This weekend has brought two welcome weather changes to the Mitten State: sun and above-freezing temperatures.  Warm weather must also have reached Karen M., who wrote after my post about Midwinter asking what is a “must-do” for a first-timer at ALA’s Annual conference in July in Chicago.

Ah, Chicago in July — sticky, humid days with sticky, humid nights.  Here are some things I’d recommend for a first-time school librarian at Annual. 

• New Members Round Table.  They hold a session early in the conference that gives you an overview of the mammoth offerings of ALA and the conference.
• AASL All-Committee Meeting.  This is essentially a huge room full of banquet tables.  Each committee gets a table, and cross-committee communication is facilitated by having everyone in the same room at the same time.  You don’t have to be a committee member to sit in on table discussions - in fact, outside points of view can often be just the breath of fresh air a committee needs.  This is a fascinating chance to see AASL at the working level, warts and all.  Brush elbows with the library “celebrities” whose work you read about online and in magazines.
• AASL Affiliate Assembly.  This is a collection of delegates from each of the AASL affiliates or state media organizations.  They engage in conversation, share ideas with national committee members, and learn about strategies and resources to take back to their home “constituency.”  All are welcome.  This is a chance to meet some of your state and regional leaders.
• Demco’s Book Cart Drill Team Championships.  What can I say? It’s like synchronized swimming with book carts.  For the past few years, the emcees have been Mo Willems and Jon Sciezska.  It’s a welcome relief from the hustle and bustle of the conference.  Arrive early so you get a seat.  Check YouTube for previous knock-out performances.
• Random House’s book preview.  Check Cognotes, the daily conference newspaper, or the Random House booth.  This is booktalking on steroids because the editors themselves do the booktalking.  Walk away with am armful of pre-publication copies (aka ARCs - advance readers’ copies - or galleys).  I’ve snagged the latest Carl Hiasson, Paolini’s Eldest, and much more.  Plus, I love hearing the inside scoop.
• Exhibits in general.  Preview databases, browse books, pick up free galleys, run into your favorite author.  Save lots and lots of time for this, and wear comfortable shoes!  To stretch you beyond your comfort zone, try to visit exhibits with a variety of people, who might point you toward great books or resources you didn’t know about.
• Learning 4 Life in the Exhibit Hall.  The Learning Standards and Guidelines Implementation Task Force will be staffing a booth for an hour a day.  Come learn more about the AASL Standards and accompanying documents in game show format! Details to come.
• Professional development sessions.  These give you a chance to gather new ideas or ways of thinking that will jumpstart your new school year. 
• Special speakers and author signings.  At Annual it’s absolutely normal to run into Kareem Abdul Jabbar, hear a then-young senator from Illinois (now President) talk about the Patriot Act, hear Julie Andrews or Judy Blume speak to a standing-room-only crowd, be offered a free book from National Geographic and the chance for the author to autograph it, and many more.  C’mon, admit it.  Part of why you became a school librarian was because you love books.  Embrace it.
• Post Office.  You must find and use the conference post office, usually located in the Exhibits Hall.  Sure, you think, you can fit all those free books and swag in your suitcase.  But with luggage weight limits on the decline, mailing back all those bargain books via media mail saves your back and costs very little. Plus, you get a delivery about 10 days later, reminding you that all that free stuff wasn’t just a dream.  Some folks whose hotel is close to the convention center take their books to their hotel room and start the next day by going straight to the Post Office to avoid lines.  Then again, waiting in line is a way to make new friends!  Oh, and make sure you seal your own box before you mail it.  I let the P.O. do it for me at Midwinter and just received a box half-full of someone else’s stuff.  Oh, Diary of a Wimpy Kid backpack, neatly padding my box so the contents wouldn’t shift, how I miss you …
• Sleep later.  Take advantage of spontaneous coffee breaks with new friends, vendor invitations, movie screenings, late-night walks in the city (not alone, please), and more.  Take advantage of everything that interests you.  Sleep when you get home. 

What else do you readers recommend for Karen?

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 8th, 2009 at 11:42 am and is filed under ALA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.