Pat was honored to have been chosen to give The May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture, “Bookjoy! Alegria en los Libros!”, on April 15, 2016 in Santa Barbara, CA. She shared some personal bookjoy stories and made reference to Día’s origins, but she also expanded on her ideas for raising a nation of readers, and how she sees collaboration as the next important step in Día’s journey. Watch the lecture here:
Día celebrations: outside the box
It’s wonderful to see the variety of Día celebrations going on this month! Here are a few unique ones that caught our eye:
Jefferson High School Library, El Paso, Texas
Many elementary schools hold Día celebrations but it’s less likely to find them in the upper grades. The Día event at Jefferson is a celebration of literacy called “Ice Cream for Books.” All faculty, staff, students and their families are invited to enjoy free books (thanks to a grant from First Book), a literary fair, ice cream sandwiches, and arts and crafts.
Fort Bragg Library, Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Sometimes simple is best! On April 29, the library is offering a bilingual story time for military children and their families.
Arizona State University, College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, Department of English, Tempe, Arizona
The 2013 Mora Award winner ASU is hosting their 6th annual Día celebration on May 2! 625 middle and high school students from throughout Arizona will visit, hearing keynotes from authors René Saldaña and Isabel Quintero and from other authors presenting hands-on interactive literacy workshops. All students will receive a free book written by one of the featured keynote authors.
Watch the videos of the 5th annual celebration.
Griot in Greenville!, Greenville, Alabama
Through a partnership with the Alabama Touring Artist Program, the school will host “The Dancing Story Lady,” aka Deborah Ferguson, on Friday, May 6. She will present The Laughing River, an interactive show which includes storytelling, singing and dancing. Students will participate through snapping, clapping, singing, and group line dances. Our “griot” (African term for ‘storyteller’ or ‘teacher’) will demonstrate how dance, music, and storytelling are integral parts of the cultures found in Africa.
Homer Public Library, Homer, Alaska
The Homer Library’s Día celebration featured a Russian Language story time!
First Book models Día collaboration
Since coming on board as a Día partner, literacy organization First Book has worked tirelessly to support and promote Día, working within their own network and partnering with other organizations. Gracias, First Book!
The Estela and Raúl Mora Award
This year, First Book has partnered with the Mora family to serve as judges for the Mora Awards. Winners will receive a $1,000 First Book Marketplace credit and a plaque to be displayed in a public area by the winning institution, plus two honor awards of $500 in First Book Marketplace credits. Applications are open until June 20 – read the application guidelines.
2016 Día Booklists
First Book has collaborated with ALSC to help libraries access the books on the 2016 Día booklists by identifying which books are available through the First Book Marketplace. By registering with First Book, librarians and others serving children in areas of high poverty can access books at little or no cost.
Resources to Explore Latino Culture
Through collaboration with REFORMA, First Book has created activity-filled tip sheets and paired them with a selection of books from their Latino Culture section.
More Día from First Book:
First Book’s Celebrating Día page
Five Fun Ideas to Celebrate Día
Día Planning Guide
An abundance of Día events
Our friends at Día partner ALSC have shared some wonderful statistics from this year’s Día Program Registry. As of today, there are 498 programs registered, offered in over 30 languages, including 26 Arabic; 3 Czech; 23 French; 12 German; 2 Greek; 13 Hindi_Urdu; 5 Hungarian; 5 Italian; 22 Japanese; 11 Korean; 26 Mandarin; 3 Nepali; 4 Persian; 4 Polish; 5 Portuguese; 1 Romanian; 15 Russian; 2 Serbo-Croatian; 305 Spanish; 1 Sundanese; 5 Tagalog; 9 Turkish; 7 Ukrainian and 12 Vietnamese.
So far, there’s an estimated 90,545 attendees! Even though we know this is only the tip of the Día iceberg since many don’t stop to register their events, this is WONDERFUL news!
Celebrate Día with a poem in your pocket
April 21 is Poem in Your Pocket day! Enjoy this Día poem from Pomelo Books’ The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Celebrations.
