PBS Series - Reading Rockets: Launching Young Readers

Check it out!

PBS Series on reading for parents, educators & all who have children in their lives.

Reading Rockets: Launching Young Readers is an engaging nine-part public television series on reading. It was created for parents, grandparents, teachers, caregivers, and anyone else who touches children’s lives. Based on the latest research findings, each half-hour program examines a stage young children go through in developing their reading skills. http://www.pbs.org/launchingreaders/

(Check your local PBS station’s listings for dates and times when these programs air.)

 Program 1: "The Roots of Reading" looks at the earliest stages of literacy in such locations as a baby speech lab and a Head Start center. The program examines how parents, childcare providers, and kindergarten teachers can get children started on the road to literacy.
 Program 2: "Sounds and Symbols" focuses on how children learn the relationship between sounds, letters, and words as an initial step before being able to decode the printed word.
 Program 3: "Fluent Reading" explores the ability to decode quickly and achieve fluency. The program also demonstrates how early testing and intervention can help struggling readers.
 Program 4: "Writing and Spelling" examines the connection between reading, writing, and spelling. The program features successful methods for encouraging children to write and build their vocabularies.
 Program 5: "Reading for Meaning" highlights effective strategies to help kids understand — and care about — what they read, which is the ultimate goal of learning how to read. A special just for kids: "Reading Rocks!" uses wacky humor and stories of hope to encourage struggling readers to keep trying. The program also helps parents and teachers understand the emotional impact of reading troubles and offers ways to motivate struggling readers at home and school.
 Program 6: "Empowering Parents" visits schoolsin Huntingtown, Maryland, and Portland, Oregon, to help families identify early signs of reading problems and find ideas for getting their kids the help and support they need.
 Program 7: "Becoming Bilingual" examines the challenges of teaching children to read in a new language. This show visits schools and programs in six cities across the country to learn about the different ways schools are working to create bilingual readers.
 Program 8: "Reading and the Brain" explores how brain scientists are working to solve the puzzle of why some children struggle to read and others don't. Startling new research shows the answer may lie in how a child's brain is wired from birth.
 Program 9: "A Chance to Read" looks at the reading challenges facing kids with disabilities and what schools across the country are doing to help them find success.
 Program 10: "Toddling Toward Reading" examines what it takes to give our preschoolers the early literacy skills they need to become successful readers

The new novel Little Leap Forward is a Big Leap forward for Barefoot Books!

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July!

If you attended the American Library Association conference in Anaheim and came by the Barefoot Books booth, you most likely heard about Barefoot Books’ latest title, Little Leap Forward. This is Barefoot Books’ first chapter book geared for children ages 9 -12 years. This novel continues Barefoot Books’ emphasis on exquisite artwork, rich language and multiculturalism. Little Leap Forward’s release is very timely and relevant as it takes place in Beijing, this year’s host city for the Summer Olympics. This book, along with other Barefoot Books (Motherbridge of Love, The Great Race, Tenzin’s Deer, Stories of the Silk Road and We’re Riding on a Caravan to name a few), will be wonderful introductions to units of study about this region. As the beginning of a new school year approaches, I will be posting lots of ideas of how to use Little Leap Forward in many cross curriculum units – including science, social studies, art, and music.

“Check out this exclusive Barefoot video featuring Guo Yue. Listen, as he brings his experiences, during China's cultural revolution, to life. These memories became the basis for our newest title, Little Leap Forward, co-authored by Guo Yue and Clare Farrow.

Watch it here!


http://www.barefoot-books.com/us/site/pages/learn_explore.php

An interesting tidbit about this video: Guo Yue provides the beautiful flute music that accompanies his spoken account.
Little Leap Forward is Barefoot Books' very first Young Adult novel!” I hope you enjoy both the video and will buy the book by clicking on this link: http://www.barefoot-books.com/us/site/pages/productone.php?pid=2261


Elizabeth Kennedy also notes the release of Little Leap Forward in her blog.
http://childrensbooks.about.com/od/whatsnewhot/a/June_2008_news.htm
If you do not know about Elizabeth Kennedy and her children’s books blog, forum and newsletter, I highly recommend you check them out! http://childrensbooks.about.com/b/2008/06/26/whats-new-hot-next-in-childrens-books.htm
Here is what Elizabeth says about her online resources: “I want this site to be a resource for parents, teachers, caregivers, librarians, writers, illustrators, and others who work with children and value children's literature.”
This is a little bit about Elizabeth from her online bio: “Elizabeth Kennedy has an extensive background in education, having worked as an early childhood educator, elementary school teacher, museum educator, and PreK-12 arts-in-education program director over the past thirty-five years. As a writer, her work has been recognized with first place awards from Kansas Press Women and the National Federation of Press Women.”

Keep posted for much more about Little Leap Forward!

Happy Barefoot Booking!

Hello to all my new ALA convention friends

ALA Anaheim 2008 convention is now history! My first ALA convention will be a memorable one because of all of the great friends I met! A big THANK YOU to everyone who came by the Barefoot Books booth. Sarah and I enjoyed chatting with you all, getting to know you and sharing with you our Barefoot Books story and books! Good luck to everyone who entered the drawing for the King Arthur book of legends coming out in the fall.

