Great Family Field Trip!
David Macaulay:
The Art of Drawing Architecture
at the National Building Museum
in Washington DC
Author, illustrator and NCBLA Board Member David Macaulay's illustration exhibits are as innovate, witty, and as educational as his books. His new exhibit in Washington DC at the National Building Museum features finished illustrations from his many publications, and also includes preliminary sketches and drawings that reveal his thinking and work process. The exhibit is laced with Macaulay's humor: hand drawn rats pop up on walls, tables are covered with fresh Macaulay drawings, and exhibited work also includes illustrations from Great Moments in Architecture and Motel of Mysteries, early books which use visual humor provocatively to ask larger cultural questions.
The exhibit is interactive for both kids and adults inviting participation, delighting the eye. And as all Macaulay books do, the exhibit challenges the viewer to look at the world from a variety of new perspectives.
The Art of Drawing Architecture
National Building Museum: June 23, 2007- January 21, 2008
Washington DC
For hours and directions and more information about the
National Building Museum go to: www.NBM.org
Monday, June 25, 2007
Friday, May 18, 2007
Lloyd Chudley Alexander
January 30, 1924-May 17, 2007
Lloyd Alexander words on the importance of writing and reading fantasy:
When asked how to develop intelligence in young people, Einstein answered: "Read fairy tales. Then read more fairy tales." I can only add: Yes, and the sooner the better. Fairy tales and fantasies nourish the imagination. And imagination supports our whole intellectual and psychological economy. Not only in literature, music, and painting spring from the seedbed of imagination; but, as well, all the sciences, mathematics, philosophies, cosmologies. Without imagination, how could we have invented the wheel or the computer? Or toothpaste? Or nuclear weapons? Or speculate "What if—?" Or have any compassionate sense what it's like to live in another person's skin?
For me, writing fantasy for young people has surely been the most creative and liberating experience of my life. As a literary form, fantasy has let me express my own deepest feelings and attitudes about the world we're all obliged to live in.
A paradox? Creating worlds that never existed as a way to gain some kind of insight into a world that is very real indeed? The paradox is easily resolved. Whatever its surface ornamentation, fantasy that strives to reach the level of durable art deals with the bedrock of human emotions, conflicts, dilemmas, relationships. That is to say: the realities of life.
As adults, we know that life is a tough piece of business. Sometimes the most heroic thing we can do is get out of bed in the morning. I think it's just as tough for young people. On an emotional level, a child's anguish and a child's joy are as intense as our own. Young people recognize their own inner lives while they journey through a world completely imaginary.
I don't mean to imply that works of realism haven't the same profound effect on young readers. Of course they do. More often than not, however, realism tends to deal with material of immediate, current interest; with, to use a word much overused, what is relevant. All well and good. But there's a difference between what is relevant and what is merely topical. The topical goes away after a while, to be replaced by the next fashionable subject; the newest literary disease of the month, as it were. The best fantasy it seems to me, is permanently relevant. Because it deals metaphorically with basic human situations, it always has something to say to us. Also, I think that fantasy offers a certain vividness and high spiritedness unique to itself. We shouldn't underestimate the value of sheer fun, delight, and excitement. In any art, boredom is not a virtue.
Dealing with the impossible, fantasy can show us what may be really possible. If there is grief, there is the possibility of consolation; if hurt, the possibility of healing; and above all, the curative power of hope. If fantasy speaks to us as we are, it also speaks to us as we might be.
From the Children's Book Council Magazine archives:
http://www.cbcbooks.org/cbcmagazine/index.html
Read more about Lloyd Alexander's life and work, at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/17/AR2007051702371.html
Teachers and parent resources for Lloyd Alexander
and his many wonderful books:
http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/alexander.htm
January 30, 1924-May 17, 2007
Lloyd Alexander words on the importance of writing and reading fantasy:
When asked how to develop intelligence in young people, Einstein answered: "Read fairy tales. Then read more fairy tales." I can only add: Yes, and the sooner the better. Fairy tales and fantasies nourish the imagination. And imagination supports our whole intellectual and psychological economy. Not only in literature, music, and painting spring from the seedbed of imagination; but, as well, all the sciences, mathematics, philosophies, cosmologies. Without imagination, how could we have invented the wheel or the computer? Or toothpaste? Or nuclear weapons? Or speculate "What if—?" Or have any compassionate sense what it's like to live in another person's skin?
For me, writing fantasy for young people has surely been the most creative and liberating experience of my life. As a literary form, fantasy has let me express my own deepest feelings and attitudes about the world we're all obliged to live in.
A paradox? Creating worlds that never existed as a way to gain some kind of insight into a world that is very real indeed? The paradox is easily resolved. Whatever its surface ornamentation, fantasy that strives to reach the level of durable art deals with the bedrock of human emotions, conflicts, dilemmas, relationships. That is to say: the realities of life.
As adults, we know that life is a tough piece of business. Sometimes the most heroic thing we can do is get out of bed in the morning. I think it's just as tough for young people. On an emotional level, a child's anguish and a child's joy are as intense as our own. Young people recognize their own inner lives while they journey through a world completely imaginary.
I don't mean to imply that works of realism haven't the same profound effect on young readers. Of course they do. More often than not, however, realism tends to deal with material of immediate, current interest; with, to use a word much overused, what is relevant. All well and good. But there's a difference between what is relevant and what is merely topical. The topical goes away after a while, to be replaced by the next fashionable subject; the newest literary disease of the month, as it were. The best fantasy it seems to me, is permanently relevant. Because it deals metaphorically with basic human situations, it always has something to say to us. Also, I think that fantasy offers a certain vividness and high spiritedness unique to itself. We shouldn't underestimate the value of sheer fun, delight, and excitement. In any art, boredom is not a virtue.
Dealing with the impossible, fantasy can show us what may be really possible. If there is grief, there is the possibility of consolation; if hurt, the possibility of healing; and above all, the curative power of hope. If fantasy speaks to us as we are, it also speaks to us as we might be.
From the Children's Book Council Magazine archives:
http://www.cbcbooks.org/cbcmagazine/index.html
Read more about Lloyd Alexander's life and work, at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/17/AR2007051702371.html
Teachers and parent resources for Lloyd Alexander
and his many wonderful books:
http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/alexander.htm
Hurrah for Al Roker- Literacy Hero!
Al Roker,of NBC's Today Show has started a on-air book club for young readers that will continue through the summer. Young people's books rarely receive media coverage; educational issues in general have fallen of the nation's media screen. We applaud NBC and Roker and hope the book club continues past summer. Watch Roker's kid's club when it airs ---watch it with the kids in your life. And take notice of Roker's selections. It will be interesting to see if all the books suggestions are Scholastic publications for it appears that Scholastic is sponsoring the book club segment. We hope that the book club exceeds the commercial interests of Scholastic publications and promotes kids reading many great books this summer not just the great books from Scholastic.
Newsweek Magazine also features kid's book clubs in an article of interest: Key quote:
“The more cool reading is, the better,” says Gail Carson Levine, author of Ella Enchanted. "Reading starts to fall off in middle school and in high school. If you can find a means to keep those kids reading, to rope them back in, to make reading part of their social world, then a book club has really done something fabulous.”
Actually reading starts to fall off by age 8-9. Parents stop reading aloud to kids when they perceive that their kids have become independent readers---about the ages 8-9.
Hhhhmmmm, could there be a connection?
Read more:
Al Roker Book Club: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/18179145/
Newsweek book club article:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18602858/site/newsweek/
Help your kids start their own book club this summer! Need help? Go to:
http://www.pbs.org/parents/readinglanguage/articles/bookclubs/main.html
http://www.hclib.org/pub/bookspace/BookClubs.cfm
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=67
Al Roker,of NBC's Today Show has started a on-air book club for young readers that will continue through the summer. Young people's books rarely receive media coverage; educational issues in general have fallen of the nation's media screen. We applaud NBC and Roker and hope the book club continues past summer. Watch Roker's kid's club when it airs ---watch it with the kids in your life. And take notice of Roker's selections. It will be interesting to see if all the books suggestions are Scholastic publications for it appears that Scholastic is sponsoring the book club segment. We hope that the book club exceeds the commercial interests of Scholastic publications and promotes kids reading many great books this summer not just the great books from Scholastic.
Newsweek Magazine also features kid's book clubs in an article of interest: Key quote:
“The more cool reading is, the better,” says Gail Carson Levine, author of Ella Enchanted. "Reading starts to fall off in middle school and in high school. If you can find a means to keep those kids reading, to rope them back in, to make reading part of their social world, then a book club has really done something fabulous.”
Actually reading starts to fall off by age 8-9. Parents stop reading aloud to kids when they perceive that their kids have become independent readers---about the ages 8-9.
Hhhhmmmm, could there be a connection?
Read more:
Al Roker Book Club: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/18179145/
Newsweek book club article:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18602858/site/newsweek/
Help your kids start their own book club this summer! Need help? Go to:
http://www.pbs.org/parents/readinglanguage/articles/bookclubs/main.html
http://www.hclib.org/pub/bookspace/BookClubs.cfm
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=67
Friday, April 27, 2007
NCBLA BOARD MEETING
AT CANDLEWICK PRESS SNEAK PEEK at
THROUGH WHITE HOUSE WINDOWS:
LOOKING IN, LOOKING OUT
Last week Candlewick Press invited the NCBLA Board to its Cambridge, Massachusetts headquarters to get a sneak preview of the design and layout of the NCBLA's upcoming anthology on American History-
Through White House Windows: Looking In, Looking Out.
The Board's reaction,"WOW!"
The Candlewick Looking In, Looking Out editorial team- Karen Lotz, Hilary Van Dusen, Kate Fletcher, and art director Chris Paul presented beautiful color layouts and initial illustrations for the book that are warmly elegant, attractive to both child and adult alike.
Through White House Windows: Looking In, Looking Out will give families a delicious taste of American History. It is the NCBLA deepest wish that our anthology of history, historical fiction, poetry, and original art will inspire both children and adults to read more about the White House, its occupants, and the major events that have shaped our nation since the late 1700's when slaves dug the White House foundation, and immigrants carved its stone walls.
Through White House Windows: Looking In, Looking Out will be available in stores and libraries in Fall of 2008- just in time for the 2008 Presidential Election! All proceeds from the book will go to support the educational website, and educational and advocacy projects of the NCBLA, a 501-c3 not-for-profit.
