Library Card Sign-up Month is celebrated every year in September, sponsored by the American Library Association. This year, ALA is teaming up with crimefighting DC Super Heroes, the Teen Titans, and they want to know what your library superpower is! Share it on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #LibrarySuperpower.
The librarian from Tomás and the Library Lady is certainly a superhero!
Illustration © Raul Colón from Tomás and the Library Lady.
Grandparents can be an important part of encouraging children to become readers! Why not read a book with your grandchild to celebrate Grandparents Day?
Pablo’s Tree
In a heartwarming intergenerational story, Pablo cannot wait to visit his grandfather and discover what treasures will be placed on his tree, a tree that was purchased when Pablo was adopted and that, each year, is decorated with special surprises.
The Bakery Lady/La señora de la panadería
Mónica, spends her life around a bakery not just because she likes the sweets, but also because she loves her grandparents who own the bakery. She watches wide-eyed, as the pans slip in and out of the oven and in and out of the appreciative customers’ hands straight into their happy bellies.
The 2017 theme for UNESCO’s International Literacy Day is “Literacy in a Digital World.” Their goal of promoting literacy as an integral part of lifelong learning aligns with Children’s Day, Book Day’s commitment of motivating children and their families to be readers.
I am trimming my library. I tease my librarian friends that wouldn’t use the term “weeding” referring to books. Trimming my books also, for me, means some re-reading. I started re-reading Black Boy by Richard Wright. I’d forgotten what a brutal memoir it is.
For my morning reflection time, a few days ago, I’d selected Guide My Feet by children’s advocate and author Marian Wright Edelman.
I had the pleasure and honor of being with her at in Knoxville in 2015 for a Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools Training. What a rousing event! In Guide My Feet, Edelman writes, “Books were always a part of our home. My parents considered them necessities rather than luxuries.”
What stark contrasts and life stories these two courageous and talented leaders offer us in their books and lives. We need diverse voices in our libraries and minds.
Good books are blessings.
Pat
We’ve heard from many teachers who love Pinterest and look there to find curriculum activities and other resources. Pat’s Pinterest presence is small but growing–there are now boards for four of Pat’s books:
Water Rolls, Water Rises/El agua rueda, el agua sube
Doña Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman with a Great Big Heart
Tomás and the Library Lady
The Beautiful Lady: Our Lady of Guadalupe
Please help us by adding to the boards if you have curriculum suggestions! And check back often–we’re going to keep adding books!
