Literacy Activities / CLiF Spotlight / Education

CLiF’s 2021 Community Literacy Conference

One of the ways CLiF shares ideas is through our annual Community Literacy Conference typically held the last Wednesday in March. This year, join us for a re-envisioned, free event with all the most popular features of our typical in-person conference: training from our presenters, peer-to-peer sharing, updates on CLiF’s research and work, and free books! This … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

Terry Farish, Author

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Terry Farish of Kittery, ME/Portsmouth, NH. Terry writes children and young adult books. She writes about the New American experience, and, as she wrote, “to understand us in our small world.” Watch a clip of Terry’s presentation from CLiF’s Virtual Author’s Series here. Things to think about: Here … Continued

General / Education

How to Educate Kids About Racism From an Early Age

Racism isn’t something any person is born with. It’s something that is taught. Unfortunately, it is often taught by actions, rather than words. We live in a society where it’s easy for kids to learn about racism very early on, so it’s important to be honest and open about what it is, what it means, … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

Gina Perry, Author/Illustrator

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Gina Perry of North Hampton, NH. Gina writes and illustrates her own books, and illustrates for other authors. Watch a clip of Gina’s presentation from CLiF’s Virtual Author’s Series. Things to think about: Here are a few ways to get to know Gina’s work better: CLiF has created … Continued

Research / Literacy Activities / Education

2021 – Facing our Challenges with New Ideas

2021 begins with new challenges but with a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. The research and ideas presented here hopefully help you on days of feeling overwhelmed (turn on our live and recorded author presentations) and of enthusiasm (initiate a new literacy activity). FOR EVERYONE National Day of Service on Monday, … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

Steve Swinburne, Non-Fiction Author

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Steve Swinburne of South Londonderry, VT. Steve is a life-long naturalist and explorer of wild places. “As an author, I love writing about wildlife and this amazing and beautiful planet we share. As a guitar and ukulele player, I love connecting music and nature.” Watch his intro video! … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

Marek Bennett, Cartoonist

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Marek Bennett of Henniker, NH. Marek – a comic, musician, and educator – creates comic books based on primary sources and real experiences and places. Marek’s work ranges from his newest book – Sharjah Sketchbook about art, education, immigration & more in the Middle East – to the Freeman Colby … Continued

Literacy Activities / Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

CLiF’s Winter Virtual Storytelling Series

CLiF’s Wednesday afternoon storytelling series will be back for the winter! Join CLiF and one of our professional presenters Wednesdays at 1 p.m. EST from January 6 to February 10. Watch the spring, summer, fall, and winter presentations here. CLiF started these weekly sessions to: offer kids and teachers or caregivers a chance to take a break and … Continued

General / Research / Literacy Activities / Education

New Ideas for November

As we settle in for the long haul of winter, CLiF offers some inspiration for easy, low-budget programming and guidance for connecting during these challenging times. Don’t forget to join us for our Virtual Author Series – all of the recorded presentations are available here for free! The image above was taken when Jason Chin … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / Education

J.L. McCreedy, Middle Grade Author

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to J.L. McCreedy of Gorham, NH. She is the author of the Liberty Frye series and The Orphan of Torundi, fantasy books for middle grade readers. CLiF created the outline below to help students of all ages think about her books and interests. Watch a clip of J.L’s … Continued

Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

Geof Hewitt, Poet/Performer

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Geof Hewitt of Calais, VT. Geof is the author of four poetry volumes and the Poetry Slam Laureate of Vermont. He also plays the nose flute (see photo). CLiF created the outline below to help students of all ages think about his poems and poetry. Watch a … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / Education

Sarah Dillard, Author/Illustrator

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Sarah Dillard of Fayston, VT. Sarah writes and illustrates picture books, graphic novels for new readers and early chapter books. See a clip of Sarah’s presentation from CLiF’s Virtual Author’s series here. Things to think about: Here are a few ways to get to know Sarah’s work … Continued

General / Presenter Profiles / CLiF Spotlight / Education

Jason Chin, Author/Illustrator

CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Jason Chin of South Burlington, VT. Jason writes and illustrates books about science and nature. He does two things in his books: he tells a story, and he teaches about science and nature. Learn more about how he does it! Watch a clip of Jason’s presentation from … Continued

Research / Literacy Activities / Education

Making Literacy Fun in Our “New Normal”

Welcome to school year 2020-2021! CLiF continues to serve as a resource to deliver program ideas, grants, and research to help teachers, librarians, parents, early educators, and out-of-school-time providers succeed in these challenging and confusing times. We NEED your ideas for how to do that – your ideas will be used to offer new grants … Continued

General / Education

How to Make Children Fall in Love with Reading

As a parent, you already know how important reading is to children. Studies have shown that the attitude of a child towards reading and learning is the strongest indicator of how well he or she will do in school, regardless of their economic or social background. Studies have also shown that children who read for … Continued

General / Education

Literacy Resources for Learning at Home

Lists, resources, activities, guidance abound in this time of supporting kids learning at home. According to Room to Read, the recent data published by UNESCO, 102 countries have closed primary through secondary schools nationwide. This represents more than 849.4 million primary and secondary students enrolled in those closed schools. Additionally, 11 countries have localized school … Continued

CLiF has served over 350,000 children since 1998.

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