Take a break from shoveling the snow and do some armchair traveling. Start planning your ALA Annual Conference experience for next summer in sunny Anaheim, June 21 – 26, 2012. Think palm trees, sun, surf, and networking with fellow teen librarians!

Believe it or not, just as we are about to take off for ALA Midwinter, the schedule of programs and events hosted by YALSA at Annual is already available for your perusal. The membership submitted their votes on the programs a few months ago.

Here are some highlights that need to end up on your ‘must do’ list while in Anaheim!

Start your conference off right with a PreConference  on Friday

Books We’ll Still Talk About 45 Years from Now: Explore styles and themes of YA fiction through recent years and how to decide what YA novels to promote.

Source Code: Digital Youth Participation: Learn about potential applications of digital media and how to work with teens on a virtual project.

Sit Back and Learn All-Things-Teen!

Not Another Boring Vampire Romance: Going Beyond the Norm in Young Adult
Paranormal Literature: Saturday, June 23, 8:00-10:00am. Hear first-hand from YA authors about the value of popular YA paranormal fiction.

Spectacular Services for At-Risk Teens: Saturday, June 23, 1:30-3:30pm. Learn how to identify at-risk youth populations in their communities and how to advocate, plan, design, implement, and evaluate your library’s program.

Being a Social Teen Advocate: Saturday, June 23, 4:00-5:30pm. Find out how to explain the value of social media tools to colleagues and administrators. Leave with a guide for implementing these tools to advocate for teen services locally, regionally, and nationally.

You Think THIS is Out of Control?: Room Management in Public Library Teen
Spaces: Sunday, June 24, 1:30-3:30pm. Find out how to engage teens in your teen area, and how to ‘keep the peace’ between the younger and older teens.

Passive Programming that’s Anything But: Reaching Young Adults Subversively: Sunday, June 24, 4:00-5:30pm. Learn why passive programming is an important aspect of YA service and how to inexpensively implement and maintain these programs.

Teen Advisory Boards—Keeping Teens Interested: Monday, June 25, 10:30am- 12:00pm. What keeps Teen Advisory Board members actively participating? Discover how to organize Teen Advisory Board meetings, and tips on how to increase the use of Teen Advisory Board members.

The Tween Scene: A Year of Programs for 10 to 14 Year Olds: Monday, June 25, 1:30-3:30pm. Ready-made programming outlines and support materials for the group that falls in the crack.

The 4 Ps: Library Marketing for Young Adults: Monday, June 25, 4:00-5:30pm. Learn the 4 Ps of marketing (product, placement, pricing, and promotion) and how to develop possible marketing plans for their library.

Network, Network, Books, and Network

All work and no play make librarians very dull, so make sure to save time for fun. Stop by these programs to meet up with fellow cool teen librarians and talk books!

Margaret A. Edwards Luncheon: (Ticketed Event – $59) Saturday, June 23, 12 – 1:30pm. Listen to the winner of the 2012 Margaret A. Edwards Award talk about his/her works.

Speed Networking for YA Librarians: Saturday, June 23, 1:30 to 3:30pm. Tired of being the only teen services librarian at your library and want a simple way to connect with your peers? Meet colleagues from around the country and exchange practical ideas and information to help you bolster your teen services program.

Best Fiction for Young Adults Teen Session: Saturday, June 23, 1:30 – 3:30pm. Come hear local Southern California teens talk about their favorite picks for the 2013 BFYA list.

YALSA Happy Hour: Saturday, June 23, 6:00 to 7:00pm. Location TBD. Come and kick off your conference at this informal networking opportunity! Cash bar. Everyone welcome.

YA Author Coffee Klatch: (Ticketed Event, $19) Sunday, June 24, 9:00-10am. Enjoy coffee and meet with over 30 great YA authors!

ALSC/YALSA Joint Presidents’ Program: Monday, June 25, 8:00 – 10:00am. Speakers Michelle Poris from AskSmartyPants.com and Stephen Abram will focus on Middle Schoolers.

Odyssey Award Presentation and Program: Monday, June 25, 4:00-5:30pm. Celebrate the spoken word at the 2012 Odyssey Award Presentation featuring clips from the 2012 winners.

2012 Michael L. Printz Award Program and Reception: (Ticketed event, price TBA) Monday, June 25

So many great options to fill up your conference schedule. See you in Anaheim!