For information about the NCBLA and the NCBLA Board go to: http://www.thencbla.org
AT CANDLEWICK PRESS SNEAK PEEK at
THROUGH WHITE HOUSE WINDOWS:
LOOKING IN, LOOKING OUT
Last week Candlewick Press invited the NCBLA Board to its Cambridge, Massachusetts headquarters to get a sneak preview of the design and layout of the NCBLA's upcoming anthology on American History-
Through White House Windows: Looking In, Looking Out.
The Board's reaction,"WOW!"
The Candlewick Looking In, Looking Out editorial team- Karen Lotz, Hilary Van Dusen, Kate Fletcher, and art director Chris Paul presented beautiful color layouts and initial illustrations for the book that are warmly elegant, attractive to both child and adult alike.
Through White House Windows: Looking In, Looking Out will give families a delicious taste of American History. It is the NCBLA deepest wish that our anthology of history, historical fiction, poetry, and original art will inspire both children and adults to read more about the White House, its occupants, and the major events that have shaped our nation since the late 1700's when slaves dug the White House foundation, and immigrants carved its stone walls.
Through White House Windows: Looking In, Looking Out will be available in stores and libraries in Fall of 2008- just in time for the 2008 Presidential Election! All proceeds from the book will go to support the educational website, and educational and advocacy projects of the NCBLA, a 501-c3 not-for-profit.
For information about the NCBLA and the NCBLA Board go to: http://www.thencbla.org
LEONARD MARCUS –
a Tete-a-tete!
Had an interesting conversation with Leonard Marcus this week. It is, of course impossible not to have an interesting conversation with Leonard! We first talked Red Sox vs. Yankees. He and his son Jacob are intense Yankee fans, but have to know in their heart of hearts that the Yankees are going down this year; the Red Sox are going to kill them, every time, no question.
Leonard, who will be receiving an honorary doctorate of letters from Bank Street College of Education this May, is contributing a piece on Teddy Roosevelt’s boisterous gang of children to the NCBLA’s upcoming Fall 2008 book, Through White House Windows; Looking In, Looking Out.
When I need some out-of-the-box thinking relating children’s books and needs to the broader world, Leonard is one of my go-to guys. The NCBLA’s is working with ALA and The Center for the Book at the Library of Congress to create a summit, Democracy @ Risk, on informed citizenship linking literacy, critical thinking, and free unfettered information access to responsible citizenship in a democracy. Leonard suggested that I find the editorials of Frederic Melcher, an editor at Publisher Weekly’s in the 1950's and 60's. Melcher not only created the Caldecott and Newbery Awards, he originated Children’s Book Week- that’s major league advocacy!
Leonard said Melcher strongly believed that literacy was the key to preserving democracy; that children’s books were the key to fostering literacy. And what is more, these expressed beliefs and actions had all the more impact at the time because Melcher was: A. male; and B. a professional from the world of adult publishing.
Melcher sounds like a marketing genius. He was able to grab national attention because his children’s book advocacy and public relations campaign was highly coordinated bringing many factions of the children’s book and publishing world together in a united force. It brings to mind the superb campaign of the environmental community who, working together in an orchestrated effort have not only captured our attention and educated our nation, but have inspired people to action. The children’s book and literacy community does not do that. Events and celebrations of children’s books and literacy happen sporadically all over the calendar, garnering little national attention. The NCBLA has long advocated that the children’s book and literacy community work together sharing ideas, resources, and yes, revenue, to build an impressive national education and advocacy campaign for children, books, and reading. It will take a huge sustained effort to grab the nation’s attention. And with literacy rates dropping, and reading rates dropping, too, we are in desperate need of an united educational effort.
Off the soapbox and back to Leonard! Leonard has a number of books out of interest to parents, teachers, and children’s literature aficionados including his latest: Pass It Down: Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark was just published by Walker Books for Young Readers. This is a book for middle-grade children, their teachers, librarians. The creative families profiled include: the Pinkneys, Hurds, Rockwells, Myerses, and Crewses.
His illustrated history of Golden Books is called Golden Legacy: How Golden Books Won Children's Hearts, Changed Publishing Forever, and Became an American Icon Along the Way. It will be published by Random House in October. A companion illustration exhibition, also called Golden Legacy, featuring original art from classic Golden books by Garth Williams, the Provensens, Tibor Gergely, Feodor Rojankovsky, Gustaf Tenggren, Mary Blair, Richard Scarry, and others, will open at the National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature in Abilene, TX in early November and then go out on tour nationally.
And last, but not least, Children Should Be Seen: The Image of the Child in American Picture-Book Art, of which Leonard is the lead curator, will be The Eric Carle Museum's (Northhampton , MA) fifth-anniversary exhibition. It is co-sponsored by The Katonah Museum of Art (Katonah, NY), where it will open (first) on July 1, 2007, before traveling to the Carle Museum, on November 15, and then continuing on to The Getty Gallery of the Los Angeles Public Library in 2008.
Learn more about:
Leonard Marcus and his work-http://www.leonardmarcus.com/
The National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature in Abilene, TX- http://www.nccil.org/
The Eric Carle Museum in Northhampton, MA- http://www.picturebookart.org/
The Katonah Museum of Art in Katonah, NY- http://www.katonahmuseum.org/
The Getty Gallery, the Los Angeles Public Library in Los Angeles, CA- http://www.lapl.org/events/
a Tete-a-tete!
Had an interesting conversation with Leonard Marcus this week. It is, of course impossible not to have an interesting conversation with Leonard! We first talked Red Sox vs. Yankees. He and his son Jacob are intense Yankee fans, but have to know in their heart of hearts that the Yankees are going down this year; the Red Sox are going to kill them, every time, no question.
Leonard, who will be receiving an honorary doctorate of letters from Bank Street College of Education this May, is contributing a piece on Teddy Roosevelt’s boisterous gang of children to the NCBLA’s upcoming Fall 2008 book, Through White House Windows; Looking In, Looking Out.
When I need some out-of-the-box thinking relating children’s books and needs to the broader world, Leonard is one of my go-to guys. The NCBLA’s is working with ALA and The Center for the Book at the Library of Congress to create a summit, Democracy @ Risk, on informed citizenship linking literacy, critical thinking, and free unfettered information access to responsible citizenship in a democracy. Leonard suggested that I find the editorials of Frederic Melcher, an editor at Publisher Weekly’s in the 1950's and 60's. Melcher not only created the Caldecott and Newbery Awards, he originated Children’s Book Week- that’s major league advocacy!
Leonard said Melcher strongly believed that literacy was the key to preserving democracy; that children’s books were the key to fostering literacy. And what is more, these expressed beliefs and actions had all the more impact at the time because Melcher was: A. male; and B. a professional from the world of adult publishing.
Melcher sounds like a marketing genius. He was able to grab national attention because his children’s book advocacy and public relations campaign was highly coordinated bringing many factions of the children’s book and publishing world together in a united force. It brings to mind the superb campaign of the environmental community who, working together in an orchestrated effort have not only captured our attention and educated our nation, but have inspired people to action. The children’s book and literacy community does not do that. Events and celebrations of children’s books and literacy happen sporadically all over the calendar, garnering little national attention. The NCBLA has long advocated that the children’s book and literacy community work together sharing ideas, resources, and yes, revenue, to build an impressive national education and advocacy campaign for children, books, and reading. It will take a huge sustained effort to grab the nation’s attention. And with literacy rates dropping, and reading rates dropping, too, we are in desperate need of an united educational effort.
Off the soapbox and back to Leonard! Leonard has a number of books out of interest to parents, teachers, and children’s literature aficionados including his latest: Pass It Down: Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark was just published by Walker Books for Young Readers. This is a book for middle-grade children, their teachers, librarians. The creative families profiled include: the Pinkneys, Hurds, Rockwells, Myerses, and Crewses.
His illustrated history of Golden Books is called Golden Legacy: How Golden Books Won Children's Hearts, Changed Publishing Forever, and Became an American Icon Along the Way. It will be published by Random House in October. A companion illustration exhibition, also called Golden Legacy, featuring original art from classic Golden books by Garth Williams, the Provensens, Tibor Gergely, Feodor Rojankovsky, Gustaf Tenggren, Mary Blair, Richard Scarry, and others, will open at the National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature in Abilene, TX in early November and then go out on tour nationally.
And last, but not least, Children Should Be Seen: The Image of the Child in American Picture-Book Art, of which Leonard is the lead curator, will be The Eric Carle Museum's (Northhampton , MA) fifth-anniversary exhibition. It is co-sponsored by The Katonah Museum of Art (Katonah, NY), where it will open (first) on July 1, 2007, before traveling to the Carle Museum, on November 15, and then continuing on to The Getty Gallery of the Los Angeles Public Library in 2008.
Learn more about:
Leonard Marcus and his work-http://www.leonardmarcus.com/
The National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature in Abilene, TX- http://www.nccil.org/
The Eric Carle Museum in Northhampton, MA- http://www.picturebookart.org/
The Katonah Museum of Art in Katonah, NY- http://www.katonahmuseum.org/
The Getty Gallery, the Los Angeles Public Library in Los Angeles, CA- http://www.lapl.org/events/
Parents &Teachers
of Young Children!
Check Out Maria Salvadore’s Excellent Children’s Book Blog!
Maria Salvadore, children’s librarian and experienced mom, and NCBLA advisor, writes an enlightening, informative, and entertaining blog---Page by Page---- chock full of reading ideas and great book recommendations for the Reading Rockets website. After you’ve checked Maria’s blog, take some time and explore the entire Reading Rockets site for gobs of helpful information to help you connect your children to great books.
And see what you think of Chris Raschka's colorful portrait of Maria, Queen of the Page by Page Blog!
Go to: http://readingrockets.org/blogs/pagebypage
of Young Children!
Check Out Maria Salvadore’s Excellent Children’s Book Blog!
Maria Salvadore, children’s librarian and experienced mom, and NCBLA advisor, writes an enlightening, informative, and entertaining blog---Page by Page---- chock full of reading ideas and great book recommendations for the Reading Rockets website. After you’ve checked Maria’s blog, take some time and explore the entire Reading Rockets site for gobs of helpful information to help you connect your children to great books.
And see what you think of Chris Raschka's colorful portrait of Maria, Queen of the Page by Page Blog!
