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As the world mourns Senator Ted Kennedy, many people have mentioned his work with the Washington-based reading program known as "Everybody Wins!" The Massachusetts Democrat was inspired to write his children's book, My Senator and Me, from his work with Everybody Wins!

Everybody Wins! USA is currently holding a literacy auction that is now open! The auction will run until September 2, 2009, with proceeds going to Everybody Wins USA in order to help them expand their Power Lunch reading program to low-income children. Power Lunch is a lunchtime literacy and mentoring program that brings groups of adult volunteers into low-income elementary schools for one-on-one read aloud sessions with students.

Everybody Wins! was recently cited by the White House as "one of the countless hidden gems across the country that is successfully bringing together people from all sectors to address community challenges with solutions proven to work." Everybody Wins' work was also recently featured in the Chronicle of Philathropy, GOOD Magazine and by Education Secretary Arne Duncan.

For more information:

The Everybody Wins USA Auction
Everybody Wins! Official Website

To see Everybody Wins in action check out the short video below...or watch their new TV PSA.

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Encouraging your child to explore books is essential in developing her literacy skills and should begin as early as birth (some say to even read to your baby while he/ she is still in the womb). But early literacy does not mean teaching reading to infants and toddlers. Reading, writing and language evolve from a number of earlier, age-appropriate skills, such as physically manipulating or handling books; looking at and recognizing books; comprehending pictures and a story; and interacting with books verbally. So what books are suitable for infants?

Cloth Books:
Cloth books, which are printed on cloth, are soft and strong and can be thrown in the washing machine.

Board Books:
Babies should also have sturdy books to look at, touch and hold. Board books are appropriate for babies because the pages are easy for very young children to turn. During reading time, having children turn the pages helps them feel like they have some control and it promotes a sense that they are reading along with you. Babies love to explore and since board books are made from heavy cardboard with a plastic coating, they can stand hard wear and tear by babies who throw them, crawl over them, and chew them. Board books can also be wiped clean.

Interactive Books:
Since babies love to explore, books that allow them to do just that are a fantastic tool to introduce babies to the world of reading. Look for books with handles, holes, textures, or lift the flaps. Touch-and-feel books invite children to explore them with their fingers and learn about different textures and shapes. Babies love lift the flap books, but, unfortunately, they usually don't hold up well under rough treatment.

Concept-Oriented Books:
Choose books with large pictures or bright and bold illustrations set against a contrasting background. Look for books that have simple pictures, one per page. Rather than containing a story, board books are almost entirely concept oriented with topics such as the alphabet, animals, colors, numbers, opposites, shapes, and textures.

Interesting Language Books:
It's important for infants to hear language. That's why it's important to read favorite books again and again. You might get tired of reading the same books, but children love hearing the same stories again. And it helps them learn to read by hearing familiar words and seeing what they look like in print. Choose books with interesting language, rhythm, and sounds such as books with rhymes, songs, and poetry. Books with predictable patterns and repeated language such as those that retell traditional nursery rhymes or songs are also recommended.

As your baby grows older, keep books on low shelves or in baskets where she can see them and get them herself. You'll find she may even “pretend“ to read a book that she has heard many times. As your child starts to explore books, support her progress by watching, listening and providing a number of age-appropriate books.

Recommended reading:
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Guess How Much I Love You
The Going-To-Bed Book
Oh My Oh My Oh Dinosaurs! (Boynton on Board)
Moo Baa La La La
Good Night Gorilla Gift Box
Time for Bed
Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You : Dr. Seuss's Book of Wonderful Noises (Bright and Early Board Books)
Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb (Bright & Early Board Books(TM))

This article is part of the Children's Books 101 series for Examiner.com

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One important job as a parent, as if you didn't have enough, is building a library for your child. One of the biggest factors to raising a reader is the quality and amount of books you make available for your young reader.  However, parents already have many expenses and the average price for a hardcover children's book is $19.99. So how do you build a library for your child that will encourage his love of reading and provide him with a bunch of titles he'll remember forever?

