Pat Mora's Blog, page 57

A Día Story

In the 18 years that I have worked on Día, I have met many inspiring educators at all levels. Occasionally, I meet such “sparklers” by phone. Debbie Kaczar is such a librarian. When I chatted with her and heard her dedication and her persistence to bring Día celebrations to her school and community, I asked her to write her story so that you, blog visitors, would be inspired too. We all become discouraged in trying to make all children valued in our communities and in motivating others to sha...

Día Grant Receipients

We congratulate the following 2 libraries on winning the 2014 Día Grants from the Center for Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature (CSMCL.)

Contra Costa County Library – Pittsburg Library, Pittsburg, CA (Día Theme: “Anyone Can Dream – A Celebration of African American Poetry”) Date of event: April 26, 2014, 1:00 p.m.

Seminole County Public Library, Casselberry, FL (Día Theme: “Dress, Drums, and Dance – Interactive Día Program with an African American Focus”) Date of event: April 10 – 30,...

Happy Día from ALSC!

Today’s guest post is by Aimee Strittmatter, Executive Director of the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association. Thank you, Aimee!

From their earliest years, libraries help children to understand society through books, new media and programming. Through rich programming and culturally diverse collections librarians facilitate in children an understanding of the diversity of their communities and the larger world. Participation in the El día...

Día Blog Hop Begins Today

The second annual Día Blog Hop begins today, hosted by Latinas for Latino Literature in honor of El día de los niños, El día de los libros/ Children’s Day, Book Day.

Pat’s post is the first of daily posts by different authors/illustrators who will appear on different blogs, writing an original short article or creating an original illustration in support of Latino children’s literacy. Read the full schedule — you’ll want to read each and every post!

The post Día Blog Hop Begins Today appeared...

Día Advocates

We’re sending out a huge thank you to everyone who advocates for Día all year long, especially the Mora Award winners and the Día Dynamos. Enjoy this poster which can be downloaded in a Lo-res version for websites or Hi-res version for printing.

The post Día Advocates appeared first on Pat Mora.

Día Song

Today we bring you a musical treat. Our thanks to the 5th grade at Tony Serna Jr. Elementary (West Las Vegas, NM) and their teacher, Billie Matthews.

Día Song

This is the day of the children,

los niños, the children.

This is the day of the children

the children and their books.

El día de los niños: El día de los libros,

the day of children and their books,

ta-lán, ta-lán, tan-tán, ta-lán,

los niños and their books.

Celebrate with piñatas

and musica de colores,

add the papel picado

and baskets and baskets...

Bookjoy Celebrations

In addition to the April Día celebrations of a year honoring all children and linking them to bookjoy, April is rich with many other literacy-related events.

El día de los niños, El día de los libros/Children’s Day, Book Day

National Poetry Month

School Library Month

April 2, International Children’s Book Day

April 12, Beverly Cleary’s birthday, known as DEAR Day for DROP EVERYTHING AND READ

April 13-19, National Library Week

April 15, National Library Workers Day

April 16, National Bookmobile Day

Apr...

Díapalooza Begins!

Welcome to our 5th annual Díapalooza! It’s exciting to think of all the dedicated and creative Día planners who are preparing for annual book fiestas on or around April 30th. April includes many celebrations including National Poetry Month. Those of us who work on Día are particularly committed to the next generation of poets, artists, scientists, etc., to the children who deserve the pleasure and power of bookjoy.

I’m pleased to introduce our newest Día Dynamo . Originally from El Salvador, R...

A Good Read: Buddha in the Attic

Some time back, I bought Buddha in the Attic for my daughter. When she gave it to me to read recently, she said, “It’s sad but excellent.” How true. I’m in awe of the concept and how effectively Julie Otsuka, in the words of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, “creates a chorus of unforgettable voices.” Poetically, Otsuka offers us a novel collectively yet individually experienced. Read it.

The post A Good Read: Buddha in the Attic appeared first on Pat Mora.

The Countdown Begins

We hope you’ll join us right here, on this blog, for Díapalooza, our 5th annual celebration and countdown to El día de los niños, El día de los niños/Children’s Day, Book Day on April 30. Throughout the month we’ll post about all things Día!

Over at Latinas for Latino Literature they’re getting ready for their second annual Día Blog Hop! Pat will kick off a month of blog posts by Latina/o authors and illustrators, with posts appearing on a range of literacy, culture and lifestyle blogs.

We’re i...