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Is it Friday already?

In just four days we've gotten a year's worth of ideas, suggestions, and hopefully encouragement for not only connecting kids with books, but using them as a launching pad to bigger and broader things.

As we wrap up this week, we thought we would do something a bit different this year. There is no "formal agenda." We have no scheduled guests. Instead, we are opening the floor (as it were) for

•  culture-of-reading topics we may not have explored, 
• requests for ideas in specific areas; 
• questions for our hosts and guests; 
• your culture-of-reading and literacy ideas; or 
• just general commentary.

If you've not been able to join us all week, we have an Event Summary page with all of the posts and all of the Writing @ Reading contributions.We hope you find that an easy way to jump in.

We'll be back later this morning to announce the winner of the the 2012 Multicultural Books Collection, for your school or public library. Our friends at Reading Racehorse will continue to offer Frank the Friendly Pirate, an eBook App for free today.


As always, we thank you for joining us on our annual literacy blog tour! We appreciate you spending your time with us ... and for dedicating your passion to creating a community of readers among the kids who touch your lives.

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One of the mini-themes today is the idea that being a reader transcends "formats." Kids will never get inky fingers reading the newspaper any more, but we hope that they always have the joy of holding and exploring a book.

That said, we also recognize the value and unique opportunities that eBooks and Apps can give our kids. They might just get us over the hump and send reading rates soaring ... at least we can hope so.

Well, that is the idea that Josh Ory and his team (self-described limestone miners!) used as the foundation in creating Reading Racehorse and launching their first eBook app in December 2011.

Even though we are a 'for profit' company, our goal is to teach the world to read. So, in my opinion, it would be selfish of us to not do this. Our concern is for the kids.

What is "this" you ask? Well, it is big. I mean B.I.G. BIG.

For the next 48 hours, Reading Racehorse is giving away Frank the Friendly Pirate, an eBook App available in the iTunes store. [for iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch]  From the iTunes store description:

The defining function of the app is when a word in the story is touched, the pronunciation of that word is heard through the speaker on the device. There are other apps that continuously read stories in their entirety, but we have taken this a crucial step further.

Our app allows the child to read the words they already know. Then when they come to a word that gives them difficulty, he or she can touch that particular word to hear what it is. The reason this works is the natural tendency to take the easiest path. They will simply read the words they already know and only use the touch function on the ones they don't. Eventually the child will be able to read the entire story without touching any words.

No special code, no secret password, just a free download. We are very grateful to Reading Racehorse for this most generous donation and all that it means for connecting kids with books. While you're in the iTunes store, we would love it if you'd thank Josh, too!

Reading Racehorse will be releasing additional titles in 2012, so stay tuned.

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Wow, we're already at the half-way point! So did you travel 'round the globe with Carol yesterday? Part of our goal for creating a culture of reading is to encourage readers to stretch ... reading widely or reading diversely is more than just a way to expand your reading. It helps you engage in the world around you with more compassion and understanding ... and the world needs a little more of that!

Today Terry Doherty is hosting the topic "Recognizing Readers" at Family Bookshelf. There is a perennial stereotype of what a reader "looks like," and like all stereotypes, it particularly representative of who readers are. Terry and her guests hope to break down that stereotype, and today's writing prompts give you a chance to do the same.

With our focus today on reading as a passport to other worlds, we have selected prompts that help all of us "read widely."

Our goal with the questions is to reach new places for sharing our reading and literacy experiences and ideas, and we'd love to include your voice, too. Here's how it works ...

1. Select the question(s) that resonates with you.
2. Find an old post or write a new one that answers the question. [Be sure to grab a Share a Story button from the sidebar to include in your new post!]
3. Add your post as a comment.
4. (optional) Tweet about your post and include @ShareaStory or the #SAS-12 hashtag.

We'll be adding links for the questions all week, so there's no rush to have an answer the same day a question is posted ... unless you are entering the contest to receive the RIF 2012 Multicultural Books Collection for your school or public library.

All entries must be posted by Noon Eastern Standard Time, Thursday, 8 March 2012 to be entered in our random drawing. Winners announced Friday, 9 March 2012.

[image credit: Share a Story Logo created by author/illustrator Elizabeth Dulemba.]

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Jo Ann Kairys interviews her son and co-author Daniel Kairys (pronounced care-ease) about the inspiration for their award-winning book Sunbelievable: Connecting Children with Science and Nature  and how it engages young readers.

Interview with Dan.

Daniel shares his experiences as growing up as a young reader in Montana, and how a simple story like Corduroy impacted him and introduced him to "other cultures." Jo Ann shares her memories of Daniel's first dive into reading with The Hobbit. Daniel adds that Chaim Potock was also one of his first real forays into reading.

Both of Daniel's children love to hear him tell stories. Like many busy parents, Daniel doesn't have lots of time to "spare," and Jo Ann asks how he fits reading with his kids into his schedule .... and theirs. Terry also asked Jo Ann a few extra questions.