In a time when everyone's taking a look at ways to be frugal, you can also find some budget-friendly ways to provide books for your young readers.

2. Hardcover vs. Paperback:
Hardcovers are usually appropriate for young children, since they'll hold up better to the wear and tear, but the truth is, paperbacks cost less. You can create a much less expensive library with paperbacks and often find the same quality titles available in hardback.

3. Thrift stores:
Thrift stores are a great resource to search for books.

4. Dollar Stores and Dollar Bins:
If you peruse the dollar bins at stores such as Target, you'll often find board books for babies and toddlers for only $1. Sometimes they even mark items down in the dollar bins to 50% off, so you can get books for $.50!

5. Gifts:
Tell loved ones that instead of overloading your children with toys for Christmas or birthdays, that they're in need of books. Books make a wonderful gift, especially if the book is personalized by the gift-giver.

6. Garage and Yard Sales:
Many parents whose children have outgrown their books will often try to declutter their house by selling them at garage and yard sales. Since most children like to mouth books and have wet hands while turning pages, turn to a safe non-toxic cleaner and give the books a good swipe.

7. Community Programs:
I recently highlighted Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Available in select communities, this wonderful program provides free books for children until they turn 5. See if any of these programs are available in your area.

8.Book Stores:
Book Stores often have a discount rack where you can find children's titles appropriate for your child's library. Most of these book stores also offer reward programs (make sure it's at no cost to you) and sign up for e-mail alerts because they'll also send coupons.

9. Used Book Stores:
Used Book Stores are a wonderful place to find used books at a discount price.

10. Book Swaps:
Look in your community for book swap opportunities. You can simply find another parent and trade books your child might not be interested in for others. You can also check at your grocery store, as some stores offer a book swap table where you can donate your used books and take another.

Building your child's library is an investment that will pay off by instilling a love of reading in your child, and these are just a few ways you don't have to break the bank to do it. As your child grows older, keep books on low shelves or in baskets where he can see them and get them himself. Also teach a respect for books early on and show children where their books belong, so they're not covering your living room floor. For example, one great idea is to decorate a large cardboard box with color copies of your child's favorite books' covers. You can cover the copies with craft glue, so they won't rip. Then teach your child to return their books to the box when finished and every few days, play librarian and return the books to your shelves. While building your child's library, remember that what your child will truly remember is the time you curl up with them to read a good book.

"A home without books is like a room without windows ...
A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life."
~Henry Ward Beecher

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Thanks to The Joy of Children's Literature for pointing out this wonderful site yesterday. I had stumbled upon this website awhile back, and even bookmarked it. But since my bookmarks cup overfloweth, it seemed to have gotten lost in the shuffle.

This great site called Book Adventure will assist you and your children with finding age appropriate and interest-appropriate books.

All over the country, summer reading programs have begun. Take it from me, I was at my local library yesterday and I was surrounded by summer reading lists and programs. It's said that during July, kids in record numbers attend library programs, take part in summer reading activities, check out tons of books, and ask library staff for recommendations on what to read next.

If you're not sure what book you want your children to read, just visit this easy-to-use online search tool, created by Sylvan Learning.

From the Book Adventure Website:
Using Book Adventure, young readers not only receive the intrinsic satisfaction of reading a book and demonstrating their comprehension through short quizzes, but also earn rewards for reading and demonstrating comprehension of the books they've read. Research has shown that providing extrinsic incentives can build a love of reading that lasts a lifetime. Book Adventure is the first Web-based, organization dedicated exclusively to motivating children to read using a technology platform.

To find books, use the Web site's pull-down menus to select grade level, reading level, fiction or non-fiction, and up to five genres. You can also search by author, title, or ISBN–just click on the orange “Search” star (all with the encouragement of Bailey the pink-nosed dog and other cartoon friends). The handy “5 Finger Test” will help kids to determine whether a book they've chosen is too hard for them. Children who are serious about reading tons of books will relish the challenge of tackling Sylvan's entire list of 7,000 recommended titles, available in either HTML or Excel format by clicking on "Book List" (found on the right of the homepage).

