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September 2026 | |
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Adult Services Notes |
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Refresh Your Genre Knowledge Series |
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Understanding genres is a crucial readers' advisory skill. Knowing the key genre appeals can help you connect with readers, even in genres that you don't find appealing yourself. Presentations will cover:
Defining the genre and why readers enjoy it Exploring key authors and up and coming writers, and Discussing how to connect with readers Join us every other Tuesday through October to learn how you can support your community of readers!
Register for this month's sessions below. |
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Join Joy O’Toole, Adult Services Programmer at Central Rappahannock Regional Library, to unravel the clues to crime and mystery fiction.
| When: Tuesday 9/1, 1 pm ET |
| Register |
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Join Jill Minor, Electronic Resources Librarian at Washington County Public Library, on a journey to explore the myriad worlds of fantasy fiction.
| When: Tuesday 9/15, 1 pm ET |
| Register |
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Horror 101: Don't Be Scared |
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Join Ali McCue, Public Services Librarian, and Lizzy Hill, Youth Services Librarian, both at the Staunton Public Library, to uncover the secrets of horror fiction.
| When: Tuesday 9/29, 1 pm ET |
| Register |
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News from Library Development
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Artificial Intelligence Resources for Library Staff |
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The Library of Virginia has put togehter a guide to artificail intelligence that can assist library staff who want to learn more about what AI is, and how it could potentially be used in libraries, including how to ensure that that use is safe and ethical, how to keep up with the rapidly changing AI ecosystem, and how to find more information and training on AI.
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The topics covered include:
An AI Glossary - Sample of AI Tools
- Creating Library-focused Prompts
- Examples of AI Use in Libraries
- AI for Library Directors and Managers
We will continue to develop and expand this resource as needed to address the rapidly changing world of AI. If there are sections we have not currently created that you think would be useful please let Barry Trott know.
You can use the button below to access the LibGuide and also find a link to the the guide on the LD Info Center by clicking on the blue Technology button from the Info Center homepage. |
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Niche Academy is open to all Virginia library staff members and library associates such as trustees and Friends board members. If you do not have a Niche Academy account, please use your library email address to sign up. If you do not have a library work email, you may register with a personal email, and we will contact you to confirm that you are affiliated with a Virginia library.
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Learn with UniversalClass |
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Learning something new is an essential part of maintaining good mental health, and with UniversalClass, your users can explore self-paced learning on a range of topics, all for free.
With over 600 courses in 35+ subject areas, UniversalClass has something for every patron, including job seekers, lifelong learners, and DIYers. Patrons can pick up new skills and earn Continuing Education Units in everything from computer skills and candle making to finance and feng shui.
Learners can interact wqith instructors, demonstrate their progress via quizzes and assignments to earn CEUs, and access courses anytime, anywhere, on almost any device.
Want to know more about how you can get the most from your library's subscription to |
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UniversalClass? Check out this recording to learn how UniversalClass offers resources of interest to job seekers, homeschoolers, hobbyists, and more.
To help you get the word out, you can find marketing materials for UniversalClass on the LVA Info Center's Find It VA page. |
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It’s Back to School time again! The Library of Virginia has a variety of resources available for teachers and students, including Document Bank of Virginia, which is filled with images of primary historical sources. Each item includes historical background information and is keyed to Virginia Standards of Learning. New content is added regularly.
Document Bank is a great resource to share with students doing projects on Virginia history, as well as with the history and social studies teachers in your local schools. |
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Readers' Advisory Tips and Tricks
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Exploring NoveList's
Readers' Advisory Competencies |
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In May 2026, NoveList released a set of competencies for readers' advisory work developed by a team of librarians from across North America. This resource will:
Support individual professional growth Guide organizational training and expectations Provide a shared vocabulary for readers’ advisory work |
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These competencies give readers' advisors at any level of proficiency some guidance on how to expand their RA knowledge and build connections with readers. Over the next few months this column will explore some of the specific competencies and look at ways to develop skills in those areas.
The first section we will explore is Story and Media Knowledge, which is described as "knowledge across genres, formats, appeals, themes, and audiences." This competency is really at the heart of the readers' advisory encounter as it speaks to the breadth of knowledge that a good advisor has. This is not to say that you need to know every book in every genre or even that you need to like every genre or subgenre. But this competency does remind us that a readers' advisor should have a basic familiarity with all genres and an understanding of how readers talk about those genres.
