In Her Own Words



Intern Carmella Morrison working at the Job Help Center



Our summer outreach intern, Carmella Morrison, reflects on her first month working at the library.

While being in this internship, I have a wonderful opportunity to work with almost all the staff in the Outreach Department. I have also worked in the Job Help Center, and the Spangler Children’s Library in ImaginOn. With each experience, I learned a little something more about how the Outreach program helps the community by providing library resource outside of the Library.



Job Searching at the Job Help Center



One program I was fascinated with was one where the staff goes out to Spanish speaking families’ neighborhoods and tells them about the Library’s resources. They also provide children with early literacy skills. I had the opportunity to go to this program at the Latin American Coalition with staff member Veronica Corral. She had story time with the Spanish speaking families, and engaged their children in early literacy activities. Learning these skills will allow the children to be better prepared when they enter school. I was able to read a book to them as well.



I also love working in the Job Help Center. I help people with whatever question they may have about their resume, job application and job searching inquires.



I really do believe in this internship. My goal is to be involved in projects that support social capital and community building. I am going to enjoy reaching my goal and I am definitely going to have fun doing it. The staff members are really respectable and sweet people. I love what they are doing for the community.





First Sememster of Jump Start Reading Ends

The first semester of the Jump Start Reading program has ended and the results are in! Our surveys and evaluations indicate that parents and caregivers gained valuable information regarding the importance of early literacy and children's success when entering school. By the end of the six months, our program coordinators, Veronica Corral, Amy Kukla and Emily Little stated that children were able to demonstrate the six pre-reading skills and parents and caregivers were able to implement these skills when reading to children. Below our program coordinators share some of the highlights from the program:

• ALL of the children at this site (even the 2 year old's) now know what letter their first name starts with!
• All the parents have been extremely appreciative of the meals and incentives. I do not think there was ever a leftover piece of pizza with this group! Everyone was very excited about the books and the children continue to talk about them when I go back to visit.
• I just wanted to mention that the highlight was definitely taking seventy program participants and their families on the bus to the Library. For many of them it was the first time going to the library. They all seemed to enjoy it and many checked out books for the first time.

Families participating in the program were connected to their neighborhood library. This will allow them to continue the learning experience after the formal program ends. In addition, each child participating in the program (approximately 105 children) received a home library consisting of 15 books, which will support their current and growing reading comprehension level. Parents participating in the program received all the program incentives, which included book bags for each family, meals at each of the parent workshops, gift certificates from a local store and certificates of completion.

The next semester for Jump Start Reading begins January 2011. Staff from three of our branch locations will be assisting the department with program implementation. During this session, we will be offering three workshops instead of six. Our parents, caregivers and staff indicated that this would be practical while still being effective. We will keep you posted as we continue to, "Jump Start Reading at Home!"

Visit to the Library

We are now three months into our six month Jump Start Reading at Home program. Our teachers, children and families have been introduced to Vocabulary; knowing the names of things, Print Motivation; being interested in and enjoying books, and Print Awareness; noticing print, knowing how to handle a book and knowing how to follow the words on a page. In addition, all programs participants received fifteen books to begin their at-home library. (The 2001 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study states that students from homes with more than ten children's books had significantly higher average reading scores than scores of students from homes with ten or fewer books.)

To continue to expose families and teachers to reading, books and literacy, all program participants will tour their neighborhood library. This is a very important element of the program. By taking our families and teachers to the library, we are given them tools and resources to be self-sufficient and empowered to continue to support their child's early literacy education.

To make this experience possible, we have to identify and remove barriers that will allow all families to participate in the library visit and tour. During a recent visits to Plaza Midwood library, the transportation barrier was removed by purchasing bus passes for all program participants. Over fifty people took the bus to the library. The pictures below illustrate the Bilingual Specialist, Veronica Corral organizing the group to board the bus as well as the library visit and tour. Follow the link below to view all the photos of this library experience.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/libraryinaction/sets/72157624725999301/

Jump Start Reading at Home Print Motivation

When the county car pulls into the parking lot of the Park Apartment Clubhouse, parents and children know it is time for Miss Veronica and the library program. Twenty-three children and their mothers gathered in the activity room to hear stories and participate in music and reading activities that encouraged interest and enjoyment of books. The building block for this session was “Print Motivation.” According to the American Library Association, Every Child Ready to Read program, “Children who enjoy being read to will want to learn how to read.” It is a challenge to measure enjoyment but the clapping, smiles, laughter and program participation lets Miss Veronica know that her audience enjoyed the stories.

During this session, families enjoyed the stories; The Squeaky Door by Margaret Read McDonald, Whose Nose? by Jeannette Rowe and Jump Frog Jump by Robert Kalan. Parents also received information on Spanish language computer classes offered at our Hickory Grove location. As the program ended, parents and children helped Miss Veronica carry her material to the car and they prepared for their next session, which will include a visit to their neighborhood library.

Storytime in Spanish

Every Wednesday morning our Bilingual Outreach Coordinator, Veronica Corral, goes out in the community to hold a storytime in Spanish, focusing on early literacy. As you can see, her sessions attract quite a crowd! Last week drew over 30 participants including several moms and kids of all ages, although Veronica’s focus is on children ages birth through 5.

It might sound like no small feat to keep the attention of so many children, but Veronica was quite the entertaining storyteller and the kids were eager to participate.

This session focused on the early literacy building block of vocabulary, or knowing the names of things. As she read aloud, Veronica explained certain words the children might be unfamiliar with, using synonyms that might be more familiar.
 
Another way to build your child’s vocabulary is just to talk to your child more, using many words and a variety of words and explaining words that might be new. Also, you can expand on things your child says, encouraging him or her to speak in complete sentences. Reading books with different vocabulary from normal conversation helps, and remember, language skills grow faster if your child hears positive feedback, so be encouraging while keeping things fun!