Registration Now Open for Teen Tech Week - March 6-12, 2011

2011 theme is Mix and Mash @ your library®  

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), launched its Teen Tech Week 2011 website, opening registration and offering tools for librarians to plan the annual celebration of technology for teens in the library. More resources, including activity ideas, planning materials, publicity tools and more, can be found at www.ala.org/teentechweek. Official Teen Tech Week products, including posters, decals, bookmarks and digital downloads, are available at the ALA Store.

Teen Tech Week will be celebrated March 6-12, with a theme of Mix and Mash @ your library, encouraging teens to take advantage of the many technologies available to them, free of charge, at their libraries.

“Throughout the year librarians and teens use technology regularly to communicate, collaborate and create, and libraries are a great place for teens to learn how to use technology safely and smartly,” said Kim Patton, YALSA president. “Registering for Teen Tech Week helps demonstrate that libraries around the country consider technology an important part of teen lives and an important part of the programs and services offered by libraries.”

Visitors to the site can access this year’s theme logo by registering. They can also apply for a 2010 Teen Tech Week Mini Grant, funded by the Margaret A. Edwards Trust.

Teen Tech Week is a national initiative sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association and is aimed at teens, their parents, educators and other concerned adults. The purpose of the initiative is to ensure that teens are competent and ethical users of technologies, especially those that are offered through libraries such as DVDs, databases, audiobooks and video games. Teen Tech Week encourages teens to use libraries’ non-print resources for education and recreation and to recognize that librarians are qualified, trusted professionals in the field of information technology. Teen Tech Week began in 2007 and has a general theme of Get Connected @ your library.

2011 Promotional Partners include ALA Graphics, the Margaret A. Edwards Trust and Tutor.com. DoSomething.org and the Federal Trade Commission are 2010 Nonprofit Supporters.

For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the world leader in selecting books, videos and audiobooks for teens. For more information about YALSA or for lists of recommended reading, viewing and listening, go to www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists, or contact the YALSA office by phone, (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390, or e-mail, yalsa@ala.org.

(American Libraries Direct, November 10, 2010)