Sarina M. Bower, Library Assistant, Jersey Shore Public Library, Jersey Shore, PA (Population served: 5,694) Big Talk From Small Libraries 2023 February 24, 2023 http://nlcblogs.nebraska.gov/bigtalk

1. Programming Opportunities
for Adults with Disabilities
Sarina Bower
Jersey Shore Public Library
Jersey Shore, PA

2. Jersey Shore
Public Library
Located in Central PA
Part of the Lycoming County Library
System
1 full time staff (Director)
4 part time staff
Serves a population of 5,694

3. Jersey Shore Public Library

4. Jersey Shore Public Library

5. What we did
Weekly “story time” for adults with developmental, intellectual and physical
disabilities
Why we did it
A local organization, Clinton County Community Connections, started bringing
some of their clients into the library on a weekly basis – after talking to some of the
staff and getting to know the clients, we realized that there are not many
programming opportunities or activities in our community for these adults

6. Pre-Planning
Step 1 - Find out what the patrons want
Talk to them! Before anything else, I spent several weeks talking to the clients
and their staff when they were in the library.
I asked if they would be interested in a program just for them.
Then I asked what they wanted to do, what kind of books they wanted to read,
and what kind of crafts they wanted to do.
We had an overwhelming response that YES, this type of programming was wanted.

7. Pre-Planning
Step 2 – Put it down on paper
After talking to the patrons, take your notes and put it all down on paper.
I wanted to plan a 1 hour story time which included a craft or sensory
activity each week.

8. Pre-Planning Step 2 continued
During summer reading, I also do preschool story time.
YOU DO NOT NEED TO REINVENT THE WHEEL!
I took my “lesson plans” for my preschool story time, and adapted them for my adult
group. Most of the adults that I talked to, wanted fun picture books and after talking
to the staff, I knew that we needed simple crafts but I wanted crafts that would be
useful or something that an adult would be excited to make. We will talk about those later.

9. Pitching the idea
Meet with your director
Nothing like this had ever been done before at our library
I met with our director and pitched my idea
 Draft of a calendar
 Printouts of the crafts that I wanted to make and an estimated cost
 An idea on how to raise the funds to cover the cost of materials
We have very limited staff so we had to plan carefully to make sure we had
coverage on the circulation desk.

10. Now, what do we call it?
I wanted to come up with a name for the program that didn’t call
attention to the fact that it was a program for adult with disabilities.
After doing some research I decided to call it Page Turners.
We advertised it as Page Turners; a weekly story and craft time designed
specifically for adults with developmental, intellectual and physical
disabilities.

11. MAKING IT HAPPEN

12. Fundraising
Small library = small budget
I wanted to take on the responsibility to raise the funds for this program because I
was the one to propose the idea and I did not want to take funding away from any of
our other programs.
Think about what type of fundraising is successful in your area. I wanted something
that wouldn’t take up too much time or resources. We also have many sports teams
and clubs doing fundraising ALL THE TIME so I wanted something different. We
decided on doing a Paint Night fundraiser, which would be held at the library.

13. Fundraising
Paint Night Fundraiser
Ordered acrylic paint and
11x14 canvases on Amazon
Advertised on social media
Created a PayPal link for people
to register online
You CAN do this!
I promise you can do this, reach
out to me at sbower@jvbrown.edu
if you need help!

15. Weekly Calendar
 Weekly schedule posted in the
library and online
 Smaller handouts were given
out at the library to those
interested in attending
 Samples of the crafts were also
displayed to create excitement
This year we started making a summer reading calendar with
weekly themes that each program – Preschool, Children and
Teens – would all follow the same theme each week to make
the programming more cohesive.

16. Weekly Planning
Plan activity and books for each week
• List all supplies needed
• Choose books to go along with
your theme
• Place holds at least 2 weeks ahead
of time
• Have more available than you think
you need
• Read through books ahead of time –
don’t read them the first time during
the program

17. Weekly Planning Cont.
Make a plan
BUT
be prepared
to be flexible!!

18. The Evolution of Your Plan
Your group will likely consist of individuals with varying abilities and attention spans, it
may take a couple of weeks to “feel it out.”
THAT’S OK!
Take your cues from the participants and let them lead the discussions. Sometimes
it’s really fun to spend a half hour talking about how an octopus can fit through a
drain pipe! If you are excited and show interest, they will also be excited and
interested.