Many of you graciously agreed to not only visit this blog, but also to contribute your creative ideas about programs, activities and uses for Barefoot books in your libraries and classrooms. I am looking forward to this blog being your number one resource for exchanging and getting ideas about the multitude of ways Barefoot Books can fit into children's library programming and into classroom curriculum units.

Those of you who want to buy Barefoot Books for the children in your personal lives please don't forget to visit my website www.barefootlibrarian.com to do your shopping. And be sure to take advantage of the Summer Sale now through July 15!

I hope everyone will feel free to email me at barefootlibrarian@gmail.com to request book suggestions, talk Barefoot Books, swap library shop talk, or just say hello and let me know what is new in your life.

I am taking a few days off for the July 4th holiday, but will post next week.

Until then - Happy Barefoot Booking and Happy 4th of July!

Eve - The Barefoot Librarian

This blog is coming to you from the American Libraries Association National Convention in Anaheim,CA. This convention is like a Disney Land for librarians. It starts as the barren landscape of a convention hall and in one day's time, magically a city of books is created. Well, maybe not magically - it took my mentor from the Barefoot home office and me a lot of time and sweat to create a Barefoot Books oasis out of 3 tables and a curtained backdrop! I will be writing more about the ALA convention as time and my energy allow.

Barefoot Books is taking a big leap into the chapter book world with a beautiful and timely title called Little Leap Forward: A Boy in Beijing, due out in July. With the summer Olympics just weeks away, Beijing will be seen on television screens around the world. Get a glimpse into the communist world of this city, as musician and now author Guo Yue, tells the story of an eight year old boy, much like himself, who lived in bustling Beijing during tumultous 1960's.




If you are a librarian or educator attending the ALA come by Barefoot Book's booth 1012. You will get a copy of Little Leap Forward if you agree to give Barefoot feedback on the book. In the weeks to come I will be posting about the many educational levels in this book and ways to utilize it in your curriculum for science, music, art, history and more.




Also, come by our booth to get a free signed copy of the Barefoot Book of Knights and get your name entered into a drawing for a free copy of the new King Arthur coming out in the Fall.

Summer heat lends itself to a slower pace and gives us time to unwind from the hectic pace of the school year. Yoga is a great way to de-stress, not just for adults but for children. Barefoot Books has just what you need to get your family yoga time started: the book My Daddy Is a Pretzel and Yoga Pretzels yoga deck (50 Fun Yoga Activities for Kids & Grownups) both on SALE until July 15th, 2008! To order these and other great Barefoot Books products go to my website www.barefootlibrarian.com

http://www.barefoot-books.com/us/site/pages/productone.php?pid=1729



http://www.barefoot-books.com/us/site/pages/productone.php?pid=1435



http://www.barefoot-books.com/us/site/pages/productone.php?pid=1730





Create a yoga center, a place where your child, student or you can cool down and relax. All you need is a space, a mat, Yoga Pretzels yoga deck (50 Fun Yoga Activities for Kids & Grownups) and a music source with headphones (optional). Choose any card, try out the position and relax!
(Thank you Belinda for sharing this great idea created by one of your educator clients!)


Parents & Educators check out these sites for more info about children & yoga:
http://www.yogaed.org/ and http://www.storytimeyoga.com/blog/

The Barefoot Librarian’s Blogging Journey Begins

One year ago, I decided to turn in my school library card and go beyond the stacks of the school library. I was about to become an empty nester, having raised two avid bookworms. I was searching for something to fill that void and began surfing the net to find my answer. After hours of clicking on hundreds of links, I found my children’s book dreams come true in the enchanted world of Barefoot Books. I immediately fell under the magical spell of Barefoot Books and became a stallholder (seller) of Barefoot children’s books.

I soon found out that being a Barefoot stallholder is much more than just selling inspiring children’s books. It is a way of life we at Barefoot call Living Barefoot. It is all about living your life in a way that embraces family values, moral ethics, diversity, and global community and responsibility. These are the core values Nancy Traversy, CEO of Barefoot Books, incorporates into both her personal and business life.

To make Barefoot books better known, more accessible and more usable, this blog was born. As I continue to live Barefoot, I will share my personal Barefoot journey with librarians, educators and parents. I will help educators utilize Barefoot books to enrich their curriculum. I will suggest how Barefoot books can be used to creatively teach units and themes for preschool, elementary and middle school classes. I will include educational activities and guides that can be used with Barefoot Books titles. I will give you read-aloud tips. I will show you how to make the most of the educational values of Barefoot books. I will point out how sharing Barefoot books will act as natural spring boards to important discussions with the children in your lives. To enrich your Barefoot Books experience, I will give you ideas for projects and activities to go along with our books.

As a librarian I believe the key to every child’s success are books. And Barefoot books combine inspiring art and rich language to tell stories that introduce children to many cultures, create a sense of global community and convey universal messages. These books stimulate creativity, engage the imagination and encourage the curiosity of children. It is my mission to get as many Barefoot books into the hands of as many children as I possible can, one book at a time. I truly believe the world would be a better place if every child could grow up Barefoot.

So join me here as embark upon my Barefoot quest get the word out about Barefoot Books!