Walking 900 Miles to Paris: Uncovering Family Stories in Hardwick, VT
They say everybody has a story. Research an entire community, and you’re bound to harvest a bushel basket of unforgettable tales.
What’s New
Spotlight on CLiF’s Year of the Book
At the Children’s Literacy Foundation (CLiF), our work revolves around inspiring children to feel joy and excitement about reading and writing. Among the ways we accomplish this goal is through our flagship program, CLiF’s Year of the Book, one of our nine literacy programs.
Fall Updates from CLiF
At the Children’s Literacy Foundation, back-to-school season is always a busy, but exciting, time. We are launching new partnerships, building new headquarters, and most importantly, sharing books and stories with kids.
Year of the Book / CLiF Spotlight / Education
CLiF’s Community Literacy Conference – March 2022!
Join us for another free virtual event this year, 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 books! The concepts presented by this talented group will inspire you to try new things, provide ideas that can scale to PK … Continued
Thank you for giving kids the gift of writing
On Giving Tuesday, our generous donors helped us raise over $4,000 to support writing workshops in Manchester, NH and Highgate, VT as part of our Year of the Book grant program. One of the goals of the Year of the Book program is to increase enthusiasm for reading and writing and encourage kids to do … Continued
Give a child the gift of writing & your donation will be matched!
It’s Giving Tuesday, a day to give back to causes you care about. Your donations to CLiF will be matched today (up to $10,000 total)! Double the impact you make on a child’s life. This Giving Tuesday, we’re trying to raise $20,000 to support multi-day writing workshops for low-income, at-risk, and rural kids (12 and … Continued
Support Writing Workshops this Giving Tuesday
Writing is an essential skill for children’s success in school and beyond. It helps kids express themselves and process their emotions, develop necessary communication and comprehension skills, and use their imaginations. It can also be a great way to tell family stories and connect to others in their communities. CLiF’s $25,000 Year of the Book … Continued
How to Tell a Story: Duncan the Telepath
A few weeks ago, I spent a cold Wednesday morning waking up before the crack of dawn, and driving 45 minutes to Edmunds Elementary School in Burlington, Vermont to spread the opportunity to fall in love with literature and reading through CLiF’s Year of the Book program. It was just under 40˚, and I was … Continued
A Wave of Nostalgia: My First CLiF Event
For my first CLiF event, I went to the Year of the Book kick-off at Braintree Elementary School in Braintree, Vermont. As a smaller school, they have fewer than 100 students, but it was clear to me from the get-go that this didn’t prevent them from instilling a strong love of reading in the kids’ … Continued
The Year of the Book Inspires Keene Students
CLiF’s Year of the Book program is designed to increase enthusiasm for reading and writing among low-income, at-risk, and rural kids, improve schools’ literacy efforts, increase family engagement in reading and writing, and create a community-wide culture of literacy. Each year, we award the grant to five elementary schools in New Hampshire and five schools … Continued
Year of the Book / CLiF Spotlight
2020 CLiF Community Literacy Conference
Hard to believe we are almost half way through the school year – 10 schools halfway through their CLiF Year of the Book and for ten more their follow-up momentum year. In the next half of the year, schools will welcome CLiF presenters author/illustrator Jason Chin, author/genealogist Natalie Kinsey-Warnock, author Sandra Neil Wallace, author/illustrator Marty … Continued
The Year of the Book
“Our students come from poverty and trauma so we try to offer experiences that enrich their lives and this grant seems a perfect way to expand our offerings. We would benefit by having the opportunity to involve our students in activities that expose them to the wide array of reading experiences through books and authors. … Continued
Year of the Book / CLiF Spotlight
The Year of the Book at Enosburg Falls Elementary School
Enosburg Falls Elementary School in Enosburg Falls, VT has had a busy school year so far. In September, they kicked off their CLiF Year of the Book with storytelling by Duncan McDougall, their first book giveaway where kids chose new books for themselves, and a family literacy event featuring author David Martin and two more … Continued
General / CLiF in the News / Year of the Book
The CLiF Year of the Book News
CliF’s Year of the Book grant for the 2019-2020 school year is now underway at 10 schools throughout New Hampshire and Vermont! The grant includes many author visits and workshops, free family events, literacy-related programs, new books for the school and local public library, plus TEN new books for each student to choose! Read about … Continued
Year of the Book / CLiF Spotlight
The Year of the Book at Eden Central School
Eden Central School was one of ten elementary schools in Vermont and New Hampshire selected for this year’s CLiF Year of the Book grant. The grant provides $25,000 in exciting literacy programming, family events, new books for the school and local public library, as well as TEN new books for each student to choose. This … Continued
The Year of the Book at Boscawen Elementary School
Authors, Illustrators, and Storytellers, Oh My! What do these things have in common? Well, they are all an integral part of the CLiF Year of the Book grant. Boscawen Elementary School in Boscawen, NH was one of ten schools across NH & VT that won this grant worth $25,000 for the 2018-19 school year. By … Continued
Spotlight on a Year of the Book School: Bristol Elementary School in Bristol, NH
Bristol, NH students squealed with delight as storyteller Duncan McDougall recounted the classic story of Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. Duncan jumped around and used funny voices to bring the beloved story to life. This was the first of many visits from CLiF’s 64 talented authors, illustrators, poets, and storytellers that Bristol Elementary School will get this … Continued
Spotlight on a Year of the Book School: JFK Elementary School in Winooski, VT
Last week, JFK Elementary School English Language Learners spent a beautiful fall day at the Clemmons Family Farm in Charlotte, VT, listening to stories, making bean pies, and learning about African American art and culture. This special field trip was a memorable experience for these kids, who come from all over the world and are … Continued