Go to: http://readingrockets.org/blogs/pagebypage
Monday, April 23, 2007
David Halberstam
(April 10, 1934- April 23, 2007)
From His University of MichiganSpring Commencement
Main Address April 29, 2000:
"I would like you to think of this great university and the degree you receive today as representing a hope in the as yet unborn. And I hope you will remember this when you become older and are faced with questions of education and public policy and validating for others a comparably great education as the one you have received, an education which will perhaps be bestowed on the children of people whom you do not know and who are perhaps newer to America than you, and whose immigrant parents come from places that seem terribly alien to you. By saying a hope in the unborn, that I refer to the decisions of which you are the beneficiaries, decisions made much earlier in this century by the part of the architects of this school and others, that it should have a faculty second to none, and that it should be open for the children of people whom they would never know. They were quite practical men—they assumed that there would be an immense economic benefit to educating as many people as high a level as possible--and they believed as well, for there is an idealism built into their concept, that it elevated every one in the process—in fact that it ennobled those who were a part of it. And that it does. Just look around you.
For it is critical to something which we now almost take for granted, the ascent to the good life in this country, and it critical to something that I believe still sets apart from other societies, a belief that for all our flaws and failures, and myriad short comings, that we in America more than any other society, give ordinary citizens a chance to reach their fullest potential."
(April 10, 1934- April 23, 2007)
From His University of MichiganSpring Commencement
Main Address April 29, 2000:
"I would like you to think of this great university and the degree you receive today as representing a hope in the as yet unborn. And I hope you will remember this when you become older and are faced with questions of education and public policy and validating for others a comparably great education as the one you have received, an education which will perhaps be bestowed on the children of people whom you do not know and who are perhaps newer to America than you, and whose immigrant parents come from places that seem terribly alien to you. By saying a hope in the unborn, that I refer to the decisions of which you are the beneficiaries, decisions made much earlier in this century by the part of the architects of this school and others, that it should have a faculty second to none, and that it should be open for the children of people whom they would never know. They were quite practical men—they assumed that there would be an immense economic benefit to educating as many people as high a level as possible--and they believed as well, for there is an idealism built into their concept, that it elevated every one in the process—in fact that it ennobled those who were a part of it. And that it does. Just look around you.
For it is critical to something which we now almost take for granted, the ascent to the good life in this country, and it critical to something that I believe still sets apart from other societies, a belief that for all our flaws and failures, and myriad short comings, that we in America more than any other society, give ordinary citizens a chance to reach their fullest potential."
Family Field Trip:
Plan a Visit to the Eric Carle Museum This Summer
Great picture books introduce children of all ages to world of art. The Eric Carle Museum, a warm welcoming building looking out over an orchard in western Massachusetts, allows kids and adults to take a closer look at children's book art- an create art themselves!
The current exhibits showcase great African-American illustrators. Upcoming exhibits feature the work of Eric Carle, Leo Lionni, and Allen Say.
Exhibits:
Richard Yarde: Stompin at the Savoy.
December 22, 2006 - April 29, 2007
Picture Stories: A Celebration of African American Illustrators.
March 24 - June 17, 2007
Birds of a Feather: The Art of Eric Carle and Leo Lionni.
May 11 - December 9, 2007
The Art of Allen Say: A Sense of Place.
July 3 - October 28, 2007
For directions to the museum and other information go to:
http://www.picturebookart.org/Home
Plan a Visit to the Eric Carle Museum This Summer
Great picture books introduce children of all ages to world of art. The Eric Carle Museum, a warm welcoming building looking out over an orchard in western Massachusetts, allows kids and adults to take a closer look at children's book art- an create art themselves!
The current exhibits showcase great African-American illustrators. Upcoming exhibits feature the work of Eric Carle, Leo Lionni, and Allen Say.
Exhibits:
Richard Yarde: Stompin at the Savoy.
December 22, 2006 - April 29, 2007
Picture Stories: A Celebration of African American Illustrators.
March 24 - June 17, 2007
Birds of a Feather: The Art of Eric Carle and Leo Lionni.
May 11 - December 9, 2007
The Art of Allen Say: A Sense of Place.
July 3 - October 28, 2007
For directions to the museum and other information go to:
http://www.picturebookart.org/Home
In Case You Missed It:
Joanna Rudge Long Book Review in
Last Sunday's New York Times Book Review
I am still thinking, a week later, about Joanna Rudge Long's book review in the April 15, 2007 New York Times Book Review, and not because of the books she reviewed.
As a literacy advocate I constantly encounter parents and teachers looking for great books for kids, and the majority of parents and teachers I work with have very little knowledge of children's books, or of the history of children's literature. And these parents and teachers are not only from our neediest neighborhoods and schools but are also from middle class communities where the vast majority of adults are college educated.
In a few paragraphs Joanna Rudge Long introduced quality new books for children, giving those books a context historically, educating the reader about children's literature. She posed questions that all of us who care about children should ponder, especially young parents:
Do children still know how to play?
If imagination transforms, how do we nurture imagination?
What kind of story draws children back again and again, serving as a magical catalyst to imaginative play and thought?
And who can resist a review that quotes Dylan Thomas?
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/15/books/review/Long.t.html?ex=1177473600&en=0f3491d2214f9ce0&ei=5070
Joanna Rudge Long Book Review in
Last Sunday's New York Times Book Review
I am still thinking, a week later, about Joanna Rudge Long's book review in the April 15, 2007 New York Times Book Review, and not because of the books she reviewed.
As a literacy advocate I constantly encounter parents and teachers looking for great books for kids, and the majority of parents and teachers I work with have very little knowledge of children's books, or of the history of children's literature. And these parents and teachers are not only from our neediest neighborhoods and schools but are also from middle class communities where the vast majority of adults are college educated.
In a few paragraphs Joanna Rudge Long introduced quality new books for children, giving those books a context historically, educating the reader about children's literature. She posed questions that all of us who care about children should ponder, especially young parents:
Do children still know how to play?
If imagination transforms, how do we nurture imagination?
What kind of story draws children back again and again, serving as a magical catalyst to imaginative play and thought?
And who can resist a review that quotes Dylan Thomas?
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/15/books/review/Long.t.html?ex=1177473600&en=0f3491d2214f9ce0&ei=5070
The Children of Húrin-
"New" Work of Tolkien Fiction
The Children of Hurin was pieced together by J.R's son Christopher Tolkien from his fahter's old manuscripts. Reportedly it is a darker Tolkien, in a pre-Frodo world. For the most part it is getting good reviews. Read more:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/artsentertainment/2003674920_tolkien22.html
http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1611448,00.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/19/AR2007041902308.html
"New" Work of Tolkien Fiction
The Children of Hurin was pieced together by J.R's son Christopher Tolkien from his fahter's old manuscripts. Reportedly it is a darker Tolkien, in a pre-Frodo world. For the most part it is getting good reviews. Read more:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/artsentertainment/2003674920_tolkien22.html
http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1611448,00.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/19/AR2007041902308.html
Great Expectations or Bleak House:
Should Dickens Disney-fied?
A Charles Dickens inspired theme park is opening Kent, England in mid-May complete with pickpockets and saucy wenches.
http://www.dickensworld.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=34&Itemid=37
http://www.dickensworld.co.uk/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/6559197.stm
Should Dickens Disney-fied?
A Charles Dickens inspired theme park is opening Kent, England in mid-May complete with pickpockets and saucy wenches.
http://www.dickensworld.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=34&Itemid=37
http://www.dickensworld.co.uk/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/6559197.stm
Thursday, April 19, 2007
NCBLA Board Member Natalie Babbitt interviewed in Publisher's Weekly!
Check out the interview at:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6433829.html?industryid=47139.html?nid=2788
Check out the interview at:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6433829.html?industryid=47139.html?nid=2788
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Virginia Tech-
Winter Will Give Way to Spring
There's A Certain Slant of Light
Emily Dickinson
There’s a certain slant of light,
On winter afternoons,
That oppresses, like the weight
Of cathedral tunes.
Heavenly hurt it gives us;
We can find no scar,
But internal difference
Where the meanings are.
None may teach it anything,
‘Tis the seal, despair,-
An imperial affliction
Sent us of the air.
When it comes, the landscape listens,
Shadows hold their breath;
When it goes, ‘t is like the distance
On the look of death.
Love Lives Beyond the Tomb
John Clare
Love lives beyond
The tomb, the earth, which fades like dew-
I love the fond,
The faithful, and the true.
Love lies in sleep,
The happiness of healthy dreams,
Eve's dews may weep,
But love delightful seems.
'Tis seen in flowers,
And in the even's pearly dew
In earth's green hours,
And in the heaven's eternal blue.
'Tis heard in spring
When light and sunbeams, warm and kind,
On angel's wing
Bring love and music to the wind.
And where is voice,
So young, so beautiful, and sweet
As nature's choice,
Where spring and lovers meet?
Love lives beyond
The tomb,the earth, which fades like dew.
I love the fond,
The faithful, young, and true.
Once More,the Round
Theodore Roethke
What's greater, Pebble or Pond?
What can be known? The Unknown.
My true self runs toward a Hill
More! O More! visible.
Now I adore my life
With the Bird, the abiding Leaf,
With the Fish, the questing Snail,
And the Eye altering all;
And I dance with William Blake
For love, for Love's sake;
And everything comes to One,
As we dance on, dance on, dance on.
Winter Will Give Way to Spring
There's A Certain Slant of Light
Emily Dickinson
There’s a certain slant of light,
On winter afternoons,
That oppresses, like the weight
Of cathedral tunes.
Heavenly hurt it gives us;
We can find no scar,
But internal difference
Where the meanings are.
None may teach it anything,
‘Tis the seal, despair,-
An imperial affliction
Sent us of the air.
When it comes, the landscape listens,
Shadows hold their breath;
When it goes, ‘t is like the distance
On the look of death.
Love Lives Beyond the Tomb
John Clare
Love lives beyond
The tomb, the earth, which fades like dew-
I love the fond,
The faithful, and the true.
Love lies in sleep,
The happiness of healthy dreams,
Eve's dews may weep,
But love delightful seems.
'Tis seen in flowers,
And in the even's pearly dew
In earth's green hours,
And in the heaven's eternal blue.
'Tis heard in spring
When light and sunbeams, warm and kind,
On angel's wing
Bring love and music to the wind.
And where is voice,
So young, so beautiful, and sweet
As nature's choice,
Where spring and lovers meet?
Love lives beyond
The tomb,the earth, which fades like dew.
I love the fond,
The faithful, young, and true.
Once More,the Round
Theodore Roethke
What's greater, Pebble or Pond?
