Subscription boxes have become very popular over the past couple of years and there's a box for just about everyone including readers. Book subscription boxes can be expensive so these libraries found ways to offer a similar reading experience for no cost to teens. Every library does their program a little bit different so check them out to see if one of their subscription box programs fits your needs.
Type: Self-directed
Age: Middle school
Optimal size: 11-20
Estimated cost: $100+
Planning time: <2 hours
Frequency: Monthly
Learning outcomes
Display an ability to communicate with others ● Connect and collaborate with others
Demonstrate technology use that is safe, ethical and responsible ● Leverage digital tools to broaden their perspective ● Express themselves on a variety of platforms
Instructions
Teen Loot Box
Sarah Prosser, Teen Librarian, Rye Free Reading Room - sprosser@ryelibrary.org
The Teen Loot Box at the Rye Free Reading Room is for grades 6-12 and is offered monthly for 16 teens. Participants receive a library book and goodies such as craft supplies from Amazon or Michaels. Sarah includes recipes from online resources and she purchases snacks from local grocery stores or Cosco. Sarah purchases the boxes for her Loot Box from Amazon and each box costs about $6/teen. Although the teens receive library books, the boxes are not barcoded.
"We drummed up a lot of support by advertising this in with our take and make kit bags, and are planning on having a teen take over the Instagram and do an "unboxing" video to get more teens interested."
If you would like more information about the Teen Loot Box, email Sarah at sprosser@ryelibrary.org
Teen Biblio Boxes
Liz Castleberry, Head of Youth Services at the Comstock Township Library Email: liz@comstocklibrary.org
Teen Biblio Boxes are offered to grades 6-12 every other month. There are 20 teens in the Biblio Boxes program and at the moment there is no discussion component but in the future they may include a survey to better match the reader with the right book. Participants receive a library book and goodies from Dollar Tree, S&S, Oriental Trading, and Target. Liz gets her boxes from Amazon and each box costs $7/teen.
"My best advice would be to start slow. We wanted each box to be the best quality we could offer and that takes time. Right now we're offering boxes every other month and leaving a box out at our reference desk for teens can sneak a peak at this new program. It's been very popular so far!"
If you would like more information on Teen Biblio Boxes, you can email Liz at liz@comstocklibrary.org
Teen Book Box
The Teen Book Box is offered monthly for teens aged 13-19. Participants receive a library book and goodies from donations, leftover prize and book SWAG, and dollar stores. The Teen Book Box is placed in old Princeton Files, the total cost is $2/teen and the number of teens in the program fluctuates. Ami's advice for library workers looking to start a subscription book program at their library is to keep it simple.
YAAASS Box (Young Adult Amazingly Awesome Super Subscription Box)
Dawn Abron, Teen Services Coordinator, Zion-Benton Public Library, Zion, IL
The YAAASS Box is offered quarterly to teens in grades 6-12 and there are between 10-13 teens each month. Participants receive a book they can keep and goodies from leftover prizes, Dollar Tree, Five Below, and Target. Books are purchased from Bookdepot.com and can be as low as $1/book. Boxes are purchased from Amazon, the total cost is $8/teen, and there are 10-13 teens/quarter. Teens are required to participate in a two question discussion on Instagram or Snapchat.
"If you plan to offer a discussion component, stress that participation is required. I put the discussion date on the book and I give them a one week reminder so that they have time to finish the book. Most of the teens do the discussion and for the ones that don't, I do DM them to give them more time. I also let them know that it's okay if they didn't finish because they didn't like the book or if life came up and that's why they didn't finish. I give them more time and they are usually pretty good about answering the questions."
If you have more questions about the YAAASS Box, please email Dawn at dabron@zblibrary.org
Teen Reads
Teen Reads is offered to teens aged 13-18 once a month. Participants receive a library book and small goodies from Amazon, Oriental Trading, leftovers from other programs and each box costs $4/teen. There are ten participants in Teen Reads and the boxes are not barcoded.
"A questionnaire is very helpful in filling the boxes and always ask about allergies if you will be including food or candy."
If you have more questions about Teen Reads, please email Karan at kstorlie@rlalibrary.org
LitLoot
Samantha Boehle, Youth Program Coordinator at the Perkin Public Library in Perkin Illinois.
LitLoot is open to teens in grades 6-12 and it is offered during the summer and winter months. Participants receive a library book and a free ARC and she purchases the goodies from Amazon or local stores. Each box costs about $5/teens and is barcoded. Teens must check out their LitLoot box.
"When I started this program, I set it up like a true subscription - if kids signed up for Summer LitLoot, they got a box in June, July and August. I surveyed the kids each time so I could try to personalize the box even more the next time. It was cool, but I was only reaching fifteen kids with three months of very labor intensive programming. I decided to theme the boxes (by genre for now), and opened it up for monthly sign ups. Now more kids can access the program, and the narrow theme helps me find books and think of crafts and snacks that fit the genre. Subscription boxes are a TON of work no matter what, so streamlining the process even just a little bit was a huge win for me."
If you would like moreinformationonLitLoot, you can email Samantha at sboehle@perkinpubliclibrary.org
Evaluation
- It can get overwhelming especially if you have a lot of teens. Try to be as organized as possible to eliminate the stress.
- Have teens fill out a quick survey so that you know what types of books they like.
- If you don't want to do a discussion but want some sort of feedback, you can have teens email or submit an emoji review over social media
- Before COVID some libraries had teens bring back their boxes but that's not advisable. If you don't want to spend money on a box, Amazon has cheap bags.
- Every once in a while, survey teens for feedback on your program. Teens may have ideas on goodies or the book selection.