Friday, August 15, 2008

Dance like a Teapot

I went to a conference the past couple of days where I gave a few presentations. I try to make my presentations as interesting as possible but let's face it, if you've been to one work presentation you've been to them all. There's always the brief introduction with a poor attempt at humor. Perhaps you'll make fun of yourself at your technological incapability's or jokingly comment on the locale. Then you'll begin your presentation. There's the requisite power point with its bulleted, simplistic slogans with things like "The Five R's" or a quote by some authority in the field. Then you'll sum it up with an inspiring message that "yes you too can do this!"

I think we need to have library presentations like we do storytime. We first stand all the adults up and let them shake their wiggles out. This will get everyone's attention. Then we'll get to the meat of the program but instead of power point we'll do it in rhyme with colorful images like a picture book. After that we'll sing a song. For my topic on teen programs we could sing (to the tune of I'm a Little Teapot) "Make your teen programs short and fun/ Videogames for everyone/ If they are rowdy don't you shout/ "Pack your bags and get on out!" In conclusion to the storytime/presentation we could all do a craft. I would love to see all the middle aged women fingerpaint with shaving foam. Yes, everyone would love to come to my presentations if I threw out the power point and had them dancing like teapots.

2 comments:

DvntWriter said...

I don't even work where you work and I'd want to come to your presentation! Rock on :-)

Salt Lake County Library System said...

I love shaking my wiggles out. I wouldn't have slept through many a presentation if they would have started that way.