Terry: Thank you for finding Share a Story, Jo Ann and for sharing such a wonderful interview with your son and co-author. I'm curious. Was Daniel as "into" books then as he is now with his kids?
Jo Ann: You're welcome. I'm glad to be here. It is such a great complement to my new passion: the BRAG project (Bloggers Read Across the Globe).

Daniel was always into books... he loved picture books and started reading before he learned the alphabet because he was so eager to know the actual story on the page. He started sounding out letters by guessing. I helped him with the sounds and then he immediately grew into chapter books. He read The Hobbit on his own in the early part of second grade. Couldn't put it down.

From second through fifth grade, his teachers took him almost daily to the library for a new stack of books. He spent most of his days at the school reading in a corner, loving every minute! He sees similar traits in his children and tries his best to encourage and inspire their reading by engaging them in the experience, sharing impressions of characters in books, talking about their feelings and expressions. They have a lot of fun with reading this way!

Terry: You mentioned the Hobbit, andin your interview, Daniel mentions Chaim Potock. Thinking about the kinds of books he read as a child, and now as a dad, has anything changed?
Jo Ann: He loved me to read aloud from the encyclopedia. When a topic interested Daniel, he'd search for more information during our library visits. A favorite topic at around age 7-8 was WWII--strategy, biography, history, geography. He also loved when I read from the newspaper... especially editorials!

At Dartmouth College he was granted special permission to attend advanced poetry writing classes, with no prior writing experience. I think the s

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How do you create a reading culture when you don't consider yourself a reader. What does a reader look like?  Do they wear glasses and always have books in their hands? Do they always have their nose in some book and never seem to hear you?

Terry Doherty and her guests will be answering those questions!  At the Family Bookshelf and here on the Share a Story blog, you'll find suggestions on ways to engage readers-to-be, recognize a reader, and maybe even discover that you're already a reader!


Books and the Fourth Grader: Discovering a Reader by Terry Doherty @ Family Bookshelf
Like many of her peers, the fourth grader in Terry's house eked out her required 20 minutes of reading. She finished her homework, but her parents wondered if she would ever really like books and reading. When would the just-get-by behavior end? Continue reading ...

No Time To Write - Musings of a Children's Book Author, Surgeon and Read Aloud Dad by Jo Ann Kairys @ Share a Story - Shape a Future
In this 20-minute interview, award-winning author/illustrator Jo Ann Kairys and her son talk about his life as a writer and reader, both growing up and now as an adult. “I especially love working with my son Daniel, co-author, humanitarian surgeon and avid read-aloud dad."

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Today's Writing @ Reading Prompts focus on the giving the gift of literacy. Our very good friend Mrs. P., is not only sharing her own thoughts about the gift of reading, but has a few other surprises. No, I'm not going to tell you up front!

A few years ago, a friend gave me a nightgown for my birthday that was so large I wound up using it as an emergency parachute in case I ever had to jump out of my second-floor bedroom. Last Christmas, I received a pair of red socks from my cousin that were so small I wound up using them as ear warmers for my cat.

There is, however, one gift I enjoy receiving even when it doesn’t fit. Sometimes especially when it doesn’t fit. That gift is a book.

Getting a book that doesn’t “fit” can open up your world in ways you never imagined. “Why I never showed the slightest interest in Ancient Egypt,” you think. “Why would someone give me a book about that?” Then you read it and are transported back to a world so amazing and compelling, you read three more books about it simply because you don’t want to leave.

“Why would someone give me a book about a racehorse? I’ve rarely gone to the races and have no special interest in horses.” But then you read Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand and are hypnotized; swept away against your will by the evocative writing and astonishing story.

Sometimes, I enjoy wandering through a library or bookstore and letting serendipity direct me to my next book. And if it’s the last thing I ever thought I’d read, odds are it’s going to be a fulfilling experience.

On my free website, www.MrsP.com, I sit in a cozy chair by the fire and read classic stories to kids. It’s one of my favorite ways to share the gift of reading. My website features a library with dozens of tales, from the hilarious to the scary. I encourage kids to not just choose the stories that immediately strike their fancy, but to give others a try too. For some reason, those often turn out to be the stories that stick with you – and even change your life.

Or course, I realize it’s not always easy to persuade kids to read anything if they haven’t developed a love and appreciation of books. To help parents with a child needing a bit of encouragement, and to celebrate Share a Story, Shape a Future, I’ve created a new, free activity on my website.

It offers fun ideas about how you can – with very little time and money – create magical, handmade books out of stories created by your child. And when a child sees a story woven out of thin air from her or his imagination turned into a real book – well, I guarantee, that child will be a lot closer to understanding the power of books and the wonders of reading.

Thank you Mrs. P! You ARE the best reader in show biz!