Pat Mora's Blog, page 71

Celebrating Día 2012

Thank you to today's guest blogger, Lise Tewes, Children's Services Coordinator at Erlanger Branch, Kenton County Public Library, KY. Lise was named a Día Dynamo  in 2011.



I am fortunate to have been mentored by a wonderful Children's Librarian, Sara Howrey, who really set the bar and got the ball rolling for Día celebrations in the Greater Cincinnati area. Sara's vision, which included partnerships with up to 7 different library systems and even more community partners, still drives our celebrations today, although on a somewhat smaller scale.

Our Día celebration this year will occur at the Erlanger Branch Library on Sunday, April 29, from 1-4 p.m. My library, the Kenton County Public Library, continues to partner with the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County to produce a joint celebration. We trade locations each year, and this year, it is my turn to be the host location. Last year, we had a wonderful celebration at the Madeira Branch of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, as is evident by these photos:

 



Our event this year, at the Erlanger Branch  in Kenton County, Kentucky, will feature Nickelodeon's Dora the Explorer!  We are actually able to have Dora the Explorer for the whole weekend, so on Saturday, April 28, Dora will go to the neighboring counties and be part of their Día celebrations.  Campbell County Public Library  will have Dora appearances from 12-1:30 p.m. on April 28, and then the Boone County Public Library will have Dora appearances from 2-4 p.m.  Dora will be at our Library on Sunday from 1-4 p.m.  The three Libraries – Boone, Kenton and Campbell Counties – divided up the cost of Dora the Explorer so that it was affordable for all of us.  We think that Dora's appearances at all three of our events will really make an impact and bring a lot of recognition and attendance to our events. 



In addition to appearances by Nickelodeon's Dora the Explorer, we are also going to have craft and information tables sponsored by 6 community partners, including the local elementary school.  There will be International Storytime, featuring the book Splash being read in 10 different languages.  There will be 500 free Dora the Explorer books for children.  We have a group of Filipino dancers coming to do their traditional tinikling dance.  Another group will perform authentic folk dances from Mexico.  Face painting and piñatas will be available.  Without a doubt, we are looking forward to a wonderful celebration for Día's 16th Anniversary! 

Margarita Engle Reads for Día

Throughout this month's Díapalooza we'll feature brief videos of some of the Día Author and Illustrator Ambassadors reading from their books. Our first is Margarita Engle reading at Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children's Literature.



Margarita reads from her newest book, The Wild Book  and from The Surrender Tree .

Margarita, thank you for your support of  Día and for being a Día Author and Illustrator Ambassador!

El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day) in the News

We're so pleased that Día has received recent media attention in :

Publisher's Weekly Children's Bookshelf -- Día Initiative Extends Its Literacy Outreach.

AASL Blog -- What to Do for Día

ALA/ALSC Press release -- "Nation's libraries celebrate cultures"

Cynsations blog by Cynthia Leitch Smith --  El día de los ninos, el día de los libros

Writing with a Broken Tusk blog by Uma Krishnaswami -- El día de los niños/el día de los libros, Children's Day, Book Day

Thank you Día supporters!

Book Giveaways!

Enter to win 1 of 6 book sets we're giving away during Díapalooza!

Each set will include 3-4 new children's books and a signed copy of one of Pat's titles. To enter, comment on this post or any Díapalooza post and include an email address (formatted like pat at patmora dot com.) Or send an email directly to lcashin at patmora dot com with Díapalooza Book Giveaway in the subject line. U. S. only please. Deadline is each Friday during April (4.13, 4.40, and 4.27) midnight EST. There will be 2  random drawings each Friday.

Food for Thought: Poetry for Día

El día de los niños/El día de los libros/ Children's Day/Book Day events often involve a fiesta of food along with the bounty of books and literacy activities. So, what better connection to make than to read aloud poems and rhymes that focus on food. Here is a baker's dozen of poetry titles that offer a delicious assortment of poetry to kick off, move along, or wind up a Día event, particularly during National Poetry Month.

First off, two books of poetry feature fruits and vegetables fresh from the garden, including poems about gardening itself. Look for:
Shannon, George. 2006. Busy in the Garden. Ill. by Sam Williams. New York: Greenwillow.

Havill, Juanita. 2006. I Heard It from Alice Zucchini: Poems About the Garden. San Francisco: Chronicle.

Photo: cjcjTake a look at these poetry books that feature food around the world and share them along with a tasting of some of the foods mentioned, if possible.
Gunning, Monica. 1998. Under The Breadfruit Tree: Island Poems. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press.

Mora, Pat. 2007. Yum! Mmmm! Que Rico!: America's Sproutings. New York: Lee & Low.


If you have the facilities for cooking, these three poetry collections offer recipe-like poems to read aloud and follow step-by-step.
Argueta, Jorge. 2009. Sopa de frijoles/ Bean Soup. Ill. by Rafael Yockteng. Toronto, ON: Groundwood.

Argueta, Jorge. 2010. Arroz con leche; Rice Pudding. Ill. by Fernando Vilela. Toronto, ON: Groundwood.

Argueta, Jorge. 2012. Guacamole; Un poema para cocinar/ A Cooking Poem. Ill. by Margarita Sada. Toronto: Groundwood.

