In case you haven’t heard, Katha was nominated by PaperTigers for the 2011 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, in the category “Promoter of Reading”.

Today’s Literacy Blog Tour host is Terry Doherty @ Scrub-a-Dub-Tub. For a complete list of hosts and topics, see here. And check these for a taste of some of PaperTigers’ posts on literacy:

Thoughts on Literacy: Going Where the Children Are
Books at Bedtime: Win-Win!
Our Literacy Future

Anthony Browne was announced as the sixth Children’s Laureate at a ceremony at Centre Point, London, on 9 June 2009

Andrew Motion, chair of the selection panel, awarded Anthony Browne with his medal in front of 180 guests at Paramount, Centre Point.

Andrew Motion said:

‘Anthony Browne is an absolutely distinctive and extraordinarily skilful artist – someone whose work entrances children, and has influenced an entire generation of illustrators. His pictures and stories give deep and immediate pleasures, while also insisting that we – children and adults – return to them – and when we return, we have a gradually-expanding sense of discovery. It is a great pleasure to be able to recognise the achievement of Anthony’s work by celebrating his appointment as Children’s Laureate.’

Anthony Browne responded:

‘I hope to encourage more children to discover and love reading, but I want to focus particularly on the appreciation of picture books, and the reading of both pictures and words. Picture books are for everybody at any age, not books to be left behind as we grow older. The best ones leave a tantalising gap between the pictures and the words, a gap that is filled by the reader’s imagination, adding so much to the excitement of reading a book.’

To watch a video of Anthony Browne at the announcement click here.

… and Valerie at The Almost Librarian has links to all the contributors’ blogs here…

PaperTigers congratulates The Tamer Institute for the honor and the outstanding work it has been doing, since 1989, to help children in Gaza and the West Bank improve their literacy skills. Tamer dedicated the award to “the children of Palestine who have faced many painful events throughout the past 60 years.”

A statement that included the jury’s reason for awarding the prize said: “In the spirit of Astrid Lindgren, the Tamer Institute acknowledges the power of words and the strength of books, stories and imagination as important keys to self-esteem, tolerance and the courage to face life.”

PaperTigers is very honored to have been selected as one of the nominating bodies for the 2010 ALMA award. We are looking forward to contributing to the process of selecting the next winner.

Day 5: Technology and Reading – What the Future Holds
hosted by Elizabeth O. Dulemba at Dulemba.com.
E. has pulled together all the contributions into one post and these cover audiobooks, E-books, and podcasting – and there’s a resource kit with links…

And here are the links for the rest of the week’s offerings:

Day 1: Raising Readers
hosted by Terry Doherty at Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, the Reading Tub blog.

Finding Time at Home – Tricia Stohr-Hunt at The Miss Rumphius Effect
Making Time in the Classroom – Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone
Helping a Reader in Need – Sandra Stiles at Scrub-a-Dub-Tub
It’s Bigger than the Book: Building Strong Readers at any Age with a Daily Dose of Read Aloud – Cathy Miller interview at Share a Story – Shape a Future
Keeping Gifted Readers Engaged – Donalyn Miller at The Book Whisperer

Day 2: Selecting Reading Material
hosted by Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone.

The ABCs of Reading: Infants, Toddlers & Preschoolers – Valerie Baartz at The Almost Librarian
How to Help Emerging Readers – Anastasia Suen at 5 Great Books
I Don’t Know What to Read Next: Helping Middle Grade Readers - Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone
Booklists and Read Alikes – Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone
Using Non-fiction – Mary Lee Hahn of A Year of Reading, hosted by The Stenhouse Blog

Day 3: Reading Aloud – It’s Fun, It’s Easy
hosted by Susan Stephenson at The Book Chook .

Fourteen Fantastic Hints on Reading Aloud, by Mem Fox Queen of Read Aloud – at The Book Chook.
How to Read Aloud and Wow your Audience – at The Book Chook
Conquering Stage Fright – Interview with Sarah Mulhern (The Reading Zone) – at The Book Chook
Reading Aloud With Kids: A Dad’s Perspective – hosted by Steven and Brian at Book Dads: Fathers that Read
Using Technology for Read Alouds – Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone
Reading Aloud with Independent Readers – Donalyn Miller at The Book Whisperer
Reading Aloud: Picture Books Rule! - Pam Coughlan at Mother Reader

Day 4: A Visit to the Library
hosted by Eva Mitnick at Eva’s Book Addiction.

