and activities like word searches and crossword puzzles.

Books that I recommended to the teens:

Rio, Linda and Tara. The Anorexia Diaries. 2003. ISBN:157954729.
There are many books on eating disorders, I really liked this one because it gives you both the mother and the daughters view in their diary entries.

Lipsyte, Robert. One Fat Summer. 1977. ISBN: 0060238968

Dessen, Sarah. Keeping the Moon. 1999. ISBN: 0670885495

Introduction

Hello,

I've created this blog for everyone who is a teen (at heart or actually in years) and also anyone who works with, lives with, or is offended by teens.
This site is a resource for working with teens specifically in a library setting. I will include all of the programs that I present to teens for the next five months in three different settings In-the-Library, at the local Correctional-Institution and at the local Schools. I will also post resources that I found helpful, book discussions and reviews and anything else that is relevant.
This blog is part of a class I am currently taking toward my Master's of Library Science