Here are some resources that you can use to build your genre knowledge:
The LVA Genre series is a great introduction to seven of the most popular genres. Use the links above to register for this month's sessions, and keep an eye out for the listing of the full series in the LVA Niche Academy later in October. Your NoveList Plus subscription from the Library of Virginia is an excellent resource for building story and media knowledge:
Genre guides in NoveList are a great way to quickly get up to speed in genres that you are less familiar with. Each guide discusses why readers enjoy the genre, the important subgenres, readalikes, suggestions for working with readers, important authors to know, and helpful searches to try. You can also go to the Appeals Index in NoveList to learn about the elements of a story that draw the reader in, things like storyline, character, mood, and style. Understanding the language of appeal opens up new ways to talk about books.
Since 1984, the Chicago-area Adult Reading Round Table (ARRT) has been "developing readers' advisory skills and promoting reading for pleasure through public libraries." On the AART website, you can find resources based on the group's genre studies. These are in-depth looks at a genre, with each study consisting of bi-monthly meeting that span about two years. The resources include notes from the meetings, slides, and assignments that could easily be adapted for team genre studies in your library or serve as self-study tools.
Another idea you might explore is to pick a genre that you are less familiar with and read a handful of titles in it by different authors. As you read, think about what makes the books similar in appeal and style. What patterns do you see that might draw a reader in. |
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Featured Virginia Programs
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Newport News Public Library System
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Japanese Conversation Meetup |
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The Japanese Conversation Meetup is a monthly program offered by the Newport News Public Library in which participants can learn and practice speaking the Japanese language. The program is open to all language skill levels.
Teachers from the Newport News Japanese School provide a lesson on key phrases and vocabulary of a central theme. |
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Other native speaker volunteers, many of whom are students or teachers from the Japanese School, answer participants' questions or help with pronunciation. We also provide Japanese snacks to participants, for a bit of a cultural experience.
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For more info, contact Jacqueline Brown-Whitley, brown-whitleyjr@nnva.gov
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Augusta County Library holds a weekly enrichment program for adults with intellectual disabilities and their caregivers, which includes a variety of activies, everything from Karaoke to Bingo to holiday celebrations!
This program has been occuring for multiple years weekly, and was created and is run by Community Learning Assistant Ben Thomas.
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Ben was recently honored via The Arc of Augsuta for his contributions to disability services and resources in our community!
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For more info, contact Keith Bell, kbell@augustacountylibrary.org |
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Amherst County Public Library
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QR Code Library Scavenger Hunt |
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Last fall, the Madison Heights Library developed a fun way for patrons of all ages to learn about where items are located in the library plus other formats and services that are offered here.
Many patrons focus only on what they are currently interested in, and they miss other opportunities to explore new sections and collection in the library. |
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To encourage patrons to discover new areas our staff decided to create a Library QR Code Scavenger Hunt. First, a staff member created clues using an online artificial intelligence (AI) tool to describe parts of the library for the hunting clues. Then she retyped them individually and created QR Codes to go with each one. To create the individual QR Codes the staff used qrcreator.com and chose the SMS/Text option. That way each code that was created would correspond to a text. When the QR Code was scanned it would send a text to your cell phone, which would be the clue. The clues were also typed at the bottom of the corresponding QR Code in case the patron did not have a cell phone to use.
Next, the QR codes were printed off and posted throughout the library. The first and last clue were located at the Circulation desk and each succeeding QR code was placed by the answer to each clue. To participate in the hunt the patron had to either read or scan each clue, then walk to the location where they think the clue is located the continue on until they ended up back at the Circulation desk.
This is a simple, inexpensive library activity. The only supplies you need would be access to the internet, paper and a printer to print out your QR codes. The activity also used a minimal amount of staff time since they would interact with patrons at the beginning when they explained to them how it works and at the end to give out prizes for completion. Both children and adults loved this program and learned a few new things along the way. |
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For more info, contact Mary Ann Hayden, mhayden@acpl.us
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Recent articles on topics of interest to Adult Services |
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This newsletter is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services. It is published by the Library of Virginia Library Development Division.
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