Literacy professionals – librarians, reading specialists, teachers – know that reading should be seen as nothing but fun, instinctively and intrinsically! Who else out there knows? Well, here is a start. Be sure to access these support groups as you lead reading programs in YOUR community.
National Children’s Book Reading Alliance – That’s us! Our mission is to advocate for literacy, libraries and quality children’s books. We do so by providing promotional ideas and activities, both at face-to-face events and via our expert online offerings (and we post this blog)! 🙂 – https://www.thencbla.org http://ourwhitehouse.org
Read Across America – Sponsored by the National Education Association, coinciding with Dr. Seuss’ birthday, (March 2nd), this promotional program is one of a handful (sadly) of nationwide reading promotion events. Children across the nation, in all types of schooling settings, celebrate this day via planned guest speakers,Storypaloozas and book tastings – yum! https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/read-across-america
Little Free Libraries – A non-profit organization based in St. Paul, serving as the catalyst for over 150,000 community “box” libraries across the nation and in over 100 countries. https://littlefreelibrary.org/about/
Storyline Online – The Screen Actors Guild sponsors this website of well-known children’s books read-aloud and acted out by major theatrical artists, such as Rita Moreno and Kevin Costner. Accessible 24/7, the site receives over 140 million views worldwide each year. https://storylineonline.net/
RIF (Reading is Fundamental) – A non-profit organization founded in 1966, RIF’s mission is to inspire a passion for reading amongst all children. They accomplish this mission by partnering with schools and organizations to distribute free, new books to children all over the country. Join today! https://www.rif.org/about-rif
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library – Sign up today! Dolly’s organization will send a free book each month to any child ages 0-5 who does so. To date, this program has gifted over 193 million books all over the US and in four other countries. https://imaginationlibrary.com/
Read.gov – “Explore New Worlds. Read,” is the logo of this project sponsored by the Library of Congress. Visit the self-explanatory website to find NCBLA’s collaborative effort with LOC, the Exquisite Corpse Adventure, as well as discover the Ambassador for Young People’s Literature (Jason Reynolds) and Great Reads from Great Places!
TeenTober – The Young Adult Library Services Association celebrates teens and their library services each year during the month of October. A reading promotion toolkit is provided for those joining in the fun. https://www.ala.org/yalsa/teentober
Banned Books Week – Each September, the American Library Association asks the nation to consider our right to intellectual freedom – the right to read. Helpmates for instruction and reading promotion are provided by the organization, which asks all libraries and literacy organizations across the country to become involved in educating young people about our inherent rights. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/banned
State Children’s Book Awards – Children in every state in the nation choose their own books awards each year. Children are directly involved and vote for these choices and must read from extensive lists to make their final decision. Talk about buy-in! For example, here is the Massachusetts Children’s Book Award: https://www.salemstate.edu/mcba
Children’s Book Council (CBC) – A non-profit wing of North American children’s trade book publishers, this organization helps promote reading by providing literacy information, reading lists, reading resources, and hosting Children’s Book Week. https://www.cbcbooks.org/readers/
Battle of Books – Ready to play a fun competitive knowledge of books game with others? Look no further than this organization, which asks schools across the nation to organize reading groups which can show off their reading prowess! https://www.battleofthebooks.org/
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Let your students know; reading is anything but boring! Start organizing and preparing your fun reading times, together, today!