From Cozy to Cool – Library Spaces for Everyone - Eva at Eva’s Book Addiction
Lions and Marble and Books, Oh My - Betsy Bird at A Fuse #8 Production
How to Make the Library Work for YOU - an interview with Adrienne of What Adrienne Thinks About That conducted by Jules at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
The World Beyond the Library’s Walls – Melissa at Librarian by Day
ABC Storytimes: Taking the Library Home – Pam Coughlan at MotherReader

How about Capucine who I learned about from Stella at My World-Mi Mundo. Capucine, a four year old, is helping to make sure that her friends in Mongolia have books. She would like to open a library for them. Capucine already understands the power of her words, the Internet, and making a difference.

Sometimes the simplest remark can be the most transforming. “Perhaps, sir, you will come back with books,” a Nepalese headmaster said to John Wood, a vacationing Microsoft employee, as they stood in a school library that had twenty books that “were all backpacker cast-offs.” Haunted by the thought of children who might never know the joy of reading, Wood returned home and spent a year gathering children’s books. He went back to the headmaster with 3,000 volumes and a new direction for his life. John Wood decided that bringing books to children who have none was his vocation and Room to Read was born, as he tells readers in Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.

Wood put together an organization with staff who share his dream and his passion, aided by a fundraising network of more than 3,000 people. The core programs of Room to Read are the Reading Room which has built 5,600 libraries,  Local Language Publishing which publishes and distributes books written both in English and the local language, the School Room which works with local communities to build schools with 444 in use, the Room to Grow Girls’ Scholarship that enables 4,000 girls to complete their secondary education, and the Computer and Language Room which builds computer and language labs.

Found in India, Sri Lanka, Zambia, South Africa, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, Room to Read is vitalized by donations and volunteers, who have discovered how they can help by going to www.roomtoread.org. All share a common goal—to have built 10,000 libraries by 2010.

Scheduled half-day visits to a Room to Read site are welcome with advance arrangement.

One man, one dream, 3,000 books– one optimistic remark changed a life and consequently thousands of lives are being changed through the power of reading and the joy of literacy, all over the world.

Founded by writer Dave Eggers (A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genious), since 2002 the 826 Valencia ship has been sailing on the forefront of literacy efforts as a reading and writing lab/tutoring program “in disguise.” The lure of its brand of piracy is undeniable. Students ages 6-18 get free tutoring from some of the most creative and qualified people in town, and anyone visiting the “store” can barter for a cup of lard, be mopped (!), buy pirate trinkets (a clam opener, anyone? how about a magenta eye patch?) and discover a world of treasures hidden in countless drawers that beg to be opened. Behind all the whimsy, though (literally, at the back of the store, behind a curtain), there are young minds at work, learning new writing skills, getting ready for SAT exams, experiencing mind growth through creativity and fun.

826 Valencia is just around the corner from my house—lucky me!—and I often visit with my daughter, who, in spite of being too young for the workshops, is clearly lured. Upon entering the store for the first time a couple of years ago, she exclaimed, half scared, half thrilled, “I didn’t know there were pirates in our neighborhood!” The neighborhood hasn’t been the same since.

If you missed International “Talk Like a Pirate” Day, a fun-filled occasion dedicated to pirates and their vernacular and celebrated worldwide on Sep 19, check out 826 Valencia for your fix: there are always fun things happening. Today, for instance, there’s a locksmith workshop that will teach kids “how to not pick locks, how to make keys, find keys, lose keys, and more.” Land lubbers of all ages will feel compelled to join in on some of these piracy ventures.

For accounts of actual events that occur in the shop, check the store log. And here and here for a couple of good reads for little ones contemplating buccannering as a career.

Christine Lauzon, principal of Banting Middle School, says the fundraiser has grown consistently since its first year, when a total of seven bikes lined up for literacy. “Each year it’s gotten bigger and bigger,” said Lauzon. “We raise books for our school libraries, and we have fun doing it! Those are our two goals.” Last year, Banting Middle School used money from the fundraiser to buy a “Remembrance Day” kit for the children, with books in English and French” said Lauzon, whose lime green helmet and boots match her custom-painted Harley Davidson motorcycle.

Registration starts at 8:30 am on the day of the event, at Moody Middle School, and participants can enjoy coffee and doughnuts until the ride kicks off, at 10:00 am. Petra Kintzinger, principal of James Park Elementary School, who will be riding her Yamaha, encourages residents along the route to come out and cheer the riders on: “It’s a lot of fun to watch. It contributes to the atmosphere—and it sounds great, too!”