What can be known? The Unknown.
My true self runs toward a Hill
More! O More! visible.
Now I adore my life
With the Bird, the abiding Leaf,
With the Fish, the questing Snail,
And the Eye altering all;
And I dance with William Blake
For love, for Love's sake;
And everything comes to One,
As we dance on, dance on, dance on.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Five Big Ways to Help Kids Love Books
NCBLA president and executive director Mary Brigid Barrett was recently interviewed by Amy Maclin of Wondertime Magazine for its website at http://wondertime.go.com/. You can access the article on parenting advise -“Five Big Ways to Help to Help Kids Love Books!” at: http://wondertime.go.com/learning/article/helping-kids-love-books.html
NCBLA president and executive director Mary Brigid Barrett was recently interviewed by Amy Maclin of Wondertime Magazine for its website at http://wondertime.go.com/. You can access the article on parenting advise -“Five Big Ways to Help to Help Kids Love Books!” at: http://wondertime.go.com/learning/article/helping-kids-love-books.html
Are Teachers Undervalued?
The NCBLA would say yes- undervalued by our society, undervalued in salary compensation.
Daily Kos has an interesting open thread discussing this question with some intriguing ideas and provocative observations.
Check it out at: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/4/12/7361/94405
The NCBLA would say yes- undervalued by our society, undervalued in salary compensation.
Daily Kos has an interesting open thread discussing this question with some intriguing ideas and provocative observations.
Check it out at: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/4/12/7361/94405
Rich nations failing to deliver education aid
'The world's richest nations are failing to deliver promised aid to educate children in war-torn countries such as Somalia and the Congo, a charity claimed today."
Read more at: http://education.guardian.co.uk/schoolsworldwide/story/0,,2055520,00.html
'The world's richest nations are failing to deliver promised aid to educate children in war-torn countries such as Somalia and the Congo, a charity claimed today."
Read more at: http://education.guardian.co.uk/schoolsworldwide/story/0,,2055520,00.html
Jane Dyer Exhibit:
Family Field Trip to the Danforth Museum in Framingham, MA!
The works of talented children's book illustrators Jane Dyer and her daughter Brooke Dyer, are currently on exhibit at the Danforth Art Museum in Framingham, Massachusetts now until April 29th.
For information and directions go to: http://www.danforthmuseum.org./index.html
Family Field Trip to the Danforth Museum in Framingham, MA!
The works of talented children's book illustrators Jane Dyer and her daughter Brooke Dyer, are currently on exhibit at the Danforth Art Museum in Framingham, Massachusetts now until April 29th.
For information and directions go to: http://www.danforthmuseum.org./index.html
Esperanto Long Gone: The New York Times Reporting English as Language of Global Education
"In the shifting universe of global academia, English is becoming as commonplace as creeping ivy and mortarboards. In the last five years, the world’s top business schools and universities have been pushing to make English the teaching tongue in a calculated strategy to raise revenues by attracting more international students and as a way to respond to globalization."
Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/11/education/11english.html?ref=education&pagewanted=print
"In the shifting universe of global academia, English is becoming as commonplace as creeping ivy and mortarboards. In the last five years, the world’s top business schools and universities have been pushing to make English the teaching tongue in a calculated strategy to raise revenues by attracting more international students and as a way to respond to globalization."
Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/11/education/11english.html?ref=education&pagewanted=print
Quotes of Note....
"Will we learn from our past? Are we doomed to repeat the same mistakes? Not if we begin telling all the children the truth about this big house—this building we all live in, called the United States of America. Tell them about the climate, the atmosphere, the environment it was built on—who it was taken away from. Tell them about the true conditions those great documents of freedom were created under. Tell them the truth about the men who wrote them. Tell them all of it.
Tom Feelings"
Children's Literature New England 1990
It takes more courage to disturb the neighborhood than it takes to disturb the universe. And the price is often higher.
E. L. Konigsburg
The Center for the Study of Children's Literature 1983
So in our little, humble, simple ways, in publishing and otherwise, I think we almost become soldiers in a new war, which is to take on the salvation of the children. That sounds grandiose, but it’s how I felt when I did this book.
[We Are All in the Dumps with Jack and Guy]
Maurice Sendak
Children's Literature New England 1994
"Will we learn from our past? Are we doomed to repeat the same mistakes? Not if we begin telling all the children the truth about this big house—this building we all live in, called the United States of America. Tell them about the climate, the atmosphere, the environment it was built on—who it was taken away from. Tell them about the true conditions those great documents of freedom were created under. Tell them the truth about the men who wrote them. Tell them all of it.
Tom Feelings"
Children's Literature New England 1990
It takes more courage to disturb the neighborhood than it takes to disturb the universe. And the price is often higher.
E. L. Konigsburg
The Center for the Study of Children's Literature 1983
So in our little, humble, simple ways, in publishing and otherwise, I think we almost become soldiers in a new war, which is to take on the salvation of the children. That sounds grandiose, but it’s how I felt when I did this book.
[We Are All in the Dumps with Jack and Guy]
Maurice Sendak
Children's Literature New England 1994
Monday, April 2, 2007
A Poem is Gift
April is National Poetry Month...
I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud
by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
April is National Poetry Month!
When is the last time you read or listened to a poem? Take some time this month and sink into a poem or two. Let a poem's rhythm, its notes wash over you.
Web sources for National Poetry Month:
http://www.poets.org/
http://teacher.scholastic.com/lessonrepro/k_2theme/poetry.htm
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/
When is the last time you read or listened to a poem? Take some time this month and sink into a poem or two. Let a poem's rhythm, its notes wash over you.
Web sources for National Poetry Month:
http://www.poets.org/
http://teacher.scholastic.com/lessonrepro/k_2theme/poetry.htm
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/
Jane Austen, Was She a Babe?
Jane Austen- "Was she attractive or not? What if, to put it bluntly, she became a writer in part because she didn’t have the looks to land a husband along the lines of a Mr. Darcy or a Mr. Knightley?" Take a gander of old Jane at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/01/weekinreview/01mcgrath.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Jane Austen- "Was she attractive or not? What if, to put it bluntly, she became a writer in part because she didn’t have the looks to land a husband along the lines of a Mr. Darcy or a Mr. Knightley?" Take a gander of old Jane at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/01/weekinreview/01mcgrath.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Interested in what young people think
about the world and their generation?
The New York Times began a blog written by talented, bright graduating college seniors that is fascinating to read. Unfortunately it is available only through Times Select. If you get Select service it is well worth reading this blog on their website.
about the world and their generation?
The New York Times began a blog written by talented, bright graduating college seniors that is fascinating to read. Unfortunately it is available only through Times Select. If you get Select service it is well worth reading this blog on their website.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Quotes of Note:
Barbara Harrison, Betty Levin, Katherine Paterson
Katherine Paterson
Children's Literature New England 1993
Barbara Harrison, Betty Levin, Katherine Paterson
By the very act of writing, some children’s authors make a political statement. Children cannot be written off. Children are not an undifferentiated mass; they are not nonpersons.
They have names and dreams.
Barbara Harrison
Children's Literature New England 1994
Children's Literature New England 1994
Children who find a single important life in the ordinary, unimportant, and unheroic are less likely to succumb to the human fallacy of
Us versus Them. They will be less likely to accept the notion that thousands of terrified refugees of war do not feel as we do, or that millions crammed into cattle cars on journeys they could not escape belong to a subhuman horde.
Betty Levin
Children's Literature New England 1995
Children's Literature New England 1995
Perhaps the most troubling phrase
to come out of the Gulf War
was the oft repeated sentence of our leaders:
"Thank God there was so little loss of life.”
"Thank God there was so little loss of life.”
And yet we know that 100,000 men, women, and
children died in that war.
A woman in Ohio has made
a mural with 100,000 faces on it.
It takes a long time, my friends, to walk past 100,000 faces.
Katherine Paterson
Children's Literature New England 1993
Activist Alert!
The Leave No Child Behind Act
is up for Reauthorization
READ>THINK>ACT = DEMOCRACY
The United States Congress needs to hear from individuals, not just professional organizations, concerning the Leave No Child Behind reauthorization, and about other issues related to K-12 education, teacher education, preschool education, school libraries, higher education, student loans, etc.
Whatever your concerns, questions, opinions, and feelings the NCBLA urges you to be an responsible citizen!
Go to the NCBLA website to find out how to contact your national representatives to Congress:
http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/activistbasics.html
Information and a variety of opinions that may be of interest to you related to the
Leave No Child Behind Legislation:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h107-1990
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20
http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/144295.html
http://www.nea.org/lac/esea/eseaposition.html
http://www.pbs.org/now/society/nclb.html
http://charlotte.com/127/story/68282.html
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml
The Leave No Child Behind Act
is up for Reauthorization
READ>THINK>ACT = DEMOCRACY
The United States Congress needs to hear from individuals, not just professional organizations, concerning the Leave No Child Behind reauthorization, and about other issues related to K-12 education, teacher education, preschool education, school libraries, higher education, student loans, etc.
Whatever your concerns, questions, opinions, and feelings the NCBLA urges you to be an responsible citizen!
Go to the NCBLA website to find out how to contact your national representatives to Congress:
http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/activistbasics.html
Information and a variety of opinions that may be of interest to you related to the
Leave No Child Behind Legislation:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h107-1990
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20
http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/144295.html
http://www.nea.org/lac/esea/eseaposition.html
http://www.pbs.org/now/society/nclb.html
http://charlotte.com/127/story/68282.html
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml
In case you missed it...
New York Times Magazine features article on NCBLA Board Member Author Gregory Maguire!
A great article, "Mr. Wicked," on Gregory Maguire and his beautiful family appeared in a past New York Times Sunday Magazine, you can still read and enjoy at: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/11/magazine/11maguire.t.html?ex=1175400000&en=771935df0326ffaa&ei=5070
New York Times Magazine features article on NCBLA Board Member Author Gregory Maguire!
A great article, "Mr. Wicked," on Gregory Maguire and his beautiful family appeared in a past New York Times Sunday Magazine, you can still read and enjoy at: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/11/magazine/11maguire.t.html?ex=1175400000&en=771935df0326ffaa&ei=5070
Jacket Covers for Last Harry Potter Book Unveiled!
