This presentation, about reasons and strategies for engaging families at the library, was given at the 2016 Wisconsin Library Association conference.

1. FAMILY MATTERS:
SUPPORTING FAMILIES TO
LEARN, CONNECT, & GROW
Amy Koester | WLA 2016

2. ON OUR AGENDA
• What is family engagement, and what are our goals in offering it?
• Family engagement through resources, staff expertise, & outside
experts
• Strategies for engaging parents & families
• Areas of need for family engagement, with sample programs
• Time for questions

3. ANDYOU ARE…?
• Amy Koester, MLS
• Youth & Family Program
Supervisor, Skokie (IL)
Public Library
• I believe barriers to library
use are often more than
geographical.

4. WHAT IS FAMILY
ENGAGEMENT?
Centering families, including
parents and caregivers, as the
focus of particular programs,
collections, and services.

5. ENGAGING FAMILIESVS.
ENGAGING PARENTS
• Engaging families =
opportunities for families to
learn, play, & develop
together
• Engaging parents =
opportunities for parents/
caregivers to have the
information, resources, &
support to do the very best
for their children & their
children’s development

6. ENGAGING FAMILIESVS.
ENGAGING PARENTS
• Engaging families =
opportunities for families to
learn, play, & develop
together
• Engaging parents =
opportunities for parents/
caregivers to have the
information, resources, &
support to do the very best
for their children & their
children’s development

7. WHY DOES FAMILY
ENGAGEMENT MATTER?
• Our communities have
areas of need.
• The library already has
resources and expertise in
many of these areas.
• The library is one of many
community players
supporting families.

8. GOALS OF FAMILY
ENGAGEMENT
• Giving families opportunities
to explore, learn, & discover
together
• Support strong family units
• Modeling excellent
engagement strategies for
parents/caregivers
• Connecting families to the
resources they need to thrive

9. SUPPORTING
FAMILIES
Through Resources

10. SUPPORTING
FAMILIES
Through Staff Expertise

11. SUPPORTING
FAMILIES
Through Outside Expertise

12. STRATEGIES
FOR
ENGAGING
FAMILIES
Time & Day Considerations

13. STRATEGIES
FOR
ENGAGING
FAMILIES
Joint Family Programming

14. STRATEGIES
FOR
ENGAGING
FAMILIES
Simultaneous Programming

15. STRATEGIES
FOR
ENGAGING
FAMILIES
Single-Audience Programming

16. COMMON AREAS OF NEED
Parents Supporting their
Young Children
• TogetherTime with guest
experts
• POP! Parents of
Preschoolers

17. COMMON AREAS OF NEED
Families LearningTogether
• Programs aimed at families
(intergenerational)
• Mission BOOMbox
• Family Science Expo

18. COMMON AREAS OF NEED
Homework Help
• Partnering to offer tips for
parents
• Intergenerational
homework help in the
library

19. COMMON AREAS OF NEED
Children Experiencing Crisis
orTrauma
• Youth Grief Support Group
• Restorative Justice for
Behavioral/Disciplinary
Issues

20. QUESTIONS?
amy.e.koester@gmail.com
@amyeileenk