The School of Library and Information Studies of The University of Wisconsin at Madison offered an online course. Although geared "for those working in small-to-medium sized public libraries," most librarians would probably benefit from a course such as this. The course covered the range of duties for those working with children.

Topics included: Child development; literary and artistic characteristics of books; picture books and poetry; traditional literature, fantasy, historical fiction, realistic fiction; books of information and multicultural literature; collection development plus issues and challenges; reference works; programming; media and policies; recording keeping and professional development.

Texts: Carl Tomlinson and Carol Lynch-Brown, Essentials of Children's Literature, Allyn & Bacon, 2002 and Anita T. Steele, Bare Bones Children's Services: Tips for Public Library Generalists, 2001.

For questions on upcoming classes, contact Linda Mundt at LEMundt@wisc.edu

Linda Mundt
University of Wisconsin-Madison
School of Library and Information Studies
600 N. Park Street
Madison, WI 53706