1. Create!: A Social Media Program for Young AdultsProject Outline Amy Ashmore LIBR 559M August 9, 2010

2. Introduction This is in outline for a series of public library programs that will encourage young adults (13-18) to express themselves through the creation and sharing of their own digital content using social media applications. Through this program, young people will learn about the use of social media tools, and develop knowledge and strategies that will allow them to use these tools effectively and safely in order to gather information, create original content, and share that content with others.

3. Purpose (part 1) Engaging young adults in the library is a challenge for any public librarian working with this age group. This program series will help to bring young people into the library, and provide them with new ways to think about gathering, using, and producing information. The program is intended to encourage young people to take an active role in the production of digital information and content, allowing them to express themselves and how they view the world around them.

4. Purpose (part 2) Through this series of programs, young people will learn about and share their expertise in using a variety of social media applications, providing opportunities to act as both learner and teacher. The programs will allow young people to learn about some of the constraints and issues concerning social media use, including privacy and copyright concerns. Participants will have the opportunity to experiment with a variety of tools, create their own original content, and share that content with others.

5. Goals Encourage young adults to use the library Encourage young adults to see the library in a new way – a place where information can be found and produced in a whole variety of ways Allow young adults to learn about a variety of social media tools and applications Allow young adults to share their knowledge of social media tools and applications Allow young adults to explore how social media tools can be used for information seeking, information sharing, and the creation of original content. Encourage young people to think about some of the issues and constraints of social media tools, including concerns about privacy and copyright Allow young people the opportunity to create and share their own content using social media tools

6. Possible Tools and Concepts Blogs Tumblr YouTube – video sharing Flickr – photo sharing Digital Storytelling Screencasting Podcasting and Vodcasting Online animation tools

7. Potential Resources Daley, M. F. (2010). Free online tools for serving teens: Four verbs to live by and great technologies to try. Young Adult Library Services, 8(2), 23-25. Hamilton, Buffy. (2010). “Media 21 Capstone Project Proposal and Resources.” The Unquiet Librarian (blog). http://theunquietlibrarian.wikispaces.com/media21capstone-buffy Livingstone, S., Bober, M., & Helsper, E. J. (2005). Active participation or just more information?: Young people's take-up of opportunities to act and interact on the internet. Information, Communication & Society, 8(3), 287-314. Retrieved from www.csa.com

8. Potential Resources Continued McLean, C. D. (2010). Creating a curriculum unit on evaluation of social media. Knowledge Quest, 38(3), 18-27. Retrieved from www.csa.com Peowski, L. (2010). Where are all the teens? engaging and empowering them online. Young Adult Library Services, 8(2), 26-28. Retrieved from www.csa.com Stephens, Michael. (2010). “Using Social Media to Connect With Teens.” Tame The Web (blog). http://tametheweb.com/2010/03/17/using-social-media-to-connect-with-teens/

9. Next Steps Over the next week I will be fleshing out this outline into a program proposal. I would love to hear your feedback and ideas. Do you know of resources I haven’t mentioned? Have suggestions? Email aeb.ashmore@gmail.com or tweet @amyashmore Thanks!