CALLING ALL FUTURE
LIBRARIANS! Are you interested in the literacy needs of children? Would
you like to be involved in picking a great book for an underprivileged
child who might not own a single book otherwise? Would you like to see
the iSchool become an important player in the reading lives of our community's
most needy children?
Now is the time
to commit to helping the iSchool create an annual tradition of book
giving! I am soliciting interest in a selection committee for the Giving
Tree, a project that was started last year by Misha Stone and Natasha
North. The Giving Tree is sponsored by SALA
and is funded this year by the iAlumni.
The Giving Tree
starts with profiles of children provided by the Washington
Literacy Day Care Link. We need iSchool students who have a background
in children's literature and developmental stages (and/or who took Chance
Hunt's LIS 565 Children's Literature class last fall) to select a book
for each child.
We have the funding
and the profiles, now all the Giving Tree needs is YOU! You do not have
to be planning on a career in children's librarianship. This project
is open to anyone in the MLIS program. Scheduling is very flexible.
The selection committee can meet together and have a pizza party, if
people would be interested. Or if it would be better for everyone to
choose the books on their own and submit the titles, that would also
work.
If you are interested,
please contact me at rlbohn@u.washington.edu
to learn more. This is a great way to gain practical experience in selection
of children's books and is potentially a great portfolio experience.
But just as important, it's a way for the iSchool to show the community
how devoted we are to the literacy needs of children.
Thanks for your
interest.
GIVING TREE
GOALS
--Get books to children who might not otherwise own them in the hopes
of fostering a love of books & reading.
--Increase literacy awareness and support.
--Begin with 36 underprivileged children, ages 0-5, in the community,
with the hopes that our outreach can expand to more children each year.
--Involve iSchool students in the community and provide an opportunity
to employ their knowledge of children's materials and selection criteria.
--Provide profiles of children: their reading levels, developmental
stages, and interests-- in order to select books in an individualized
approach.
PARTICIPANTS
--Washington Literacy Day Care Link has agreed to approach childcare
providers they currently work with in order to create children's profiles
to guide selection.
--Dean Mike Eisenberg supports this project and sees it as being a unique
and important way that iSchool students can contribute to their community
and promote literacy.