Read a report by Gail Junion-Metz in School Library Journal, 6/30/2009

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U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recently kicked off the Department's summer reading campaign--"Read to the Top!" --with the children's classic books "Clifford the Big Red Dog" and "Where the Wild Things Are." The Secretary read to young children, including his own, on the plaza of the Department's Lyndon Baines Johnson headquarters building. The initiative is in response to President Obama's "United We Serve" national volunteer campaign that calls for all Americans to serve in their communities over the summer.

At lunchtime throughout the summer, the Department's weekly reading campaign, which runs through Sept. 11, will feature various children's books read by the Secretary, other Cabinet members and top Administration officials. The Department, in collaboration with the Corporation for National and Community Service, is partnering with libraries and other community organizations nationwide to combat summer reading loss.

"The road to academic success begins early, which is why early childhood learning and reading are so important," Secretary Duncan said. "When we read to our kids, it helps them become better readers and develop a love of reading on their own."

Research shows that reading achievement can drastically decline over the summer, particularly for low-income children who rely solely on their school libraries for books to read. Scholastic, a global children's publishing, education and media company, and a sponsor of "Read to the Top!" states that research shows that the key to stemming summer reading loss is finding novel ways to get books into the hands of children during the summer break. Thanks to a generous book donation from them, children will be able to take home their own books to read during the summer. Scholastic has donated more than 1,700 books for the Department's "Read to the Top!" campaign.

"Kids need books in their schools, communities and homes, not just during the school year but in the summer months, too," Scholastic CEO and Chairman Richard Robinson said. "We are proud to support 'Read to the Top!' with books that kids can take home, read and share with their families and friends."

In addition to Scholastic, Target enlivened the plaza's reading area with colorful rugs and beanbag chairs to create the feeling of a public library or classroom. "Target is committed to enhancing educational opportunities for kids and giving them the tools they need to succeed," Laysha Ward, president of Community Relations, says. "One of these opportunities is through our partnership with the U.S. Department of Education's summer initiative, 'Read to the Top!' which gives Washington, D.C. area families a fun way to explore reading together in a unique setting."

In addition to the Department's efforts to stop summer reading loss through "Read to the Top!" it also awards Striving Readers grants aimed at raising the literacy level of adolescent students and building a strong, scientific research base for adolescent literacy instruction. This year's competition is underway, and the deadline is Aug. 10. Striving Readers grants were first awarded in March 2006. To date, the Department has awarded approximately $120 million for projects aimed at helping struggling readers. When this year's grants are awarded, State Education Agencies will receive approximately $7.2 million to implement and evaluate supplemental literacy programs for struggling readers in middle and high schools. For more information about these grants, log onto www.ed.gov/programs/strivingreaders/applicant.html.

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What children's book changed your life? Most of us have one book we have fond memories of, sparked a love of reading, or just gave us a good laugh. The idea that children's books change lives is how Children's Book Week came about, which is celebrated all this week (May 11- 17). In 1913, Franklin K. Matthiews, the librarian of the Boy Scouts of America, began touring the country to promote higher standards in children's books. He proposed creating a Children's Book Week, which would be supported by all interested groups: publishers, booksellers, and librarians.

With the help of two influential people in children's publishing, Frederic G. Melcher and Anne Carol Moore, Matthiews' proposal began to take shape. In 1916 the American Booksellers Association and the American Library Association cooperated with the Boy Scouts in sponsoring a Good Book Week.

At the 1919 ABA convention, the Association committed to the organization of an annual Children's Book Week. Since then, Children's Book Week has been celebrated nationally in schools, libraries, bookstores, clubs, private homes-any place where there are children and books. Children’s Book Week encourages children to enjoy new authors and books, and celebrate children’s literature with storytelling, parties, author and illustrator appearances, and other literacy events in your school and community.

In 1944, the newly-established Children's Book Council assumed responsibility for administering Children's Book Week. In 2008, Children’s Book Week moved from November to May. At that time, responsibility for Children’s Book Week, including planning official events and creating original materials, was transferred to Every Child a Reader, the philanthropic arm of the children’s publishing industry.