Three covers, a UK version, an American version, and an “adult” cover have been released to promote the final adventure of Harry Potter and company, as if the book needed promotion. Go to:
http://books.guardian.co.uk/harrypotter/story/0,,2044781,00.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eat-the-press/2007/03/29/harry-potter-and-the-fina_e_44497.html
Three covers, a UK version, an American version, and an “adult” cover have been released to promote the final adventure of Harry Potter and company, as if the book needed promotion. Go to:
http://books.guardian.co.uk/harrypotter/story/0,,2044781,00.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eat-the-press/2007/03/29/harry-potter-and-the-fina_e_44497.html
Monday, March 26, 2007
Friday, March 2, 2007
Great event for New Englanders!
Come Hear
Riveting Jacqueline Woodson Speak!
Free and Open to the Public
Noted children's and teen author Jacqueline Woodson will be speaking at the Boston Public Library's Connolly Branch in Jamaica Plain on Monday, March 12 at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Woodson is the author of many award-winning books, including Newbery Honor picture book Show Way; middle-grade novel Locomotion; and teen novels I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This and Miracle's Boys. Her new novel is Feathers. She is a two-time winner of the Coretta Scott King award and received the 2006 Margaret A. Edwards Award, which honors an author's lifetime contributions to young people's literature. Ms. Woodson will speak about her books, take questions, and sign books, including books for sale that evening from Jamaicaway Books. Children over 5 are welcome to attend.
This event is co-sponsored by the Foundation for Children's Books
and the Boston Public Library.
When & Where
Monday, March 12, 6:30-8 p.m.
Connolly Branch, Boston Public Library
433 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain
617-522-1960
FREE
For directions and more information:Call the library at 617-522-1960
Come Hear
Riveting Jacqueline Woodson Speak!
Free and Open to the Public
Noted children's and teen author Jacqueline Woodson will be speaking at the Boston Public Library's Connolly Branch in Jamaica Plain on Monday, March 12 at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Woodson is the author of many award-winning books, including Newbery Honor picture book Show Way; middle-grade novel Locomotion; and teen novels I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This and Miracle's Boys. Her new novel is Feathers. She is a two-time winner of the Coretta Scott King award and received the 2006 Margaret A. Edwards Award, which honors an author's lifetime contributions to young people's literature. Ms. Woodson will speak about her books, take questions, and sign books, including books for sale that evening from Jamaicaway Books. Children over 5 are welcome to attend.
This event is co-sponsored by the Foundation for Children's Books
and the Boston Public Library.
When & Where
Monday, March 12, 6:30-8 p.m.
Connolly Branch, Boston Public Library
433 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain
617-522-1960
FREE
For directions and more information:Call the library at 617-522-1960
NCBLA BOARD MEMBERS
PATRICIA AND FREDRICK McKISSACK
FEATURED IN
GREAT HORN BOOK ARTICLE
by Barbara Bader!
"For the McKissacks, Black Is Boundless- — stories of struggle, stories with a lineage, stories that are plain entertaining. Any of them might come with the McKissack name."
Check it out at: http://www.hbook.com/publications/magazine/articles/mar07_bader.asp
PATRICIA AND FREDRICK McKISSACK
FEATURED IN
GREAT HORN BOOK ARTICLE
by Barbara Bader!
"For the McKissacks, Black Is Boundless- — stories of struggle, stories with a lineage, stories that are plain entertaining. Any of them might come with the McKissack name."
Check it out at: http://www.hbook.com/publications/magazine/articles/mar07_bader.asp
From Science Magazine:
Literacy in the U.S. workforce is eroding and will continue to do so at least through 2030, according to the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in a gloomy report issued last month. The economy is becoming more knowledge-intensive--only about 10% is now manufacturing-based compared with one-third in 1950. But workers are getting less literate--defined by the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS), in part, as "using [English] printed and written information to function in society."
The uneducated immigrant population is growing: Hispanics, who have the lowest high school graduation rate (50%) of any group, will go from 14% of the population to 20% in 2030. And according to U.S. Census projections, 60% of the Hispanic working population is expected to remain foreign-born, says ETS's Kentaro Yamamoto.
Hopeful trends are hard to find, says the report. High school graduation rates for both Hispanics and African Americans peaked in 1969. And college attendance among these minorities has been "stagnant" for more than a decade. ETS labels the confluence of economic and demographic factors "a perfect storm [which] continues to gain strength with no end in sight."
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol315/issue5816/r-samples.dtl
American Workers
are Getting Less Literate
Literacy in the U.S. workforce is eroding and will continue to do so at least through 2030, according to the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in a gloomy report issued last month. The economy is becoming more knowledge-intensive--only about 10% is now manufacturing-based compared with one-third in 1950. But workers are getting less literate--defined by the National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS), in part, as "using [English] printed and written information to function in society."
The uneducated immigrant population is growing: Hispanics, who have the lowest high school graduation rate (50%) of any group, will go from 14% of the population to 20% in 2030. And according to U.S. Census projections, 60% of the Hispanic working population is expected to remain foreign-born, says ETS's Kentaro Yamamoto.
Hopeful trends are hard to find, says the report. High school graduation rates for both Hispanics and African Americans peaked in 1969. And college attendance among these minorities has been "stagnant" for more than a decade. ETS labels the confluence of economic and demographic factors "a perfect storm [which] continues to gain strength with no end in sight."
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol315/issue5816/r-samples.dtl
Thursday, March 1, 2007
David Brooks on Education,
Government, and Family
In The New York Times today David Brooks writes about the impact that family and home life have on each child's educational journey. Unfortunately, the column is sequestered under Times Select, in case the posted link does not work, this blog offers some excerpts:
All the presidential candidates this year will talk about education. The conventional ones will talk about improving the schools. The creative ones will talk about improving the lives of students.
The conventional ones, though they don’t know it, are prisoners of the dead husk of behaviorism. They will speak of education as if children were blank slates waiting to have ideas inputted into their brains with some efficient delivery mechanism.
The creative ones will finally absorb the truth found in decades of research: the relationships children have outside school shape their performance inside the school.
The creative ones will give speeches like the one David Cameron, who is reviving the British Tory party, gave last month. They will talk, as Cameron did, about the mushy things, like love and attachment, and will say, as Cameron did, “Family relationships matter more than anything else.” They will understand that schools filled with students who can’t control their impulses, who can’t focus their attention and who can’t regulate their emotions will not succeed, no matter how many reforms are made by governors, superintendents or presidents.
These candidates will emphasize that education is a cumulative process that begins at the dawn of life and builds early in life as children learn how to learn. These candidates will point out that powerful social trends — the doubling of single-parent families over the past generation, the rise of divorce rates — mean that government has to rethink its role. They’ll note that if we want to have successful human capital policies, we have to get over the definition of education as something that takes place in schools between the hours of 8 and 3, between the months of September and June, and between the ages of 5 and 18.
As Bob Marvin of the University of Virginia points out, there is a mountain of evidence demonstrating that early childhood attachments shape lifelong learning competence.
Children do have inborn temperaments and intelligence. Nevertheless, students make the most of their natural dispositions when they have a secure emotional base from which to explore, and even the brightest children stumble when there is chaos inside.
Research over the past few decades impressively shows that children who emerge from attentive, attuned parental relationships do better in school and beyond. They tend to choose friends wisely. They handle frustration better. They’re more resilient in the face of setbacks. They grow up to become more productive workers.
On the other hand, as Martha Farah of the University of Pennsylvania has found, students who do not feel emotionally safe tend not to develop good memories (which is consistent with cortisol experiments in animals). Students from less stimulating environments have worse language skills.
The question, of course, is, What can government do about any of this? The answer is that there are programs that do work to help young and stressed mothers establish healthier attachments. These programs usually involve having nurses or mature women make a series of home visits to give young mothers the sort of cajoling and practical wisdom that in other times would have been delivered by grandmothers or elders.
The Circle of Security program has measurably improved attachments and enhanced social skills. The Nurse-Family Partnerships program, founded by David Olds, has produced rigorously examined, impressive results. Children who have been in this program had 59 percent fewer arrests at age 15. (Presidential candidates are commanded to read Katherine Boo’s Feb. 6, 2006, New Yorker article to get a feel for how these programs work.)
It’s important not to get carried away. “Enhancing Early Attachments,” a review of the literature edited by Lisa Berlin and others, is filled with phrases like “marginal success” and “modest but significant benefits.” But these programs can be expanded.
And one thing is clear: It’s crazy to have educational policies that, in effect, chop up children’s brains into the rational cortex, which the government ministers to in schools, and the emotional limbic system, which the government ignores. In nature there is no neat division. Emotional engagement is the essence of information processing and learning.
In Britain, where both David Cameron and Gordon Brown have grappled with this reality, policy is catching up with the research. In the United States, we are forever behind. But that won’t last. This year, some smart presidential candidate will help us catch up.
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/03/01/opinion/01brooks.html?hp=&pagewanted=print
Government, and Family
In The New York Times today David Brooks writes about the impact that family and home life have on each child's educational journey. Unfortunately, the column is sequestered under Times Select, in case the posted link does not work, this blog offers some excerpts:
All the presidential candidates this year will talk about education. The conventional ones will talk about improving the schools. The creative ones will talk about improving the lives of students.
The conventional ones, though they don’t know it, are prisoners of the dead husk of behaviorism. They will speak of education as if children were blank slates waiting to have ideas inputted into their brains with some efficient delivery mechanism.
The creative ones will finally absorb the truth found in decades of research: the relationships children have outside school shape their performance inside the school.
The creative ones will give speeches like the one David Cameron, who is reviving the British Tory party, gave last month. They will talk, as Cameron did, about the mushy things, like love and attachment, and will say, as Cameron did, “Family relationships matter more than anything else.” They will understand that schools filled with students who can’t control their impulses, who can’t focus their attention and who can’t regulate their emotions will not succeed, no matter how many reforms are made by governors, superintendents or presidents.
These candidates will emphasize that education is a cumulative process that begins at the dawn of life and builds early in life as children learn how to learn. These candidates will point out that powerful social trends — the doubling of single-parent families over the past generation, the rise of divorce rates — mean that government has to rethink its role. They’ll note that if we want to have successful human capital policies, we have to get over the definition of education as something that takes place in schools between the hours of 8 and 3, between the months of September and June, and between the ages of 5 and 18.
As Bob Marvin of the University of Virginia points out, there is a mountain of evidence demonstrating that early childhood attachments shape lifelong learning competence.
Children do have inborn temperaments and intelligence. Nevertheless, students make the most of their natural dispositions when they have a secure emotional base from which to explore, and even the brightest children stumble when there is chaos inside.