19. Weekly “Box”
I kept all of the materials that I needed for my program that week in
a milk crate. All staff knew that this was MY summer reading box
and not to touch it.
Sign in sheet, pens, my books, craft supplies, anything else that I
thought I might need went in this box ahead of time then I just had
to grab it and go. Everything was right at hand and ready to go.
I am famous for rolling back into the library 10 minutes before my
evening preschool program starts, just grabbing my box and going to
the children’s room. Proper preparation makes life easier.

20. The Books

21. What we read
After talking with library visitors about this program and finding out
there was an interest, I started asking those that wanted to
participate in the program what THEY wanted to do and what kinds
of books they wanted to read.
I presented it as an open ended question “What kinds of books would
you like to read for the program?” and if needed provided options such
as picture books, nonfiction books, chapter books, a chapter out of a
book each week… Everyone wanted picture books or “books that I can
understand”.

22. What we read cont.
We focused mostly on reading picture books. But I
also added in some non-fiction and even poetry.
Again, I was “double dipping” and planning programming for my
adultsThursday morningsand my preschoolers on Thursday
evenings, I didn’t want to add a bunch of extra work for myself so
I chose books that would work for both groups.

23. What we read cont.
Admittedly, it can feel weird reading picture books to a room full of adults.
In reality, the person doing the reading is probably the only person that
thinks it’s weird. Acknowledge the feeling and move on.
I specifically chose books that would be fun to “story tell” and that would
lend themselves to side conversations that we could have while reading.

24. It’s not what you read…
It’s HOW you read it
Draw them in
Make things interactive – ask questions during the story
“What do you think is going to happen next?
“Do you think that’s a good idea?”
“How many of you have been to the beach? What was your favorite
thing?”
Sometimes just a quick comment is all it takes
“Hmmmmm, I wonder what he will try to do next…”

25. It’s not what you read…
It’s HOW you read it
My favorite – share a personal story
“Yep, I tried snorkeling one time and we saw a moray eel. It looked like a big,
fat snake and that thing opened its mouth so big…I screamed right through my
snorkel!” (True story!)
This will often open the door for them to share something, let them!
This is their time and they want to be involved and heard.
If you only get through 2 of your 3 books, so what?

26. It’s not what you read…
It’s HOW you read it
Another approach
Some of the books I would ask them to pay special attention because I
wanted to get their thoughts on the book to see if my evening group
would like it or not. They really liked being the “test audience” to new
books and it gave them a great way to provide feedback on what we
were reading.

27. Activities

28. Tip
Make each of your crafts ahead of time for two reasons:
1. So you know how long it will take and if it actually works.
2. You can display each craft with the summer reading calendar and get participants
excited about what they will make that week. This will work for any age group!

29. Magnet Boards
Multi-week activity
Made using Dollar Store pizza pans and acrylic paint
• Each got to paint their own coral and bubbles
• We made the shark magnets another week
• They all got their picture taken which I
photoshopped into the scuba diver another week
• Last I put hangers on them and they got to take
them home to use for notes and pictures

30. How many sharks can
we name?
This was a chance to get loud!
We started off our time this week looking through
non-fiction books and reading about different species
of sharks. Then we had a challenge to see how many
species we could name. My record visiting the
elementary schools was a class that could name 12,
they wanted to beat that. They named 26!
We kept the books out and then went through and
looked up the sharks we were interested in learning
more about.

31. Ocean Trivia Game
Another chance to get loud!
• We did not keep score
• Everyone had a chance to pick a color
and a number if they wanted to
• The person that picked the question got to
try to answer first, if they didn’t know we
opened it up to everyone else
• Each question card had the answer plus a fun fact
relating to the question

32. Sensory Activities
Sand
Kiddie pool filled with sand with buried jewels and coins to “dig for treasure”
Kinetic Sand
Low sided container with kinetic sand and tools to “dig for treasure”
Shaving Cream
Cookie trays or low sided containers filled with shaving cream
Painting with shaving cream
 Water Beads
Clear storage bins filled with several inches of water beads - dropped pearls (beads) in for them to
“dive” for – many of them just loved playing in them

