Today counts as the exact half-way point of my summer reading program.  It’s going well, with some great performers, a couple of good library-run programs, and lots of enthusiastic summer readers.

Today is also the day that I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about my three goals for fiscal year ’10.  Each year we’re required to come up with three specific goals, and we are then evaluated at the end of the fiscal year for our ability to fulfill those goals.

Here are the three goals that first popped into my mind:

• Keep my head above water – don’t drown in the ocean of work to be done.
• Keep smiling.  Keep smiling.  Keep smiling.  (Even if the teeth are clenched.)
• Try to maintain a broad, philosophical perspective on my job.  Don’t let myself get bogged down in the minutia.

But, obviously, those can’t be my written goals.  (Though they are pretty reasonable goals, really.)  So I’ve been thinking hard today about what I’ll put down as what I want to and need to achieve this year.  Here’s what I have at the moment:

• Finish 16 more Toddler Storytime lesson plans, which include: typed handouts with theme-based book lists for parents (each list should have at least 20 titles), fingerplays and songs, follow-up activities, and a craft idea; detailed lesson plans for me to use, with thoughts on how to introduce each theme and creative ways to present the theme throughout the storytime; and feltboard stories (made at home, of course) to enrich each storytime.  The completion of these 16 lesson plans will bring my total library of Toddler Storytime plans up to 50, enough for a full year and some change (since storytimes don’t run every single week of the year).
• Further development of the Preschool Storytime, including feltboard stories that are more sophisticated for this age.  Also investigate additional process art projects to use with this age group, since it has been proved that the “splashy” art projects are by far the most popular.  Sigh.
• Given the popularity of the first annual Lego Expo, research and brainstorm to see if I can come up with another community-based program that is similar.  In other words, the success of the Lego Expo was due entirely to its participants, not to a performer, and I’d like to see if it is possible to create another program that emphasizes childrens’ creativity and innovation.
• Read more children’s and young adult books.  This obviously has to be done in my spare time, but one major impact of the budget cuts in our town is that my schedule has become odd – very odd some weeks – and I’ve dropped off on my reading.  It is vitally essential that I read as many books as possible in order to be effective at my job.  This MUST be a priority.
• Be more regular about writing on this blog.  I love that writing entries for my blog helps me to focus my thoughts and energy.  Writing blog entries also helps me to process events at work, and evaluate what worked and what didn’t.  The blog has been yet another casualty of my odd schedule.

That’s more than three goals, isn’t it?  I like the idea of goals, but in some ways they’re a bad idea for someone like me – I’m already a workaholic overachiever, and when writing goals I end up creating way more work for myself than I would otherwise.  Hmmmm.