Research over the past few decades impressively shows that children who emerge from attentive, attuned parental relationships do better in school and beyond. They tend to choose friends wisely. They handle frustration better. They’re more resilient in the face of setbacks. They grow up to become more productive workers.
On the other hand, as Martha Farah of the University of Pennsylvania has found, students who do not feel emotionally safe tend not to develop good memories (which is consistent with cortisol experiments in animals). Students from less stimulating environments have worse language skills.
The question, of course, is, What can government do about any of this? The answer is that there are programs that do work to help young and stressed mothers establish healthier attachments. These programs usually involve having nurses or mature women make a series of home visits to give young mothers the sort of cajoling and practical wisdom that in other times would have been delivered by grandmothers or elders.
The Circle of Security program has measurably improved attachments and enhanced social skills. The Nurse-Family Partnerships program, founded by David Olds, has produced rigorously examined, impressive results. Children who have been in this program had 59 percent fewer arrests at age 15. (Presidential candidates are commanded to read Katherine Boo’s Feb. 6, 2006, New Yorker article to get a feel for how these programs work.)
It’s important not to get carried away. “Enhancing Early Attachments,” a review of the literature edited by Lisa Berlin and others, is filled with phrases like “marginal success” and “modest but significant benefits.” But these programs can be expanded.
And one thing is clear: It’s crazy to have educational policies that, in effect, chop up children’s brains into the rational cortex, which the government ministers to in schools, and the emotional limbic system, which the government ignores. In nature there is no neat division. Emotional engagement is the essence of information processing and learning.
In Britain, where both David Cameron and Gordon Brown have grappled with this reality, policy is catching up with the research. In the United States, we are forever behind. But that won’t last. This year, some smart presidential candidate will help us catch up.
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/03/01/opinion/01brooks.html?hp=&pagewanted=print
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Guest Blogger:
Mark Scott Reports
from the United Kingdom
Crossing the pond – will you like what I like?
It is with some trepidation that I am writing this to be included on the NCBLA blog. MB2 made a personal request to me to give her – you – some sense of the world of children’s books this side of the pond. But when one looks at the list of distinguished NCBLA board members… the audacious nature of the act becomes apparent; to put one’s words in front of or alongside such an illustrious bunch can be nothing but daunting.
So, I began to think about a question that interests me: why it is that some British writers I rate highly never seem to be ‘big’ in the US? Of course this cannot be the case all the time; we all have our favourites and why should my favourite be yours? Despite this, I thought I would use this first shot at my ‘Blog from the Old Country’, to bring one such writer to your attention.
In summer 2006 I was hunting through the on-site bookstore between sessions at Children's Literature New England 20, that marvel of Children’s Literature scholarship, and was delighted to find there a couple of books by Kevin Brooks, a British writer who now has several novels for young adults under his belt. I remarked to the store-keeper that I was both delighted and surprised to find them: “We all like him in the store,” she remarked, and so began a fifteen minute conversation about the relative merits of his work. We parted, energised, but a little deflated by the admission from the store-keeper that he “…isn’t that well known in the States.”
And I am surprised. He writes, with terrific regularity, some terrific books. But I warn you, they don’t come for free. Brooks is a hard-hitting writer who deals with some hard-hitting themes. One has to dig in and invest time to acquire the taste, and then each book has the potential to deliver a feast. I am not alone in my admiration.
For his debut novel, Martyn Pig, Brooks was short-listed for the Carnegie Medal and won the Banford Boase Award--given for a first novel. It is a dark and quirky story that has its fair share of surprising twists and turns. Martyn Pig is a remarkable debut and whereas I liked it, I cannot confess to loving it.
But with Brooks’ second novel, Lucas, I fell head over heels. Here is the blurb from the jacket:
Caitlin’s life changes from the moment she sees Lucas walking across the causeway one hot summer’s day. He is the strangest, most beautiful boy she has ever seen – and when she meets him, her world comes alive. But to others, he quickly becomes an object of jealousy, prejudice and hatred. Caitlin tries to make sense of the injustice that lurks at every unexpected twist and turn, until she realises that she must do what she knows in her heart is right.
Intrigued? You will be. Lucas is at times both beautiful and disturbing, and it has an extraordinary climax. I remember vividly the place and time of its reading. Sat in the darkened cabin of a Jumbo-jet, returning from a business trip in Hong Kong, my reading light blazed, a beacon in the darkness alongside a few flickering entertainment screens, and I read Lucas from cover to cover in one sitting. We all recognise this breathless scene and wish it for our kids – a story so compelling that, once started, it is impossible to put down and, when it is over, a story that stays spinning inside one’s head for days afterwards. The Sunday Times wrote this of Lucas: “It gets to you. Then when this has passed, you want to tell everyone how good it is.” That’s it – exactly!
Since the publication of Lucas in 2004, Brooks has delivered his work at breathtaking speed and regularity. Of particular note is Candy, an unusual and brave story about Joe and his obsession with a young prostitute. This is a taut thriller with Brooks’ trademark shattering climax, the story that, the Guardian newspaper notes, “doesn't offer easy solutions, but its implicit, carefully understated morality will exert a powerful influence over the book's teenage readers.” And Kissing the Rain, the story of Moo Nelson, an overweight kid, bullied at school, who retreats to his bridge where he can watch the cars go past and think. Until, one day he sees a murder… The book is told in a quirky style, using Moo’s unique way of speaking and framing events.
What set me off to write this blog was buying The Road of the Dead today. Again, it is not an easy subject and the book blurb hints at its darkness: Late one night, two brothers learn that their sister has died in the worst way imaginable. She’s found, strangled, in a desolate place hundreds of miles from their East London home... I would hope to know a bit of what is to come from this synopsis until I read a bit further and find that one of the brothers is telepathic…
I did warn you didn’t I? Brooks’ stories do not come for free, investment is required, and with it the requirement to leave preconceptions at the door. Philip Ardagh, writing in The Guardian says this: “When I finished The Road of the Dead, I felt that I, too, had been on a journey. It was no walk in the park but I was very glad I’d been.” And that’s pretty much how I feel about Brooks’ stories. Kids and prostitutes? Kids and murders? Kids and sex? Surely we are in the land of taboo. But are we really? Go see for yourself. Don’t worry if you hate these books, at least you tried, but – and here is the wonder of literature - you and your kids, in whatever form they’re yours, may find yourself loving them too. Start with Lucas.
Titles:
Martyn Pig (2003)
Lucas (2004)
Kissing the Rain (2005)
Candy (2006)
The Road of the Dead (2007)
Being (2007)
Author details here: http://www.doublecluck.com/authordetails.php?aname=Brooks,%20Kevin&btype=fiction11
Mark Scott resides in Sheffield, England. His day job is I.T. specialist, his soul work is writing. He regularly attended Children's Literature New England, and like many participants contributed a great deal to the symposium's success by his active involvement and participation. Thank you Mark!
Mark Scott Reports
from the United Kingdom
Crossing the pond – will you like what I like?
It is with some trepidation that I am writing this to be included on the NCBLA blog. MB2 made a personal request to me to give her – you – some sense of the world of children’s books this side of the pond. But when one looks at the list of distinguished NCBLA board members… the audacious nature of the act becomes apparent; to put one’s words in front of or alongside such an illustrious bunch can be nothing but daunting.
So, I began to think about a question that interests me: why it is that some British writers I rate highly never seem to be ‘big’ in the US? Of course this cannot be the case all the time; we all have our favourites and why should my favourite be yours? Despite this, I thought I would use this first shot at my ‘Blog from the Old Country’, to bring one such writer to your attention.
In summer 2006 I was hunting through the on-site bookstore between sessions at Children's Literature New England 20, that marvel of Children’s Literature scholarship, and was delighted to find there a couple of books by Kevin Brooks, a British writer who now has several novels for young adults under his belt. I remarked to the store-keeper that I was both delighted and surprised to find them: “We all like him in the store,” she remarked, and so began a fifteen minute conversation about the relative merits of his work. We parted, energised, but a little deflated by the admission from the store-keeper that he “…isn’t that well known in the States.”
And I am surprised. He writes, with terrific regularity, some terrific books. But I warn you, they don’t come for free. Brooks is a hard-hitting writer who deals with some hard-hitting themes. One has to dig in and invest time to acquire the taste, and then each book has the potential to deliver a feast. I am not alone in my admiration.
For his debut novel, Martyn Pig, Brooks was short-listed for the Carnegie Medal and won the Banford Boase Award--given for a first novel. It is a dark and quirky story that has its fair share of surprising twists and turns. Martyn Pig is a remarkable debut and whereas I liked it, I cannot confess to loving it.
But with Brooks’ second novel, Lucas, I fell head over heels. Here is the blurb from the jacket:
Caitlin’s life changes from the moment she sees Lucas walking across the causeway one hot summer’s day. He is the strangest, most beautiful boy she has ever seen – and when she meets him, her world comes alive. But to others, he quickly becomes an object of jealousy, prejudice and hatred. Caitlin tries to make sense of the injustice that lurks at every unexpected twist and turn, until she realises that she must do what she knows in her heart is right.
Intrigued? You will be. Lucas is at times both beautiful and disturbing, and it has an extraordinary climax. I remember vividly the place and time of its reading. Sat in the darkened cabin of a Jumbo-jet, returning from a business trip in Hong Kong, my reading light blazed, a beacon in the darkness alongside a few flickering entertainment screens, and I read Lucas from cover to cover in one sitting. We all recognise this breathless scene and wish it for our kids – a story so compelling that, once started, it is impossible to put down and, when it is over, a story that stays spinning inside one’s head for days afterwards. The Sunday Times wrote this of Lucas: “It gets to you. Then when this has passed, you want to tell everyone how good it is.” That’s it – exactly!
Since the publication of Lucas in 2004, Brooks has delivered his work at breathtaking speed and regularity. Of particular note is Candy, an unusual and brave story about Joe and his obsession with a young prostitute. This is a taut thriller with Brooks’ trademark shattering climax, the story that, the Guardian newspaper notes, “doesn't offer easy solutions, but its implicit, carefully understated morality will exert a powerful influence over the book's teenage readers.” And Kissing the Rain, the story of Moo Nelson, an overweight kid, bullied at school, who retreats to his bridge where he can watch the cars go past and think. Until, one day he sees a murder… The book is told in a quirky style, using Moo’s unique way of speaking and framing events.