33. Digging for treasure
Sand and Moon Sand
Buried pirate coins and
“jewels” in both play
sand and moon sand
We got to dig up the
treasures which they
then traded in for prizes
out of the treasure chest

34. Mini Aquariums
Materials Needed:
 Glass jars
 Water Beads
 Aquarium Gravel
 Aquarium plants
 Plastic fish
 Pitchers of water
 Tons of paper towels

35. Notes on water beads
SUPERVISION IS REQUIRED
These are very, very bad for anyone to eat/put in nose or ears – if you have anyone that you think
may try to eat these or put them where they don’t belong, you should probably skip these
They need to be soaked at least 48 hours so plan ahead
They start tiny but expand many times larger than you expect – plan your container accordingly
These are very bad for the sewer system so do not rinse them down the drain
They can be dried out and reused over and over – they take weeks to dry
Playing in them is extremely addicting – hide them from your coworkers or else you
will have none left for your program

36. Diving for Pearls
This was SO much fun!
“Pearls” (beads) were dropped into
the bins and mixed in with the water
beads. It was harder than you think
to find them and pick them out. We
then used them to make bracelets.
Most fun was had just playing
in the water beads!
(Have plenty of paper towels handy!)

37. Under the Sea
Dance Party
Summer Reading Wrap-up

38. Dance Party
The last week of our program we hosted a dance party to celebrate.
Our community room was decorated with the summer reading decorations I had in
the lobby AND I found a disco ball in our storage closet.
We played the beach boys and other beachy themed music (Teen Beach Movie
soundtrack)
We had snacks (cookies and goldfish crackers) and drinks (juice boxes and bottled
water)
I got right in the mix and danced with everyone, it was the highlight of our summer

39. Surveys
At the beginning of the dance party I passed out surveys to get
everyone’s thoughts about the program.
I had simple yes/no questions as well as some that allowed people to
write in an answer.
I wanted to ask if the program was enjoyed, if they liked the books, liked
the crafts and if there was anything we should do differently.
I collected these at the end and reviewed them so we can use the
feedback when planning future programs.

40. What are we doing
now?

41. Pop Up Story Time
We are currently
meeting once a
month with themed
story time and
activities. I hope to
be able to expand
this and offer it as
regular weekly
programming.

42. Wrap-Up

43. How to make it happen
 Identify a need
 Get it “director approved”
 Find funding (if needed)
 Make a plan
 Get the word out
 Implement your plan
Get feedback

44. Remember
BE FLEXIBLE
Have a plan but be prepared for it to change and evolve as you go
You may have all different levels of abilities and attention spans
Make sure EVERYONE is included if they want to be
Be positive and have fun

45. Additional Notes
Be aware that disabilities come in all shapes and sizes,
some visible and some not.
I always had at least one table, if not two or three set up on the
perimeter of the room in case an individual was not comfortable being
part of the group – someone may want to watch from standing in the
doorway, this allows them to step out if things get overwhelming or to
decide to join in later.

46. Additional Notes Cont.
You may have individuals with visual or hearing impairments. For our summer
reading program we had a woman join our group every week who was blind. When
reading stories we stopped before turning the page, or whenever was appropriate,
and described what was illustrated on the pages. As a group we tried to paint a
mental picture for her.
Ex. Next week we will be reading Three Ways to Trap a Leprechaun and I might describe the one scene
like this: “Remember that Leprechaun trap that they kids just set up? Well, our friend, the Leprechaun,
is now leaning up against the stick that’s holding up the end of the clothesbasket and in his left hand
he is holding a pair of scissors- can you all see what he is doing with those scissors? Yes! He’s CUTTING
the string that is tied to the stick and the gold coin. Uh oh…by the glint in his eyes and that cheesy
smile we can tell he is up to no good.”
It might feel silly at first but don’t give up, doing this little bit of extra just might be something that
makes his or her day. And usually the rest of the group enjoys it too.

47. Additional Notes Cont.
Just remember, do not assume anything.
Help only when asked. If you see someone struggling, you can ask if
they’d like help but don’t just jump in.
If someone has a service dog, IGNORE THE DOG.
If someone wants to share a story, let them. Listen, ask questions but
don’t try to finish sentences for them.

48. Questions