Karen Jensen

Northern Region, Valencia

Founder and Editor at Teen Librarian Toolbox

The personal Twitter of Teen Librarian Toolbox https://t.co/7Qri1GSOkV Tweets & Opinions are my own. she/her

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Articles

Calm and Connected, Then Speak on Climate by Rune Kier Nielsen

2 weeks ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

Are you OK? Are people around you? We live in an uncertain time. A lot of us suffer from the mental load of living in a world where people in power are silent and passive on issues that define our future. Some of those in power even put our future further at risk. One of those issues is climate. We may feel alone, powerless, and disillusioned. Like standing on a beach waiting for a giant wave to hit the shore. We see it coming—but what can we do? I was not always a climate activist.
Sunday Reflections: How are We Protecting Children if We are Just Going to Work them to the Bone?

2 weeks ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

Although I will often tell you that history was my least favorite subject in high school – and it was – I find myself reflecting a lot lately on those lessons I was taught by my history teachers. I remember learning about the Civil Rights Movement and firehoses turned on our fellow humans just because of the color of their skin. I remember learning about women fighting for the right to vote.
RA Tool of the Week: Inside Out Inspired Emotions, but Make it YA Books

3 weeks ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

As the movie Inside Out 2 was coming out, I decided to make an emotions based Reader’s Advisory tool for my library day job. The premise was simple: take each emotion character and share a book that represents the emotion of that character. My first RA tool was epic! It include an adorable picture of each character that I downloaded from the Internet. It looked amazing. And then my librarian brain kicked in and I remembered that I was committing massive copyright violations.
Media DISCUSSION: Adolescence on Netflix

4 weeks ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS A DISCUSSION OF THE NETFLIX SERIES ADOLESCENCE. IT INVOLVES SOME SPOILERS IF YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW DETAILS OF THE SHOW AND IT ALSO INVOLVES DISCUSSIONS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMENAs a librarian who specializes in services to teens, I don’t just read YA/Teen books to stay current with teens. I also spend a lot of time researching teen culture, visiting teen websites and watching teen media. I do this for several reasons.
An All-American Girl: Front and Centered, a guest post by author Niña Mata

1 month ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

I was 13 years old when All-American Girl starring Margaret Cho first aired on ABC. It was the first time I ever cared about TV ratings. I was convinced that if I kept both of our TVs tuned in, I could somehow help keep the show alive. I needed it to succeed. It was the closest thing I had ever seen to my family on television; a Korean American family sitcom, who looked and sounded, close enough, to my own. Margaret Cho wasn’t playing a sidekick, or a background character.
Important Update: Deep Cuts Proposed to the IMLS are a Further Erosion to Education and Democracy

1 month ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

Since January 21st, there has been an outright assault on government agencies. People have been fired, information has disappeared, and talking point keep getting repeated. On Friday night, it was time for them to come for libraries. First, please make no mistake, they have been coming for libraries for a while now in one form or another. During Trump’s 1st term, there were assaults on the IMLS – we’ll get to this more in a minute.
Haunting History: A True Story of Spirits, Teens, and the Quest for Fame, a guest post by author Barb Rosenstock

1 month ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

You haven’t been humbled until you’ve started a presentation to a large audience of teens with the question, “Who likes history?” The one raised hand belonged to a super-enthusiastic eighth grader in the back row who had put it up before the presentation even started. This nonfiction author’s humblest moment happened over a decade ago and I have never asked about history the same way since. Now, my author visits start with a personal narrative. I talk about my storytelling grandfather.
RA Tool of the Week: Canva Collections on Pinterest

1 month ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

Today I am going to share with you one of my favorite RA tools: Pinterest. Sometimes, I have an idea of what I want to create in my head. Other times, I have no idea where to start. So spending some time being inspired on Pinterest can help. As I have mentioned, I make all of my creations, both professional and personal, in Canva at this point. And you can find a ton of Canva tips, tricks, and inspiration on Pinterest. If I don’t know where to start, I start on Pinterest.
Sunday Reflections: Contemplating the DEI in the Imago Dei

1 month ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

I began working in libraries when I was in undergrad school working on a degree in youth ministry at a small, private conservative Christian college. The lore of Karen goes, the local small public library needed someone to work with teens. I walked into the campus employment office and they looked at my major and said, “hey, the local library is looking for someone to work with teens, you’re getting a degree in teen ministry, you should apply.” And I did.
Sunday Reflections: I’m Just a Mother Wanting Her Daughters to Have More Rights Than I Did, Not Less

1 month ago | teenlibrariantoolbox.com | Karen Jensen

March is Women’s History Month, a thing I have been reflecting on a lot as both a woman and the mother to two daughters. As a woman, I have never taken my rights for granted. During elections, I have bundled my girls up in the freezing snow when they were young to go and vote. The first time my oldest can remember voting, we voted for Obama. I remember that sense of hope as he won. A few weeks later, I gave birth to my second daughter.