What set me off to write this blog was buying The Road of the Dead today. Again, it is not an easy subject and the book blurb hints at its darkness: Late one night, two brothers learn that their sister has died in the worst way imaginable. She’s found, strangled, in a desolate place hundreds of miles from their East London home... I would hope to know a bit of what is to come from this synopsis until I read a bit further and find that one of the brothers is telepathic…
I did warn you didn’t I? Brooks’ stories do not come for free, investment is required, and with it the requirement to leave preconceptions at the door. Philip Ardagh, writing in The Guardian says this: “When I finished The Road of the Dead, I felt that I, too, had been on a journey. It was no walk in the park but I was very glad I’d been.” And that’s pretty much how I feel about Brooks’ stories. Kids and prostitutes? Kids and murders? Kids and sex? Surely we are in the land of taboo. But are we really? Go see for yourself. Don’t worry if you hate these books, at least you tried, but – and here is the wonder of literature - you and your kids, in whatever form they’re yours, may find yourself loving them too. Start with Lucas.
Titles:
Martyn Pig (2003)
Lucas (2004)
Kissing the Rain (2005)
Candy (2006)
The Road of the Dead (2007)
Being (2007)
Author details here: http://www.doublecluck.com/authordetails.php?aname=Brooks,%20Kevin&btype=fiction11
Mark Scott resides in Sheffield, England. His day job is I.T. specialist, his soul work is writing. He regularly attended Children's Literature New England, and like many participants contributed a great deal to the symposium's success by his active involvement and participation. Thank you Mark!
M.T. Anderson brings to our attention:
U.S., Britain
fare poorly in children survey
UNICEF ranks the well-being of youngsters in 21 developed countries.
From the Los Angeles Times:
The U.S. was at the bottom of the list in health and safety, mostly because of high rates of child mortality and accidental deaths. It was next to last in family and peer relationships and risk-taking behavior. The U.S. has the highest proportion of children living in single-family homes, which the study defined as an indicator for increased risk of poverty and poor health, though it "may seem unfair and insensitive," it says. The U.S., which ranked 17th in the percentage of children who live in relative poverty, was also close to last when it comes to children eating and talking frequently with their families.
Britain had the highest rate of children involved in activities that endangered their welfare: 31% of those studied said they had been drunk at least twice by the age of 15 (compared with 11.6% for the United States), and 38% had had sexual intercourse by that age (statistics unavailable for the U.S.). Canada had the highest rate of children who had smoked marijuana by age 15 — 40.4% (compared with 31.4% in the U.S.). Japan ranked the worst on "subjective well-being," with 30% of children agreeing with the statement "I am lonely" — three times higher than the next-highest-scoring country.
Read more at: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-children15feb15,0,5374235.story?coll=la-home-headlines
U.S., Britain
fare poorly in children survey
UNICEF ranks the well-being of youngsters in 21 developed countries.
From the Los Angeles Times:
The U.S. was at the bottom of the list in health and safety, mostly because of high rates of child mortality and accidental deaths. It was next to last in family and peer relationships and risk-taking behavior. The U.S. has the highest proportion of children living in single-family homes, which the study defined as an indicator for increased risk of poverty and poor health, though it "may seem unfair and insensitive," it says. The U.S., which ranked 17th in the percentage of children who live in relative poverty, was also close to last when it comes to children eating and talking frequently with their families.
Britain had the highest rate of children involved in activities that endangered their welfare: 31% of those studied said they had been drunk at least twice by the age of 15 (compared with 11.6% for the United States), and 38% had had sexual intercourse by that age (statistics unavailable for the U.S.). Canada had the highest rate of children who had smoked marijuana by age 15 — 40.4% (compared with 31.4% in the U.S.). Japan ranked the worst on "subjective well-being," with 30% of children agreeing with the statement "I am lonely" — three times higher than the next-highest-scoring country.
Read more at: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-children15feb15,0,5374235.story?coll=la-home-headlines
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Activist Alert!
Only 35 percent of 12th graders are proficient in reading.
This morning The New York Times wrote an editorial related to the latest test results published by the National Assessment of Educational Progress-commonly referred to as the national report card. It is interesting that every major newspaper in the country published these results in the front pages of the paper, but few national news broadcasts covered the story. The findings, as noted in previous NCBLA blog posts, are dismal. Twelfth graders are not only performing worse in reading than twelfth graders did in 1992, but reading performance has been distressingly flat since 2002.
(see: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/27/opinion/27tue3.html?pagewanted=print)
This information provides an opportunity for all of us who care about kids, reading, education, books, and libraries- an opportunity to say to those who are in a position of power and influence in the media and the government, “WE CARE! DO SOMETHING!”
Right now our nation is perched at the precipice of change. Legislators and leaders in both parties are worried about the next election; very few can assume votes. In other words, power has shifted to the voter, the individual citizen- us!
If you care about young people, if you care about education, literacy, writing, literature, libraries, and the arts, if you care about the direction we are headed nationally, now is the time to contact the media, write to your legislators and tell them what you think, how you feel. Do you think educational issues should be a top priority on our national agenda along with health care and the environment? H0w do you feel about the Leave No Child Behind Act? Should our nation’s libraries get increased funding on a state, national and local level?
Isn’t it time that we stop focusing on one age of child development – like preschool education, high school illiteracy, etc., and take a holistic approach to educational reform? As the parent of three kids, now grown to young adulthood, I would never state that one stage of their development was of any more importance than another. All parents have to be concerned and caring through every age of their child's development, constantly vigilant. Physicians and healthy care providers do not treat any one age as more important in either preventative measures or ongoing treatments.
We have learned from studying our global environment that what happens in any one place on the planet influences the rest of the ecosystem and that is true of education, too. We can no longer focus only on reforming preschool education as we did a few years back, or middle grade education- it is time we take a much broader look, a lifelong look at educational reform in this country and ask some huge questions.
In an age when the average person will not only have 3-5 job changes, but 3-5 career changes, isn’t it time that we expand educational avenues rethinking arbitrary distinctions of age and grade levels and address lifelong education in a serious and committed manner? Shouldn't we have an educational system that meets the needs of all citizens from birth to old age? Shouldn't libraries be an equal partner in our educational system? Public libraries are the only place that anyone in this country can education him or herself throughout life; libraries are also the hub of every community in our nation.
Business and corporate America constantly complain about our nation's schools, but no one wants to spend the money it will take to create a first class educational system. Many people in this nation believe that putting major funding into education is not the answer, yet would any major corporation say that an influx of new capital into their business is a bad thing? We live in the most capitalist society on the planet; in our culture money talks, money reveals priorities. Any assessment of our nation’s priority yardstick reveals that education and kids are not a high priority- not even close. The amount of the federal dollar that goes into education is less than a penny. We say kids and education are important, but when it comes time to putting our money where our mouths are, our lips are sealed shut.
Charter schools and vouchers are inadequate band-aids on a system in which every major blood vessel and organ is hemorrhaging. We need to make a response to this national emergency on a grand scale, to question and rethink, and build our educational structure from the ground up.
Sometimes a barn can be rebuilt, but sometimes the roof has too many holes, the framing is too worm-eaten, the foundation is crumbling, and you just have to take it down and build anew. And when you have a barn raising you bring in the whole community. And we need to do that, too. We need to bring in teachers, administrators, and academics, but we also need to bring in parents, and grandparents, sociologists and health specialists, artists and creative thinkers, business people, union people-representatives from all walks of life because schools and libraries touch each and everyone of us, often every day. In America, schools and libraries are part of every person's past, and they are the real institutions that will determine all of our futures.
Please take the time to write to the media and your local, state, and national government legislators and officials. Write a personal note on a piece of paper- for that piece of paper will have far more impact than an email or phone call. And yes, if there is pending legislation or time is a problem, email and phone calls are best. But right now, when you have some time and a little leeway- writing a short, clear, concise letter can make you a powerful agent of change. Write and tell these people in power what you think and how you feel, and tell them to act. Tell them you will withhold your vote, your dollar, and in the case of the media, your viewer or readership if they do not cover the issues you care about.
And throw you cynicism out the window. You are a free citizen in a democracy; you have extraordinary power, especially if you work with others and raise your voices together. Change is not the exception; it is the norm. And things can change for good. In this country child labor is practically nonexistent. Civil rights for all citizens are not only a legal reality; every day civil rights are more and more a social reality. There is a huge difference in the limited opportunities that our mothers had compared to the wide opportunities that our daughters have now. There may be people who are hungry in America, but no one is starving to death. Change is inevitable, and in America each of us can become a powerful agent of change. Each of us can also choose to sit back, watch, and complain. And instead of shaping that inevitable change in a positive direction for ourselves and our children your choice of complacency will allow others-- others who may not have all of our interests at heart--to take over and enact change that promotes their self-interest. We will then suffer the deadly repercussions of our inaction, as will our children.
Write that letter now, today!
If you need help finding contact information for your local, state, and national legislators go to the activist basic pages on the NCBLA website at:
http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/activistbasics.html
Write letters and email your local newspapers and television stations and bombard national media outlets. And if you live outside of New York and write to The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, or any media outlet that has more of a national profile, your chances of being heard and getting published go up if you live outside of New York.
Thank You!
Only 35 percent of 12th graders are proficient in reading.
This morning The New York Times wrote an editorial related to the latest test results published by the National Assessment of Educational Progress-commonly referred to as the national report card. It is interesting that every major newspaper in the country published these results in the front pages of the paper, but few national news broadcasts covered the story. The findings, as noted in previous NCBLA blog posts, are dismal. Twelfth graders are not only performing worse in reading than twelfth graders did in 1992, but reading performance has been distressingly flat since 2002.
(see: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/27/opinion/27tue3.html?pagewanted=print)
This information provides an opportunity for all of us who care about kids, reading, education, books, and libraries- an opportunity to say to those who are in a position of power and influence in the media and the government, “WE CARE! DO SOMETHING!”
Right now our nation is perched at the precipice of change. Legislators and leaders in both parties are worried about the next election; very few can assume votes. In other words, power has shifted to the voter, the individual citizen- us!
If you care about young people, if you care about education, literacy, writing, literature, libraries, and the arts, if you care about the direction we are headed nationally, now is the time to contact the media, write to your legislators and tell them what you think, how you feel. Do you think educational issues should be a top priority on our national agenda along with health care and the environment? H0w do you feel about the Leave No Child Behind Act? Should our nation’s libraries get increased funding on a state, national and local level?
