Mastering the Art of Storytime: Training Presenters for Success

Phoenix Public Library has a unique approach to training story time presenters that inspires confidence, creates camaraderie, and ensures program consistency across the library system. Training is spread out over 8-10 weeks and includes virtual sessions, weekly blog questions on Microsoft Teams, and hands-on assignments. Each class is treated as a new cohort and encouraged to bond and support each other. Support for the cohort continues after the class ends; the Teams channel remains up and staff can easily return to files and discussions that were shared. This new approach was implemented by necessity during the pandemic and has yielded great results. Story time presenters report that they feel more confident, supported, and valued in the work they do. In this session, we will walk you through the model, highlight the topics and assignments covered, and share how this training has significantly improved story time at our libraries.

Learning objectives:

• Participants will learn proven training strategies
  
• Participants will learn how to improve staff confidence and expertise and why that is critical for successful programming
  
• Participants will get an inside look at the structured, intentional early literacy programming at Phoenix Public Library. All Storytime Training documents will be shared with attendees.

Presenters:

Gretchen Wetter has been the Literacy Outreach Librarian at Phoenix Public Library for almost seven years. During that time, Gretchen has initiated many new programs and services, including: creating three StoryWalk ® Trails in Phoenix; creating community “book depositories” in low-income neighborhoods where residents can obtain free children’s books; creating and implementing Library 101 presentations in schools and community sites, to name a few. She also manages the library’s summer reading program and the “Amazing Library Card Campaign,” an annual outreach campaign to schools to make sure students have library cards. Prior to moving to Phoenix, she worked in Washington, D.C. and New Jersey libraries. When she’s not working, you might find her doing double axels on ice as she used to compete in figure skating. 

Camille Avila has been a literacy outreach library assistant for the Phoenix Public Library for almost three years. Camille has assisted the development of the library’s Family Storytime at the Park program and has taught early literacy and school readiness classes to children 0-5 and their caregivers. She also supports the outreach librarian in organizing the library’s summer reading game and other outreach efforts in local schools and organizations. Camille has worked in community engagement and outreach for over five years, serving diverse communities in public, academic, and professional spaces at Arizona State University and the Phoenix Public Library. Camile was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. Her favorite things to do are watch the sunset, play video games with friends, and read horror novels. 

Wendy Resnik has been leading children and teen services for Phoenix Public Library since 2012, bringing over a decade of experience in program development, staff training, and early literacy initiatives. Under her leadership, the library has strengthened its early literacy efforts by implementing evidence-informed programs such as Kindergarten Bootcamp, Tools for School, Music & Movement, and Yoga Storytime, all designed to support school readiness and caregiver engagement. Wendy is a founding member of the Read On Phoenix coalition, and a First Things First council member for Phoenix North (past Chair). She lives in a historic district in Central Phoenix with her husband and two incorrigible Corgis.