At the Window Rock

Reading mentors Kathryn Libby and Cait Scudder pose before the Window Rock in Window Rock, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation. The two Amherst College juniors are spending the week working for Reader To Reader in local schools.

After spending the weekend learning about Native-American history and culture with visits to Acoma Pueblo, Chaco Canyon and Canyon de Chelly, the mentors attended a Navajo language class at St. Michael Indian School in St. Michael, Arizona. They then led two groups of high school sophomores in an in-depth book discussion on Elie Wiesel’s memoir Night.

Doris Hiatt Mentoring Program Celebrates Successful Year

Amherst College student reading mentors participating on the Doris Hiatt Mentoring Program gathered for lunch at The Pub restaurant in Amherst to celebrate all their hard work doing online mentoring with students across the country.

“I can’t thank these students enough for all their hard work and dedication,” Reader To Reader executive director David Mazor said. “These exceptional students put in countless hours reading books and corresponding with high school and elementary school students. They had a lot of books to read and these were on top of their own demanding course loads. They provided invaluable support to the students in the program and were tremendous role models for academic achievement.

The Doris Hiatt Mentoring Program brings together children from low-income backgrounds and college student reading mentors to read books and discuss them online in a specially designed forum. The students not only receive positive feedback and academic support, but also much-needed role models

I Think the Book is Going to Help Me Talk to My Dog

"Thank you for sending books to our school library. I feel so happy for all the great books, especially the book Extraordinary Girls!”

-Bianca

“Thank you for sending us the book The Chicken because I have chickens but they fight so I wanted to stop the chickens from fighting. I’m happy because my chickens will now be happy.”

-Ulises

“Thank you for sending the books How to talk to Your Dog because I have a dog but I do not know how to talk to it. I think the book is going to help me talk to my dog. Thank you for sending all these nice books!”

-Margarita

Smith Elementary School
Austin, TX

Author Transports the Kid of Tomorrow to Today

A special thank you to award-winning author Amy Zuckerman for donating signed copies of her exciting new children’s book, 2030: A Day in the Life of Tomorrow's Kids (published by Dutton Juvenile).

Zuckerman will be participating as a guest author this fall in the Doris Hiatt Mentoring Program, where she will answer elementary students’ questions in the online forum.

Curious about the future? Here's the Booklist review:

For any librarian who’s been stumped by a child’s request for a book about the future, not science fiction—the real future, this nonfiction picture book comes riding to the rescue, at least for a couple of decades. On each page or spread, a clearly written paragraph or two explains what’s different in the year 2030, including the school constructed from large Lego-like blocks and the wristwatch that beams your temperature, blood pressure, and feelings to your doctor’s office.

Following a boy through his day, colorful, somewhat cartoonlike paintings create a strong sense of action within a convincing future cityscape, peopled by smiling folks enjoying advanced technology. Kids will want to show their friends features such as the skateboard park with its magnetically hovering smart boards. Appended bibliography and acknowledgments sections note dozens of books, articles, reports, and individuals consulted regarding technological innovations. With jacket art that’s sure to draw readers, this book will easily find its audience. Grades K-3. --Carolyn Phelan

Reader To Reader Book Drive Builds Bridge Between Schools

Dear Reader To Reader,

Last week we delivered the books from our Reader To Reader book drive.
Our students here at Rancho Pico Junior High in Stevenson Ranch, CA
were so generous in donating about 2,000 books to Washington
Elementary School in Compton, CA.

Last week I delivered the books along with our PAC president Linda Johnson to the school.

We were overwhelmed with the generosity of our student's participation and how welcoming the principal Ontrece Ellerbe and her staff were to receive
them. Both of us agreed to a partnership for next year that Rancho
Pico would collect books for them again in another Reader To Reader
book drive.

We learned that the town of Compton does not have any
book stores so it is very difficult for students to buy books. The
books we gave them will be given to the students for special events
through out the year and over the summer to keep and take home and
read. Ontrece considers reading the most important part of her
student's education.

I want to thank you again for this opportunity and we are looking
forward to a successful partnership with Reader To Reader and
Washington Elementary for years to come.

I am including a couple of pictures. The first one is a picture of
Rancho Pico students with the books. The next one is of me and
Ontrece Ellerbe.

Sincerely,

Janette Foote
Library Technician
Rancho Pico Junior
Stevenson Ranch, California

Helping Mothers in Prison

Did you know that 85% of women that are incarcerated are mothers?

Reader To Reader is pleased to be helping the Prison Birth Project by supplying books on childbirth and childrearing.

The Prison Birth Project provides education, support and resources about pregnancy birth and mothering to incarcerated women. Their goal is to provide tools to help make empowering birth choices and provide continuous care through the pregnancy, birth and postpartum process. Groups meet bi-weekly at the Western Mass Women’s Correctional Center in Chicopee Mass to discuss issues of pregnancy birth and parenting.

"Someone must really care about us having cool books"

Dear Reader To Reader,

Kirby, our maintenance man, set the box onto the table in the office. "Whatever this is, it better be good." he said. He had just carried the huge package on foot the three blocks from the post office. I saw the return address was Reader To Reader and promised him that it would indeed be worth it.

"Worth it" and "good" don't begin to describe your donation. The full sets of Harry Potter, A Series of Unfortunate Events, and The Chronicles of Narnia are outstanding additions to our library and our students' lives. Students (and I!) have been wishing for these books since the first week of school in August. I had begun building the series, book by book, but that speed was not fast enough to please the voracious readers who were already done with book number two and pining after book number three. By completing all of these series, your donation did in one day what it would have taken months, if not years to do otherwise.

The students love the books. The first graders can't get enough of the easy animal books, fourth graders are loving the Series of Unfortunate Events, and second graders are desperately trying to read Harry Potter. One student had the fortune of watching me unpack the box and shelve the books. "Whoa!" She said, with a big grin. "Awesome. Somebody must really care about us having cool books."

Thank you for being that somebody who cares about my students and their learning.

Sincerely,

Shannon Brady
K-8 Literacy Coach
Little Wound School
Kyle, South Dakota