Isn’t it time that we stop focusing on one age of child development – like preschool education, high school illiteracy, etc., and take a holistic approach to educational reform? As the parent of three kids, now grown to young adulthood, I would never state that one stage of their development was of any more importance than another. All parents have to be concerned and caring through every age of their child's development, constantly vigilant. Physicians and healthy care providers do not treat any one age as more important in either preventative measures or ongoing treatments.
We have learned from studying our global environment that what happens in any one place on the planet influences the rest of the ecosystem and that is true of education, too. We can no longer focus only on reforming preschool education as we did a few years back, or middle grade education- it is time we take a much broader look, a lifelong look at educational reform in this country and ask some huge questions.
In an age when the average person will not only have 3-5 job changes, but 3-5 career changes, isn’t it time that we expand educational avenues rethinking arbitrary distinctions of age and grade levels and address lifelong education in a serious and committed manner? Shouldn't we have an educational system that meets the needs of all citizens from birth to old age? Shouldn't libraries be an equal partner in our educational system? Public libraries are the only place that anyone in this country can education him or herself throughout life; libraries are also the hub of every community in our nation.
Business and corporate America constantly complain about our nation's schools, but no one wants to spend the money it will take to create a first class educational system. Many people in this nation believe that putting major funding into education is not the answer, yet would any major corporation say that an influx of new capital into their business is a bad thing? We live in the most capitalist society on the planet; in our culture money talks, money reveals priorities. Any assessment of our nation’s priority yardstick reveals that education and kids are not a high priority- not even close. The amount of the federal dollar that goes into education is less than a penny. We say kids and education are important, but when it comes time to putting our money where our mouths are, our lips are sealed shut.
Charter schools and vouchers are inadequate band-aids on a system in which every major blood vessel and organ is hemorrhaging. We need to make a response to this national emergency on a grand scale, to question and rethink, and build our educational structure from the ground up.
Sometimes a barn can be rebuilt, but sometimes the roof has too many holes, the framing is too worm-eaten, the foundation is crumbling, and you just have to take it down and build anew. And when you have a barn raising you bring in the whole community. And we need to do that, too. We need to bring in teachers, administrators, and academics, but we also need to bring in parents, and grandparents, sociologists and health specialists, artists and creative thinkers, business people, union people-representatives from all walks of life because schools and libraries touch each and everyone of us, often every day. In America, schools and libraries are part of every person's past, and they are the real institutions that will determine all of our futures.
Please take the time to write to the media and your local, state, and national government legislators and officials. Write a personal note on a piece of paper- for that piece of paper will have far more impact than an email or phone call. And yes, if there is pending legislation or time is a problem, email and phone calls are best. But right now, when you have some time and a little leeway- writing a short, clear, concise letter can make you a powerful agent of change. Write and tell these people in power what you think and how you feel, and tell them to act. Tell them you will withhold your vote, your dollar, and in the case of the media, your viewer or readership if they do not cover the issues you care about.
And throw you cynicism out the window. You are a free citizen in a democracy; you have extraordinary power, especially if you work with others and raise your voices together. Change is not the exception; it is the norm. And things can change for good. In this country child labor is practically nonexistent. Civil rights for all citizens are not only a legal reality; every day civil rights are more and more a social reality. There is a huge difference in the limited opportunities that our mothers had compared to the wide opportunities that our daughters have now. There may be people who are hungry in America, but no one is starving to death. Change is inevitable, and in America each of us can become a powerful agent of change. Each of us can also choose to sit back, watch, and complain. And instead of shaping that inevitable change in a positive direction for ourselves and our children your choice of complacency will allow others-- others who may not have all of our interests at heart--to take over and enact change that promotes their self-interest. We will then suffer the deadly repercussions of our inaction, as will our children.
Write that letter now, today!
If you need help finding contact information for your local, state, and national legislators go to the activist basic pages on the NCBLA website at:
http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/activistbasics.html
Write letters and email your local newspapers and television stations and bombard national media outlets. And if you live outside of New York and write to The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, or any media outlet that has more of a national profile, your chances of being heard and getting published go up if you live outside of New York.
Thank You!
Great Books for Boys in the News!
Today, in the Living Arts section of The Boston Globe, David Mehegan writes about the challenge of getting boys to read and introduces Peggy Hogan and Steven Hil, cofounders of Flying Point Press, which publishes nonfiction books for boys ages 10 to 15.
Mehegan writes interesting feature stories about literature and publishing on a regular basis for The Globe. Importantly, those articles appear in the Style/Living Arts section and so reach a far broader audience than if they were published in the Sunday book pages of the paper. Anytime anyone in the media gets literary, literacy, and/or library information "beyond the choir," we should applaud their efforts. So hurrah David Mehegen! Hurrah Boston Globe!
To read Mr. Mehegan's article on books for boys go to:
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2007/02/27/an_adventure_in_finding_books_for_boys/
To read more about great books for boys go to:
Today, in the Living Arts section of The Boston Globe, David Mehegan writes about the challenge of getting boys to read and introduces Peggy Hogan and Steven Hil, cofounders of Flying Point Press, which publishes nonfiction books for boys ages 10 to 15.
Mehegan writes interesting feature stories about literature and publishing on a regular basis for The Globe. Importantly, those articles appear in the Style/Living Arts section and so reach a far broader audience than if they were published in the Sunday book pages of the paper. Anytime anyone in the media gets literary, literacy, and/or library information "beyond the choir," we should applaud their efforts. So hurrah David Mehegen! Hurrah Boston Globe!
To read Mr. Mehegan's article on books for boys go to:
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2007/02/27/an_adventure_in_finding_books_for_boys/
To read more about great books for boys go to:
And go to Jon Scieszka's Guys Read website at: http://guysread.com/
Monday, February 26, 2007
In case you missed it...
Bill Gates writes about innovation, education, and how to keep America competitive.
from The Washington Post
Mr. Gates writes that "Innovation is the source of U.S. economic leadership and the foundation for our competitiveness in the global economy. ....
But our status as the world's center for new ideas cannot be taken for granted. Other governments are waking up to the vital role innovation plays in competitiveness....if we are to remain competitive, we need a workforce that consists of the world's brightest minds."
He goes on to say that,"Two steps are critical. First, we must demand strong schools so that young Americans enter the workforce with the math, science and problem-solving skills they need to succeed in the knowledge economy. We must also make it easier for foreign-born scientists and engineers to work for U.S. companies."
Yes to all of the above Mr. Gates, but literacy comes first, before numeracy, before critical thinking. And innovation demands both critical and creative thinking skills, skills fostered by studying, understanding, and analyzing literature, music,and the arts. To be able to think critically and creatively, to become an innovator, one must have time to absorb, reflect, and play--that kind of time is now rare in young people's lives both in home and at school.
For more go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/23/AR2007022301697_pf.html
And: http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/rumarchives.html
Bill Gates writes about innovation, education, and how to keep America competitive.
from The Washington Post
Mr. Gates writes that "Innovation is the source of U.S. economic leadership and the foundation for our competitiveness in the global economy. ....
But our status as the world's center for new ideas cannot be taken for granted. Other governments are waking up to the vital role innovation plays in competitiveness....if we are to remain competitive, we need a workforce that consists of the world's brightest minds."
He goes on to say that,"Two steps are critical. First, we must demand strong schools so that young Americans enter the workforce with the math, science and problem-solving skills they need to succeed in the knowledge economy. We must also make it easier for foreign-born scientists and engineers to work for U.S. companies."
Yes to all of the above Mr. Gates, but literacy comes first, before numeracy, before critical thinking. And innovation demands both critical and creative thinking skills, skills fostered by studying, understanding, and analyzing literature, music,and the arts. To be able to think critically and creatively, to become an innovator, one must have time to absorb, reflect, and play--that kind of time is now rare in young people's lives both in home and at school.
For more go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/23/AR2007022301697_pf.html
And: http://www.thencbla.org/BPOSpages/rumarchives.html
The Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum:
A Great Place to Stop, Look, and Enjoy
Besides the excellent Saul Steinberg illustration exhibit that runs through March 4th, the Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum has two shows of great interesting running now through April.
Private Treasures: Four Centuries of European Master Drawings is a must see for anyone who feels that the raw power of drawing reveals far more the artist's heart and mind than layers of paint.
And for all bibliophiles and anyone that thinks that mass marketing is a function only of our contemporary culture, explore Victorian Bestsellers and see original manuscripts, first editions, illustrated editions, and rare printed ephemera, all drawn largely from the Morgan's renowned literary collections.
Somewhat overshadowed by larger institutions, the Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum is sometimes undiscovered by visitors to New York City. Designed by Charles McKim, the museum is a rare treat and a special destination for those who love drawings, prints, literature, and history. It is also a great place to enjoyably interrupt a hectic day of business or sight seeing. For directions and information go to: http://www.themorgan.org/index.html
A Great Place to Stop, Look, and Enjoy
Besides the excellent Saul Steinberg illustration exhibit that runs through March 4th, the Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum has two shows of great interesting running now through April.
Private Treasures: Four Centuries of European Master Drawings is a must see for anyone who feels that the raw power of drawing reveals far more the artist's heart and mind than layers of paint.
And for all bibliophiles and anyone that thinks that mass marketing is a function only of our contemporary culture, explore Victorian Bestsellers and see original manuscripts, first editions, illustrated editions, and rare printed ephemera, all drawn largely from the Morgan's renowned literary collections.
Somewhat overshadowed by larger institutions, the Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum is sometimes undiscovered by visitors to New York City. Designed by Charles McKim, the museum is a rare treat and a special destination for those who love drawings, prints, literature, and history. It is also a great place to enjoyably interrupt a hectic day of business or sight seeing. For directions and information go to: http://www.themorgan.org/index.html
Newsweek Magazine:
Social Predisposition and Exclusion?
When do children begin to reject other children? What can parents do about it?
Newsweek's Anna Kuchment interviews Professor Melanie Killen, associate director of the Center for Children, Relationships, and Culture at the University of Maryland concerning children's inclusion and exclusion of others. The interview is interesting but leaves one wanting more information. Go to:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17347064/site/newsweek/
Social Predisposition and Exclusion?
When do children begin to reject other children? What can parents do about it?
Newsweek's Anna Kuchment interviews Professor Melanie Killen, associate director of the Center for Children, Relationships, and Culture at the University of Maryland concerning children's inclusion and exclusion of others. The interview is interesting but leaves one wanting more information. Go to:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17347064/site/newsweek/
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