Blogging for Literacy: Bring Us Your Ideas

Well, we've turned the calendar to 2010, which means we are starting to gear up for Share a Story-Shape a Future 2010: It Takes a Village to Raise a Reader.  Time to start the Countdown and whittling away at the To-Do lists! When we get to February, we'll start talking about individual contributors and I'll tell you about some of the giveaways. [see image credit below.]

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Lao-tzu, The Way of Lao-tzu Chinese philosopher (604 BC - 531 BC)

For those of you who have asked ... No, it is not too late to sign on to write a post on one of the topics. Our goal is to help you along the journey of becoming a reader by filling the week with practical, fun ideas for sharing books and encouraging reading.  As you may recall from last year, each  day has a broad theme, and contributors add posts on topics related to it. Here are the themes.

Monday, 8 March: The Many Faces of Reading
Hosts: Brian and Steven at Book Dads
Brian, Steven and their  guests will be talking about how we each play a role in helping children learn to read. This is the topic that embodies all of the elements of our theme: It Takes a Village to Raise a Reader.

Tuesday, 9 March: Literacy My Way/Literacy Your Way
Host: Susan Stephenson at The Book Chook
Susan is putting together a group of contributors to share creative literacy ideas. She will be drawing on all of the elements of literacy in the 21st Century: writing, art, computers, music.

Wednesday, 10 March: Just the Facts: The Nonfiction Book Hook
Host: Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone
There is lots of interest in promoting nonfiction as a "hook" for engaging readers. Sarah and her guests will talk about writing nonfiction for kids, as well as how to use it effectively ... and not make it feel like homework!

Thursday, 11 March: Reading Through the Ages: Old Favorites & New Classics
Host: Donalyn Miller at The Book Whisperer
Donalyn and her contributors will look at books for independent readers. Are there "boy books" and "girl books"? She'll also recommend "new" classics for the books we loved as kids.

Friday, 12 March: Reading for the Next Generation
Host: Jen Robinson at Jen Robinson's Book Page
Jen has invited guests to answer some of the things parents wrestle with, like being the opposite reading personality of their child, or feeling pressured to create a reading superstar, among others.

As you can see, this isn't a venue for promoting individual books. That said, we'll be talking about writing and books, in hopes that you find creative, fun ways to engage readers of all sorts - from emergent readers to dormant readers to underground readers!

If you would like to sponsor a giveaway, there is still time for that, too. As a group, the goal is to get reading material where it is needed ... largely in libraries and classrooms.  That said, several folks will be sponsoring giveaways for families, too.
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Image Credit


Share a Story-Shape a Future logo created by Elizabeth Dulemba. Used with Permission.