Throughout the week, the Children's Book Council will be putting on events in locations all over the United States. Click here to see if the events will be held in your area. However, if your city is not involved in any of the events, don’t worry — there are numerous ways to celebrate! You can test your skills with Children's Book Week puzzles, help authors finish their stories, download the official Children's Book Week bookmark, and more!

A digital toolkit, aimed at teachers, librarians and booksellers, provides suggestions for celebrating Children’s Book Week, as well as advice on how to hold a “Book Week Party,” “Read-In,” or “Book Exchange Day.” It can be downloaded at the Book Week Web site. Links to “Story Starters,” or the first few lines of stories written by children’s book authors, are also available for teachers to use with students.

But remember, it doesn't need to be Book Week for you to find great books: the Children's Choices list is available all year round. Kids across the country pick their favorite books each year, and about 100 books make the cut. You can find the lists from other years, too--so find out what other kids think are the best books of the past few years!

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30,000 excited kids packed the South Lawn yesterday for the annual tradition of the White House Easter Egg Roll. This presidential tradition has taken place since 1878 and is the largest annual event held at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. This year's theme, "Let's Go Play," emphasized health and fitness.

"Our goal today is just to have fun," Mrs. Obama said. "We want everybody to think about moving their bodies."

But it also emphasized the importance of reading. President Obama added to the fun by walking to the storytime stage and reading "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak to a group of children--complete with sound effects and a little acting, making one little kid cry.

"These wild things can be a little scary," Obama said with a smile.

The president called the book one of his favorites and he stood front and center, turning the book, making sure everyone could see the amazing illustrations.

At the end of the story he asked, "Are there any wild things here? I just want to make sure," and issued a soft wild thing-like growl along with the cheering of the crowd.

Next, Mrs. Obama and her mother took turns reading "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie," by Laura Joffe Numeroff . The first daughters turned the pages of an oversized copy of the book to show the illustrations.

It just goes to show that an Easter Egg Roll isn't complete without storytime!

Check out the video below...

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The Books for Kids Foundation has teamed up with The Children's Place to promote a great cause, hand designed with kids in mind. Joining forces with some of today's hottest celebrities, they're raising money for children's literacy programs by bringing you celebrity decorated messenger bags. This exclusive auction features one-of-a-kind messenger bags hand-decorated by some of today's biggest celebrities.

All proceeds from the auction will go to the Books for Kids Foundation. Books for Kids was founded to promote literacy among all children with a special emphasis on low-income and at-risk preschool-aged children. Books for Kids creates libraries, donates books, and partners with literacy programs to develop the critical early foundation and skills which young children need to be successful in life. Since it's founding in 1986, the Books for Kids Foundation has provided children with more than 5 million books, created 56 libraries and provided literacy programs in many of these locations.

EBay will host the ten-day celebrity auction that begins today--Tuesday, April 14 and runs through April 24.

Some of the celebs that designed bags for this great cause are: Alexander Ludwig, Anna Sophia Robb, B2K, Chace Crawford, Cobie Smulders, David Archuleta, Debra Messing, Dylan and Cole Sprouse, Honor Society, Hosts of “Dancing with the Stars, Ivanka Trump, Jason Segel, Jeanette McCurdy, Jerry Trainor, Katrina Bowden, Kim Kardashian, Maggie Grace, Michael Rosenbaum, Neil Patrick Harris, Paula Abdul, Phil Collen, Shayleen Woodley, Slash, Sophia Bush, Taylor Lautner, The Clique Girlz, Tina Fey and Tony Hawk.

Please visit this link to find out more information and to place your bid when the auction begins.

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Nominations continue to come in for next year's International Latino Book Awards (ILBA). This is the earliest ILBA has ever received nominations. Judging from these early entries, it looks like there will be strong competition in all categories.

