Unearth American Sign Language Resources for Your Summer Reading Storytimes

May 6, 2026American Sign Language, eCourses and Webinars, Professional Development, Resources for Teachers and Librarians, summer reading, webinarskathymacmillan

Little Hands Signing in Storytime: Summer Reading Special 2026

Wednesday, May 13, 2026 from 2-3 PM Eastern/1-2 PM Central/12-1 PM Mountain/11 AM-12 PM Pacific

Online session via Zoom (1 hour webinar). Includes recording access for 30 days.

Learn basic American Sign Language and extension activities to use with the 2026 Collaborative Summer Reading theme, Unearth a Story/Desentierra una Historia. Learn how to incorporate ASL into storytime songs, rhymes, and stories in a respectful and effective way. Certificate of completion available with successful completion of post-test.

Pricing:

Individual: 45.00 (includes live webinar and recording access for 30 days after the live event)
Group rates available for groups of 10 or more. Contact info@storiesbyhand.com for more information.
Optional Add-on: Individualized video feedback: 25.00. Submit a video (up to 10 min) demonstrating your planned signing activities for storytime and receive individualized feedback on sign choices, production, and more from Kathy MacMillan via return video within 14 days. Must be used within 6 months of purchase.

Register now

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See you this Saturday at the Sussex Children’s Book Festival!

April 28, 2026book festivals, Upcoming eventskathymacmillan

Sussex Children’s Book Festival

Saturday, May 2, 2026 from 10 am – 2 pm

Milton Public Library, 123 Union St, Milton, DE 19968

Join me and many other children’s book authors and illustrators this Saturday! There will be book signings, storytimes, crafts, pony rides, a petting zoo, face painting, food trucks, visits with your favorite children’s book characters, and more!

Providing Accommodations for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Patrons in Your Library

April 24, 2026American Sign Language, eCourses and Webinars, Professional Development, Resources for Teachers and Librarians, webinarskathymacmillan

Providing Accommodations for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Patrons in Your Library

Wednesday, May 6, 2026 from 2-4 PM Eastern/1-3 PM Central/12-1 PM Mountain/11 AM-1 PM Pacific

Online via Zoom. Includes recording access through June 7, 2026.

This session unpacks the legal requirements for communication access under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and provides a guide to effective use of accommodations such as interpreters, captioning, front line communication techniques, and more. We’ll also cover easy and inexpensive solutions that can be used by library staff at all levels. Certificate of completion available with successful completion of post-test.

Pricing:

Individual: 80.00 (includes live webinar and recording access for 30 days after the live event)
Group rates available for groups of 10 or more. Contact info@storiesbyhand.com for more information.

Register now!

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Feedback from Workshop and Webinar Participants

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FAQ: eCourses and Webinars

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Read This!: SPACE FOR SAFFRON by Rie Neal

April 18, 2026ASL/Deaf Culture Book Reviews, Authors You Should Know, Read This, Reviewsrie nealkathymacmillan

Space for Saffron by Rie Neal
Summary: Ten-year-old Saffron Sawyer loves science, experimenting, and learning new things. From making homemade slime in the back of her moms’ (Mama and Mimi) coffee shop to adopting tadpoles out of the river to learning how to fix bikes from watching YouTube videos, Saffron is confident she’s prepared for any challenge. But when Mama announces they are moving to Silicon Valley to take over Gran’s café, it’s Saffron’s biggest undertaking yet. Silicon Valley is very different from what Saffron’s used to. The streets are filled with electric cars instead of pick-up trucks, and instead of fixing their bikes, people buy new ones. Even worse, the coffee shop is struggling, and if it closes, Saffron and her moms will move again—leaving Gran behind. The one bright spot is Saffron has started at school just in time for the STEM Expo. Science has always been her favorite subject and she’s excited to present her project…until she sees the elaborate presentations her classmates have planned. Convinced she can never measure up, Saffron decides not to join the expo after all. But when Gran takes Saffron to a space-themed art installation in San Francisco, Saffron has an idea for a STEM Expo project that could help her win over her classmates—and maybe even save Gran’s café for good.

Saffron is a lovable space nerd who sometimes gets so excited to DO SCIENCE that she just can’t get out of her own way. After a particularly embarrassing disaster costs her mom her job, Saffron and her moms relocate to Silicon Valley to take over the ailing family cafe. It’s a whole new world for Saffron as she makes friends with the STEM-forward kids in Silicon Valley. When she figures out how to combine her STEM Expo project with an imaginative plan to save the cafe, she’ll need all hands on deck. Saffron’s deafness and her use of a BAHA (bone-anchored hearing aid) are woven naturally into the story, which is filled with humor, heart, and endearing characters.

SPACE FOR SAFFRON is out now.

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Read This!: CALL YOUR FATHER by Tracy C. Gold and Vivian Mineker

April 14, 2026Authors You Should Know, picture books, Read This, Reviewsrie nealkathymacmillan

Call Your Father: A Tender Picture Book for Dads by Tracy C. Gold
Summary: From life’s highs to life’s lows, there’s one person who is always the first one we call: our father. He’s the one we want to comfort us, to wipe our tears, and to share our triumphs. Whether it’s falling off your bike or building your first crib, you can never have too many reasons to call your father. In this beautiful and relatable picture book, follow a father and son through the years as they face each new stage of life together. Accompanied by gentle rhymes from Tracy C. Gold and tender illustrations from Vivian Mineker, this book delivers the powerful and touching message that you are never too old to need your father. The perfect gift for the fathers or grandfathers in your life who always answer the call, this picture book just might make dad cry.

A poignant companion to Gold and Mineker’s previous collaboration, Call Your Mother, this book is a perfect gift for father figures of all kinds. We follow the protagonist from the time he is a little baby rolling on the rug, babbling “Ba ba ba! Da da da!” through the challenges of growing up, from skinned knees to speaking up for classmates, and on into the college years and ultimately becoming a father himself. At every stage, the refrain is the same: “Call your father”…and he always shows up. Gold’s moving text, accompanied by Mineker’s colorful illustrations, shows how the details of Dad’s support might change over the years, but his caring presence remains constant.

CALL YOUR FATHER is out now.

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