Pat Mora's Blog, page 24

Cultural diversity is cultural wealth

The UN General Assembly designates May 21 as World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development. The day provides us with an opportunity to deepen our understanding of the values of cultural diversity. Add a spoonful of bookjoy to this delicious idea, and that's Día: literacy for all children, all cultures, all languages.

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Today’s Action Item

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Celebrate Mothers and Grandmothers This Weekend

This weekend is Mother's Day, our annual day to honor the strong women in our lives. Over fifteen years ago, Pat edited and contributed to Love to Mamá: A Tribute to Mothers, a beautiful and celebratory collection in which thirteen poets write with joy, humor, and love about the powerful bond between mothers, grandmothers, and children.

In a starred review, Kirkus Reviews said of the book:
"The warmth of family, life, especially that of mothers, aunts, and grandmothers, pervades this delight...

2017 Estela and Raúl Mora Award Application Now Open!

Did you have a Día celebration in your school, library, or community in April 2017 to bring Children's Day/Book Day, El día de los niños/El día de los libros to life for kids and families?

If so, you're eligible to apply for the 2017 Estela and Raúl Mora Award!

This year, the Mora Award recipient will receive a $1,000 First Book Marketplace credit! Two additional honor awards of $500 in First Book Marketplace credits will be granted to strong applicants.

Apply now!

Last year's winner was So...

21 Years of Celebrating Children and Books

This is my giant THANK YOU! GRACIAS! to each of you who has contributed to our 21st Día celebrations across the country this April. Special thanks to Bobbie Combs, my web manager, and to our loyal organizational partners at ALSC, First Book, AFT, etc.

I’m grateful to Adriana Domínguez who years ago edited Book Fiesta: Celebrate Children’s Day, Book Day/Celebremos El día de los ninos, El día de los libros and to talented illustrator Rafael López. Poetry for children is so important, a song fo...

New Mexico Celebrates Día

Deanne Dekle

The Land of Enchantment has some powerful Día advocates, among them Deanne Dekle, Youth Services & Outreach Consultant at the New Mexico State Library and Flo Trujillo, Youth Services Coordinator of the Farmington, NM Public Library. Deanne says: "I’ve been educating the public library staff on how to celebrate Día and encouraging them to include Día in their youth services programming." She shares resources on the New Mexico State Library Día website.

Flo Trujillo

Our first Día Dy...

Oklahoma Día

Our loyal supporters, Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong, will be promoting Día at Oklahoma State University’s new literacy event, “OSU Celebrate Community—with Poetry.” In support of this celebration, Pomelo Books has donated 100+ assorted books for use in community schools and as event prizes.

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Because School Libraries Empower Students

The theme of this year’s School Library month is “Because School Libraries Empower Students.” Every April school librarians are encouraged to host activities to help their school and local community celebrate the essential role that strong school library programs play in transforming learning.

School librarians are important Día advocates! Download the Día Planning Booklet and join us in celebrating all our children and exciting them about bookjoy.

The post Because School Libraries Empower S...

Savor the Earth’s Beauty

This year’s Earth Day celebration, April 22, is focused on education with the theme Environmental & Climate Literacy. Celebrate bookjoy and the beauty of the earth with these books about nature:

The Desert is My Mother/ El Desierto Es Mi Madre

Listen to the Desert: Oye al desierto

Water Rolls, Water Rises/El agua rueda, el agua sube

This Big Sky

Illustration by Daniel Lechon from The Desert is My Mother

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Día, Deep in the Heart of Texas

In 1997, the first annual Día celebrations were held in cities including El Paso and Austin. Texas has continued to support Día, thanks to advocates like Sara Ortiz, Communications & Marketing Specialist at the Texas Library Association (TLA) and Rebekah Manley, Coordinator for the Texas Center for the Book.

Sara Ortiz

Sara says, “No one school, town, city, or state library is the other, and neither are readers, which is precisely why celebrations such as Día are more crucial today than ever b...