Writing a grant to fund a playspace at your library? Want to share research-based early tips with parents? Making a presentation to your library board about the importance of early literacy programs? The Early and Family Literacy Committee will soon be releasing a Toolkit to help you! Inside you’ll find oodles of studies (full text if available) that justify the vital work you do every day! But first, we need your help with a few key questions…
- What would the most user-friendly format be for the Toolkit? An annotated bibliography? A spreadsheet that you can sort by topic? A downloadable PDF?
- What is the best way to let you know when the Toolkit has been updated? ALA Connect? A blog post?
We want to make sure this toolkit is as user-friendly as possible and your feedback would be invaluable.
One thing we are excited to share is that we have started inviting researchers and practitioners to speak at the beginning of our monthly meetings for about 30 minutes, typically on the first Tuesday of the month at Noon CT (1:00 ET, 11 AM MT, 10 AM PT). So far we have had the honor of hosting (watch the videos below!)…
- Dr. Maria Cahill, University of Kentucky, discussing her research into diverse storytime book selection and other topics
- Samina Hadi-Tabassum, Ed.D, Clinical Associate Professor, Director, Child Life, Child Development, and School and Community Partnerships, Erikson Institute, Chicago, IL, discussing her partnerships developing StoryWalks in Oak Park, Chicago
Join us if you can! We will post upcoming speakers on ALA connect.
Many thanks to Dr. Tess Prendergast of the University of British Columbia who has given the committee great advice on sources to follow and researchers to invite to our committee meetings. Do you know researchers or practitioners doing interesting work in the area of early literacy? We may want to host them for a talk!
Share your thoughts below or reach out to alscfamilyliteracy@gmail.com.
Thank you!
Today’s blog post was written by Rachel G. Payne, coordinator of early childhood services at Brooklyn Public Library in Brooklyn, NY, on behalf of the ALSC Early and Family Literacy Committee. She can be reached at rpaynenyc@gmail.com.
This blog relates to ALSC Core Competencies: I. Commitment to Client Group, III. Programming Skills, and VII. Professionalism and Professional Development.