The following article was submitted by Susie Menk, a Youth Services Librarian at the Manitowoc Public Library.
Who wants to know more about what the library offers? Me! Me! Me! Manitowoc Public Library is pleased to announce a new way for patrons to access Youth Services. We created an interactive webpage loaded with information and links that will take patrons to various online resources for children.
Youth Librarian, Susie Menk, is a member of Wisconsin Library Association’s Youth Services Section. This group of youth librarians regularly shares ideas and programs with each other. One such shared idea was a fun, interactive webpage specifically focused on kids’ resources that allows our younger patrons to access library resources right from our webpage.
Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, there was little face-to-face interaction with library patrons. The idea to create a couple of Bitmoji (a personal emoji) characters for the library and use it to share digital resources was brilliant! So, we created our two Bitmoji characters, Tay and Jordan. These characters will help patrons find resources and share information about the library. The setting for the Interactive webpage is, of course, the Youth Department. Using actual images of the Youth area helps patrons connect the digital services with the physical library—and hopefully entice more people into the building.
Susie Menk
Once the setting was created, we added images and links throughout the page to connect patrons with our online resources. Manitowoc Public Library has so many free resources to share with our patrons. This interactive webpage is just another way for us to highlight the wonderful resources the library brings to the Manitowoc community.
Clicking on any of the images will take a patron right to that particular resource. If you click on “Adventure Pass,” it will take you right to the page on our website that explains what Adventure Passes are and how to get one for your family. If you click on “Tutor.com,” you will be taken to the part of our webpage where you can watch a short video explaining the online live tutoring resources available to students on a daily basis. Each image takes you directly to the resource or information about the resource.
Another feature of the interactive webpage is our bookshelf. Each month, we will be featuring a section of our book collection. Images of various books are lined up on the shelf. Clicking on any given book cover will take you right to our online catalog where you can either find the location of the book in the Youth Department or put a hold on the book so you can have it next.
Our first featured books are part of the You Choose series. If anyone remembers the Choose Your Own Adventure books, this new series is very similar. These books have you read a chapter or so and then give you the option to choose what happens next. New versions of these types of books include interactive ecology adventures, interactive survival adventures, interactive espionage adventures, and interactive history adventures. The following month, a different book series or author series will be featured. We will be changing the bookshelf regularly, so check back often!
We hope that parents and children alike will enjoy this new interactive webpage and learn more about all the wonderful free resources Manitowoc Public Library has to offer!
