Tag Archives: kids programming

WisCon Kids’ Programming Needs You!

This year, WisCon Kids’ Programming is trying a new approach. Kids’
Program activities have their own track in the Panel Signup. For more information on how to sign up for panels, check out this post on our blog.

We’re hoping to get different people to volunteer for each hour of Kids’ Programming, to enrich the activities we can offer our kids, and to share the work so that Kids’ Program volunteers get time to enjoy
WisCon themselves.

WisCon is full of people who have learned how to do a few cool things! Some of you would enjoy the opportunity to teach one of those things to an interested group of kids. Kids’ Programs can offer you an hour and fifteen minutes, a small group of kids (6-11 years old), an adult assistant, and whatever materials our small budget can cover. Sign up for Panel Programming, in the Kids’ Programs track, and send email to kidsprograms@wiscon.net with questions or a description of what you’d like to do.

If you don’t want to run an activity, you can be the second adult in
the room. In this role, you have to be flexible. You might be
assisting with materials for a craft activity, or building Legos or
jigsaw puzzles with the kids who don’t want to do the main activity,
or firmly redirecting the energies of a kid who doesn’t want to do the
main activity and is trying to have a swordfight in that space
instead. To volunteer for this role, sign up for a panel in Panel
Programming, in the Kids’ Programs track, but don’t click the button
that says you volunteer to moderate this panel.

If you want to do more to help create a welcoming space for kids at
WisCon, consider joining the Kids’ Programming Team on ConCom. Share the work and the decision-making that make WisCon happen!

Volunteering at WisCon entitles you to the Volunteer Gift.
Volunteering for six hours entitles you to a rebate of part of your
membership fee.

If you have any questions, email kidsprograms@wiscon.net.

WisCon 42 Volunteer Opportunities

Here we are again, and it’s already April! We have a few more volunteering opportunities, in the hope that getting you this information early will help you to plan your time at the convention.

First up: Help with Gaming!

WisCon is looking for volunteers to help run open gaming on FridaySaturday, and Sunday nights, from 8 pm-12 am. Responsibilities would mostly revolve around WisCon’s game library; getting it out at the beginning of the night, putting it away at the end of the night, and making sure none of it wanders away in between. In addition, volunteers will play games and help make the open gaming space welcoming and enjoyable! Please email gaming@wiscon.net if you are interested in helping out in this way. Even just a couple of hours would help a lot!

Make a High-Visibility Fashion Statement Volunteering with Safety

You’ve probably seen Safety volunteers in past years, because we do our best to make them hard to miss. They walk around the convention spaces carrying a binder while wearing an eye-catching (and stylish) high-visibility neon vest.

That could be you this year! It’s a great way to meet new folks and to see the whole convention — a Safety shift means you’ll move around the con, dipping in and out of parties, events, panels, workshops, readings… You’ll be asked to be observant, to listen respectfully to folks for whom the convention or other people have created stress, anxiety, or anger, to hand out taxi vouchers, to point out the restrooms, and to contact the appropriate person if you discover a problem that can’t be solved with a quick chat.

Volunteering for one or more Safety shifts is perfect if you enjoy helping people, and it can be satisfying to be able to help with the little things quickly: you’re the mobile person who can help out volunteers that have to stay at their posts like Art Show and Registration, who carries useful supplies, and who has a sympathetic ear. Safety welcomes folks who use mobility devices, or who can only make time in their schedule (or spoons budget) for a single shift.

Sign up now to let us know when you are available to lend a hand by visiting this form: https://goo.gl/forms/kjLIbNfc2CJncdQn2

Bakesale!

The James Tiptree, Jr Literary Award, an annual literary prize for science fiction or fantasy that expands or explores our understanding of gender, was established at WisCon in 1991.We’ve held a bakesale to benefit the award at WisCon ever since.

Volunteering at the Bakesale is relatively easy and a lot of fun! You’ll help portion out the baked goods donated by WisCon members, make sure that allergen information is clearly displayed, and sell them. Best of all, Bakesale volunteer shifts come in convenient one-hour segments, so they are easy to fit into your day.

Sign up now to let us know when you are available to lend a hand by visiting this form: https://goo.gl/forms/NOnUcxSM6zfZQawo1

Kids’ Programs!

We’ve got some amazing and fun things planned for our Kids’ Programs this year, and we could use your help. These programs are for the 6-12 year olds who come to WisCon, and we’ll be doing crafts, building things, talking about books and movies, having experiments, visiting the pool…all sorts of stuff. We just need a few more people who are older than 12 to help make sure things go smoothly so that everyone can have a good time. That might mean that we ask you to help pick up Lego from the floor, or that you lead a parade of children on a field trip to the Art Show, or that you hand out fruit snacks, or that you get to pour the vinegar into a baking soda volcano. Or all of the above!

There are times available all through the day when you can potentially volunteer, and the time slots are each 90 minutes long, and exactly the same as the regular (teen and adult) panel schedule, so they’re really easy to fit into your day.

Let us know when you’d like to help by using this form: https://goo.gl/forms/EIwHp0kR8IvIr4Ff2
The Blue Tape Crew Needs YOU!
Want to help make WisCon more accessible? Are you an adhesion enthusiast? Perhaps you just like the color blue? WisCon’s Blue Tape Crew is looking for people who are available throughout the convention to set up and maintain accessibility features, such as blue tape markings for priority seating and wheelchair parking in panel rooms. Morning people or those operating on Eastern Standard Time are especially needed for early shifts! If you’re ready to Access-orize, please fill out our form linked here, or email access@wiscon.net. Want to learn more about Accessibility at Wiscon? Click here!