Youth projects on Youtube
Many public libraries have Youtube channels that serve a variety of functions and have diverse content. One such kind of content you can find on library channels is youth project content - where young patrons are encouraged to express themselves and learn how to make and share videos using the library.
Here are a few great examples of these videos from different public library systems:
While this kind of content is by no means professional or polished to fit library branding, it still creates an atmosphere of acceptance and inclusion. By letting youth use library services and resources to create content like this, these libraries are telling young people that their voices matter, and that their ideas are worth sharing.
I had hoped that I would find more content like this when looking through the Youtube channels of various public libraries, but it was actually quite rare for a library to have even a few if any videos solely created by youth for youth. Does this mean that youth projects in the library are dying? Or are they just less visible?
While libraries may not be making this kind of content a priority right now, and choose to focus on more serious community matters in the content that they create, there should still be a space for teens and young people to create and share content. If libraries are really meant to be encouraging young people, then why not create more programs that allow them to take charge of a project and give it a meaning on their own? This kind of content created by youth with guidance and assistance of library staff is valuable both to the kids who create it, and to the communities they are in. By fostering their imagination and encouraging them to make things meant to be shared, we can help young people along their journeys of self-discovery.
I sincerely hope that this trend gets a boost, because if young patrons should be encouraged to contribute and participate in libraries, as well as the communities they serve.
Here are a few great examples of these videos from different public library systems:
Pima County Public Library
The New York Public Library
The Kansas City Public Library
While this kind of content is by no means professional or polished to fit library branding, it still creates an atmosphere of acceptance and inclusion. By letting youth use library services and resources to create content like this, these libraries are telling young people that their voices matter, and that their ideas are worth sharing.
I had hoped that I would find more content like this when looking through the Youtube channels of various public libraries, but it was actually quite rare for a library to have even a few if any videos solely created by youth for youth. Does this mean that youth projects in the library are dying? Or are they just less visible?
While libraries may not be making this kind of content a priority right now, and choose to focus on more serious community matters in the content that they create, there should still be a space for teens and young people to create and share content. If libraries are really meant to be encouraging young people, then why not create more programs that allow them to take charge of a project and give it a meaning on their own? This kind of content created by youth with guidance and assistance of library staff is valuable both to the kids who create it, and to the communities they are in. By fostering their imagination and encouraging them to make things meant to be shared, we can help young people along their journeys of self-discovery.
I sincerely hope that this trend gets a boost, because if young patrons should be encouraged to contribute and participate in libraries, as well as the communities they serve.
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