Age Groups

From SLNSW

Helpful behaviors for working with patrons of all ages.

1 Working with Older Adults
2 Working with Children
3 Working with Teens
- 3.1 Major Point: Don't make assumptions about a person's needs based solely on age. Patrons of any age are entitled to the same services.
4 Exercise

Working with Older Adults

It's important to be sensitive to the possibility that a patron may have a physical disability (poor vision or hearing) which makes communication more difficult; however, we shouldn't make assumptions about older patrons and their ability to communicate their needs. Not all older patrons need large print books.

Some older patrons may not be comfortable with changing technology in libraries, but others will be. Remember that people have a natural resistance to change when they have fond memories of a specific institution. Be encouraging.

A few older patrons may also be seeking social contact when visiting the library. The library may fill this role, but a busy reference desk isn't a good place for a leisurely chat, so be sure to practice your skills for politely ending conversations.

Working with Children

Children should be shown the same level of respect and courtesy as adults.
Try to be at the child's eye level.
Speak to the child as a person, not as a student.
If a child is accompanied by parents or friends, focus on the child, but be sensitive to the parent's need to be in control of their child. Remember, the library wants to encourage parents to have an active role in their child's reading and education.
Don't assume all questions are school questions. On the other hand, school is children's work, so treat school questions as real and important.
Children's questions should be referred when you can't find something in your branch. Treat children's questions the same way you treat adults' questions.
In doing the reference interview, take special care to find out what the real information need is. Children may have more trouble than adults explaining the question to you.
Be sensitive to matching the information you provide with the reading level of the particular child (not just the grade the child is in) and to providing the right amount of information.
All children should be treated equally. Some children are difficult (just like some adults), but all deserve the same courtesy.
Module 10 discusses this in detail.

Working with Teens

Following are suggestions for Working With Teens of all ages, from the Northeast Massachusetts Regional Library System (NMRLS):

Be consistent.
Don't expect teens to know the rules.
Talk to the teens about behavioural issues.
Create "win/win" situations.
Behave in the same way that you are asking teens to behave.
Teens do not define time in the same way: they are often unaware of time constraints.
Teens have shorter attention spans - be aware of that when trying to get a message across.
Don't take it personally. It could be the hormones at work
Find a voice which is positive and respectful.

In summary, inspired by Patrick Jones: be reliable, be credible, be attentive, be responsive, be empathetic.

Visit the ALA Techsource blog gaming section to find ideas about the value of gaming to libraries. Interactive games are being developed to involve younger generations, to teach literacy skills, for example, in the collaborative, social environment that is comfortable for many library users. Younger users prefer learning experiences that involve multi-media, multidimensional, role-playing online environments.