The 2009 ILBA to be held at the Javits Center in New York City on the afternoon of May 28. Each year the awards ceremony is held in conjunction with BookExpo America, the country's largest book publishing industry trade show.

Publishers, authors, publicists and all friends of literacy are invited to nominate their favorite books from 2008. There are 62 categories open for nominations: English and Spanish language categories covering everything from fiction to self-help to children's and young adults. Books must have been published in calendar year 2008 to be eligible.

For the 2009 awards, there are four new categories, including Best Young Adult Sports/Recreation (A11 & A12), (B19 & B20), a general fiction category, Best Popular Fiction (C37 & C38), Best Gift Book (B19 & B20) and Best Graphic Novel (C47 & C48). Please consider all the categories carefully before deciding which ones best fit your submissions.

You will find nominating forms and instructions in both English and Spanish here. The nominating process lasts until March 13, when the books will be sent to a diverse panel of judges.

The new home for the Los Angeles Latino Book & Family Festival starting in 2009 is L.A. Live. Home to the Nokia Theater, Club Nokia, the Grammy Museum, the Conga Room, Lucky Strike Lanes, the AEG Broadcast Studio, the ESPN studios and restaurants such as Trader Vics, Wolfgang Puck's, Lawry's and the ESPN Zone, L.A. Live will also feature two world class hotels, the Ritz-Carlton and the JW Marriott. This entertainment complex is revitalizing the downtown Los Angeles scene and quickly becoming the Times Square of the West. As the new, preferred venue for major events and concerts, including the 2008 & 2009 Primetime Emmy Awards, L. A. Live is perfectly located in downtown Los Angeles, just across the street from the Staples Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center.

The Festival exhibit area will occupy the Nokia Plaza and Chick Hearn Court (the street that runs between the Plaza and Staples Center). A floor plan will be available shortly. This dramatic new Festival venue demands a brand new start for the Los Angeles Festival. Look for more celebrities, more authors and more literacy based initiatives than ever before.

The Los Angeles festival has had its greatest successes when held in late August and positioned as a "back-to-school" event, so we are also very excited about staging the event at this great facility the last weekend of August.

Reserve your space for LBFF L.A. Live today!


Books are the pathway to a better future for our kids. Please support this effort.


Lisa Alvarado

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I recently discovered an awesome website that allows young writers to become a published author! You can create books online at Tikatok.com, a web site where kids can channel their imagination into stories, and publish them into books for you to share and treasure with friends and family. What better gift for a grandparent or parent? (hint, hint!) Young authors can start a book from scratch, or get help from StorySparks, a selection of preset themes with gentle nudges about what might happen next. Of course they need to illustrate their story, so parents help scan and upload their artwork, or you can mail it to Tikatok and have the staff add the images for you. They'll even the send the originals back, so don't fret about turning in that prized artwork! The site also has sharing features which allows your young authors to invite their friends to check out their work online. They can also e-mail their stories for free (to Grandma and Grandpa, perhaps?), and even collaborate on books together.

If you're a teacher or librarian, Tikatok also offers an education page with the opportunity to get in touch with an educational programs coordinator for help or more information, and a library program that will help attract more children to your library.

The fact that kids can turn their own stories into real printed books, just like the ones on the shelves at a bookstore, are a great way to reinforce a sense of pride and confidence in their writing abilities, and drive the child to continue writing and creating!

There is no cost to join the site and printed copies of books can be purchased in hardcover or paperback for about $20.

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The Ezra Jack Keats Foundation is publishing a new edition of TEACH ANYONE TO READ: THE NO-NONSENSE GUIDE by Dr. Lillie Pope (originally called Guidelines to Teaching Reading). It will be published June 15, 2008, and is the first book published by the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation. They say: “It was chosen because it brings a uniquely effective voice back to the arena of teaching reading, and it advances the cause of universal literacy, a primary part of the foundation’s mission. ”

It sounds like the book has been used successfully for years. It includes instructions and sample materials, and is written in a reassuring and easily understood language. The book may be an important resource for teachers, parents, and anyone teaching children, adults, or ESL students to read.

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