How will you be celebrating Children’s Book Week this year?
The Children’s Book Council (CBC) is the nonprofit trade association of publishers and packagers of trade books and related materials for young people, and an official sponsor of Children’s Book Week, a celebration to encourage readers of all ages to “discover the complexity of the world beyond their own experience through books.”
Children’s Book Week has an interesting history. This year it will be November 12-18. Beginning next year, the celebration moves to May.
larsonlibrary
I sure hope that CBC and ALSC will provide a lot of support ideas for moving Children’s Book Week. While I understand the reasons for the change, it will be very difficult for many of the libraries that start Summer Reading Programs at the end of May to add this celebration. I’d love to hear some ideas for keeping this special while we face the end of school rituals and the beginning of summer reading activities.
Michelle F. Bayuk
Hello. Teresa asked me to post here an email I sent to ALSC-L. Here it is. Thanks.
Friends,
There’s been a lot of talk over the last day or so about Children’s Book Week’s move to May. I’m delighted to hear how much you all care about CBW, its history, and its effects on books and kids. We need that energy as we move forward. You see, when I speak to librarians, they always know Children’s Book Week, it’s dates, purpose, and history. But when I speak to almost anyone else, they have no idea what it is, when it is, or what they should do about it…we’re going to change that.
In the past, the staff and membership of the Children’s Book Council spent most our time and efforts promoting CBW to schools, libraries and bookstores, asking you to create events and promote them to your customers. While we still want you to do that, we’re now going to drive the general public to you.
The major focus of the new Children’s Book Week is a national child-selected book awards program. Since the 1970s, the CBC and the International Reading Association have run a program called Children’s Choices. 10,000 children in five teams from around the US spend months reading and evaluating books submitted by all publishers. They look at 500-700 titles and the favorite 100 make the final list, approximately 33 titles in each of three grade categories: K-2, 3-4, and 5-6. The favorites are presented in alphabetical order, but we’ve always known the ranking of each title relative to the overall list. In March and April 2008, we will present the top five books published in 2007 in each of these categories for nation-wide vote. Kids can vote electronically online or in their school, library, or bookstore via paper ballot. The winner in each category will be named at a Gala Awards dinner during Children’s Book Week 2008 in New York City.
We ask that librarians (and teachers and booksellers) promote the voting process. Display the finalists. Provide instruction for online voting. Provide and collect paper ballots. This work will be in March and April. In May, you might want to invite kids who participated in the voting (and others) to a party to hear which books won and to celebrate their contribution to the world of children’s literature as opinion makers.
We’re working with other organizations on book drives, children’s events, and national media coverage as well. The move to May is going to be great. Great for you. Great for the books. And, most importantly, great for the kids.
Be on the lookout for more details after the New Year.
Thank you for your input and concerns.
All best,
Michelle
Michelle F. Bayuk
Marketing Director
The Children’s Book Council, Inc.
12 W. 37th Street, 2nd floor
New York, NY 10018
(212) 966-1990 x305
(212) 966-2073 fax
Celebrate Children’s Book Week, November 12-18, 2007.
Visit http://www.cbcbooks.org for more information.