Show your children that their vote can make a difference in the lives of others. Visit the Little Brown America Your Vote Counts Page and help you children vote on a number of issues. For every ten votes cast, Little Brown will give First Book a book to give to a child in need.
Holly Hobbie has long been admired for the little girl character that she created many years ago. Her images of the child with the big bonnet has appeared on everything from lunchboxes to summer dresses. Then she brought us Toot and Puddle, a wonderful pair of little pigs whose stories reminded us of how important the simple things in life are. Now Holly has a new character to share with us. Meet Fanny on Through the Looking Glass Book Review
Peachtree Publishers is hosting a contest for school children. Teachers and librarians can ask their students to answer the question "If I were president of the United states for the day I would..." Three winners will be "selected to receive a complete library of Peachtree's 2008 picture books for their classroom. Contest winners will be announced November 4, 2008."
For the last two years bloggers all over the world have come together once a year to choose the books from that year that they liked the most. The books they have been chosen have then been given Cybil Awards. The process begins with members of the public nominating their favorite books in several categories. These are: Fantasy and Science Fiction, Fiction Picture Books, Non-Fiction Picture Books, Graphic Novels, Easy Readers, Middle Grade Fiction, Young Adult Novels, Non-Fiction (Middle Grade and YA), Poetry. Once the nomination period is closed, a collection of knowledgeable bloggers get together to read the nominated books and to decide which of the nominated titles are the winners.
If you are a fan of David Macaulay's books then you might like to register for his live webcast which is taking place on Tuesday October 7th at 10:00am (EST). The plan is to talk to him about his new book The way we work, to see him talk to students, and to ask him questions, all in real time. To find out more about David Macaulay please visit his website.
October is also the month when we in the United States celebrate Teen Read Week. The week is from October 12th to October 18th and the theme for 2008, Books with Bite, is sure to provide teen readers with lots of entertaining possibilites. For more information visit the ALA Teen Read Week website.
October 12th libraries, schools, and book shops will be participating in Book Week festivities. To find out more about this event visit the Book Trusted website. This years theme is Rhythm and Rhyme and I am sure you will be able to find all kinds of creative ways to make this week special.
Don't forget that October 2nd is Jumpstart's Read for the Record Day. Here is some information about this very worthwhile event.
WHAT:
Jumpstart’s Read for the Record is a national campaign to encourage hundreds of thousands of children and adults to read the same book, Corduroy, on the same day, October 2, 2008. The expansive shared reading experience will raise public awareness about the early education gap that exists between income levels, as well as raise money to support Jumpstart’s national early education programs.
WHY:
Each year, one third of America’s children arrive at their first day of school developmentally behind their peers and without the skills necessary to succeed at grade level. When children begin behind their peers, catching up, especially without additional assistance, is difficult and unlikely. Children who miss out on key cognitive, social and emotional experiences are more likely to repeat grades, drop out of school, and engage in criminal activity. To help children from lower-income communities advance academically in pace with their classmates, Jumpstart recruits and trains adult mentors to work one to one with the children and help build their reading, language and social skills. Last year, Jumpstart’s Read for the Record raised more than $1,000,000 to finance the organization’s early education work in low-income communities.
WHEN:
Jumpstart’s Read for the Record day is October 2, 2008.
HOW:
The campaign will generate public awareness by creating the largest shared reading experience ever and by breaking the record set on September 20, 2007, when 258,000 people read the same book across the country as part of Jumpstart’s Read for the Record 2007campaign. Participants can purchase this year’s official campaign book, Corduroy, at Hanna Andersson’s retail locations, through their clothing catalog, or online at www.readfortherecord.org/books. Jumpstart will receive 100 percent of all the money raised through the sale of these special edition books, which will be available for purchase beginning this summer. Reading activities on October 2, 2008 can range from personal sessions between an adult and a child to big group events with hundreds of people gathering together for a large community reading session. For more information about getting involved, visit http://www.readfortherecord.org/.
WHO:
Parents, teachers, community members, college students, and children of all ages.