Photo: Adam LevineThese poem collections can kick off a discussion of meal-time rituals. What do families do at dinner time? At family gatherings? Share some of these poems and compare notes on favorite foods for favorite meals.
Hopkins, Lee Bennett. Ed. 2000. Yummy! Eating Through a Day: Poems. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Philip, Neil. Ed. 2004. Hot Potato: Mealtime Rhymes. New York: Clarion.

Salas, Laura Purdie. 2008. Lettuce Introduce You: Poems About Food (A+ Books). Minneapolis, MN: Capstone.


Food is also the topic in these silly poems featuring monsters and talking French fries. Just for fun, share any of these morsels.
Rex, Adam. 2006. Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich. San Diego, CA: Harcourt.

Rex, Adam. 2008. Frankenstein Takes the Cake. New York: Harcourt Houghton Mifflin.

Weinstock, Robert. 2009. Food Hates You, Too. New York: Disney-Hyperion.

Food is one of the basics of day-to-day life and this has not escaped the attention of poets, particularly how food plays a part in childhood, family time, and special celebrations. Sharing a poem about potatoes or tomatoes or corn can offer a fun and mouth-watering connection between everyday eating and language learning.

For a list of 25 more collections of food poetry, as well as lists of bilingual poetry, poetry for ESL/ELL, poetry by authors of color, and 155 different poetry bibliographies and lists of research-based strategies featuring 1500 poetry books for children and teens (ages 0-18), look for my new book, The Poetry Teacher's Book of Lists .

Thank you to Sylvia Vardell, Ph. D., Professor, SLIS/Texas Women's University, and today's guest blogger. Sylvia blogs regularly at Poetry for Children .

April Literary and Literacy Celebrations

April: an exciting literary and literacy month! Look at the varying observances in this Wordle and savor the thought that all over the country diverse people and organizations work to share bookjoy.

New Día Booklist Brochures from ALSC

Interested in discovering recent books from cultures around the world? Would you like tips to share with parents and caregivers to help their child learn to read? Check out the latest Día book list brochure. Provided in PDF format, the brochure includes suggestions for children's books available in several languages, resource websites, and literacy tips. The literacy tips for parents are featured in English/Spanish; and now available in English/Chinese! Additional titles are featured in the book list addendum.



Also, there is still time to register your Día activities, where they will be shared with libraries across the country. You'll receive complimentary stickers and buttons to promote your events. Parents and others interested in Día can search for local programs and events, and librarians can review activities to learn from your successes. Sign up now to register your Día 2012 program.

Information is available on the Día website.

Thank you to Linda Mays, ALSC Program Officer, for today's guest post.

Happy International Children's Book Day!

International Children's Book Day (ICBD), April 2nd is Hans Christian Andersen's Birthday and is celebrated around the world to inspire a love of reading and promote children's books. IBBY Mexico has chosen the theme for the 2012 International Children's Book Day, "Once Upon a Time There Was a Story the Whole World Told" to remind us that the wonder and delight of books for children begins with great storytelling. Andersen, master storyteller, would no doubt agree. Share a story and read a book with the children in your life today. You can download the beautiful poster and find wonderful ideas for celebrating International Children's Book Day on the United States Board on Books for Young People ICBD webpage.

Thank you to Doris Gebel, President USBBY, and today's guest blogger.


2012 poster created by Juan Gedovius

Díapalooza!

Welcome to our month-long celebration of Día's 16th Anniversary and to our third annual Díapalooza! Día advocates are readers who believe that children matter and that books matter. We want every child to experience bookjoy, the pleasure and power of reading. We want all families to be reading families in all languages and cultures.


April is a month with many literary and literacy observances, reminders. Of course, our real literacy work is done all year long, day by day, día por día. This year during Díapalooza we're featuring the first Día Author & Illustrator Ambassadors  and an alphabet for Día advocates, A-Zing.

I'm looking forward to participating in Día book fiestas in Houston April 21 at Discovery Green and in my home city of El Paso, Texas, April 30th at Burnet and Kohlberg Schools. Thanks to all the committed and energetic literacy advocates who plan and support annual, culminating April Día celebrations across the country. Special thanks to REFORMA members, my first partners in Día , and to ALSC where Día is now housed.

Spring: hope, children, the hope of our world. "Everyone is the age of their heart," says a Guatemalan proverb. Let's all be young at heart as we champion the young, let's creatively share bookjoy .


Enjoy this video of past Día celebrations!

Día Author & Illustrator Ambassadors

Next month we'll be celebrating Día's 16th Anniversary. Friends ask me what it's like to have a teenager again (I'm the mother of three grown children), and I laugh and say, "My teenager belongs to a huge national family of Día advocates. Like any teenager, she still needs her family to grow into her full potential."

Today we're saluting our first Día Author & Illustrator Ambassadors, talented and busy artists and literacy supporters who have generously agreed to promote Día, to promote linking all children to books, languages and cultures. I'm grateful to each of them for sharing bookjoy , and I encourage you to savor their books.


Our third Díapalooza, a Día Month on this blog that begins April 1. We hope you'll visit us often during April and bring friends! Throughout the month we'll feature:

News about Día events throughout the country by guest posters
Día Reflections by Pat
Videos made by some of our Día Author & Illustrator Ambassadors
A New Alphabet -- Día Advocates A-Zing!
Book Giveaways
          … and Surprises!

So stop by during Díapalooza--or simply subscribe to Bookjoy and receive new posts automatically. Celebremos!