Since April, we’ve been offering a weekly virtual storytelling series for kids, featuring CLiF’s amazing storytellers, authors, and illustrators. Now, we’ll be offering a virtual book club for grown-ups, too! Many of the 68 Vermont and New Hampshire authors/storytellers we work with also write for adults. This will be an opportunity to dig into the … Continued
CLiF Spotlight / How You Can Help / Education
An update to this post: Now that school is underway, CLiF is looking to rethink its Community Building Grant. We NEED your ideas! We will use them to formulate the components of this year’s Community Building grant. How CLiF can support teachers, parents, librarians, and administrators to succeed with literacy curriculum in a different and … Continued
The process of writing begins before you actually put pen to paper (or words on a screen). Many people find “pre-writing” helpful, notes or an outline to help guide their writing. Some prefer to just jump in and start writing and see what happens. There’s no “right” way to go about writing. Some kids are … Continued
Year of the Book / CLiF Spotlight
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
CLiF staff and presenters are saddened that COVID-19 means we can not visit schools, libraries, and out-of-school-time programs to complete our exciting grants. Instead, we offer your students the chance to interact live with our presenters from home. For five weeks starting May 5, each Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. EST, we will have an opportunity … Continued
When you want your child to learn something new, the most important thing is to show him that the learning process will be interesting and engaging. Forcing your child to write and driving him into a rigid framework can result in a lack of interest/engagement in writing. For a preschool child, these are all abstractions … Continued
As a writer, I fail. A lot. Since January, I’ve submitted 116 times and gotten 69 rejections. But I’ve also gotten five acceptances, including winning Noir Nation’s Golden Fedora fiction prize, told extremely personal and difficult stories in HuffPost and OC87 Recovery Diaries, and got an Honorable Mention from Glimmer Train. In short, I’m doing … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
Getting your kid tucked into bed without any fuss can be an uphill battle some nights, and getting them to stay asleep can be even more of a struggle. If you want to make bedtime run a little smoother, try incorporating a nighttime routine into your regular evening schedule to help your child wind down … Continued
According to studies, children who work out are more likely to do well in their studies. Read on to learn how exercise can benefit your child, both physically and mentally, and how you can encourage your child to exercise. Boost Your Child’s Concentration with Exercise At school, every day, kids are dealing with a number … Continued
Front Porch Forum doesn’t just help you find your lost dog or that bunk bed you desperately need for your kids. In my case, it found me a summer internship.
One of our popular presenters is author/illustrator Marty Kelley, who has written or illustrated books such as Almost Everybody Farts, Summer Stinks, and A Cape! We asked him what inspires his work.
The question is not really what is writing, but what is good writing.
It often goes back to reading. Children and teens who read the most tend to become more successful in school than those who do not.
Research / Literacy Activities / Education
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 / If you're a parent and...
One thing we might share these days is, in general, a greater appreciation for homes and communities. While some might call for change (I want to paint my front door), the COVID era, and the overlapping social justice movements, has perhaps surfaced in many a love of certain local institutions, traditions, and groups. Maybe this … Continued
While the world’s gone digital, there are all kinds of videos of celebrities reading children’s books, at-home learning resources, and ten zillion articles on how to manage remote learning. We know; it’s overwhelming! Whether you’re trying to keep your remote learners focused at home or you’re a librarian or teacher brainstorming fun, interesting ways to … Continued
Many of the books available to children and teens don’t reflect the diverse backgrounds and experiences of today’s world. According to a 2018 study, 50% of characters in children’s books were white, only 10% were Black, 5% were Latinx, and only 1% were Native American. 27% featured main characters that were animals, significantly more than … Continued
Whether you’re an aspiring author or a prolific journal-er, you can always improve your writing. The most important thing, I tell my students at New Degree Press/Creator Institute, is developing good habits and a regular practice. Schedule writing time into your routine. Not everyone can find time to write every day, though that’s a great … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
At any given time, the CLiF library is filled with thousands of beautiful new books waiting to find eager young readers. We give away high-quality books for every reader’s level and interests. We do our best to offer a wide variety of diverse titles, both classics and new books and series. Here are some of … Continued
Watch Sandra’s presentation from August 12 here. CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Sandra Neil Wallace of Keene, NH. Sandra’s books “focus on people who break barriers and change the world.” Things to think about: Sandra is a changemaker – as the daughter of a refugee and concentration camp survivor, as the first … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
It should come as no surprise that the CLiF staff loves to read! After all, our mission is to share that love with all kids in New Hampshire and Vermont. And there’s no better time to read than summer, especially as so many social events and programs are either cancelled or online, giving us more … Continued
Watch Marty’s presentation from August 5 here. CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Marty Kelley of New Boston, NH. Marty’s books and presentations bring together his sense of humor and his degrees in art, animation, and elementary education. Things to think about: How do you describe Marty’s art and/or his style? Marty writes … Continued
Writing can be a miraculous activity that thrills both authors and readers from all over the world. Almost everyone starts writing at one point in life because somehow it just feels natural to express your thoughts and feelings in the textual form. But not everyone is capable of writing uniquely. It takes a genuine master … Continued
Join Marv on July 29 at 1 p.m. EST for a virtual author visit. Watch the recorded session here. CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Marv Klassen-Landis of Windsor, VT. Marv uses stories, writing, and theater to help kids and adults learn more about themselves. Marv is a co-founder of the Children’s … Continued
Join Jan on July 22 at 1 p.m. EST for a virtual author visit. Watch the recorded session here. CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Jan Reynolds of Stowe, VT. Jan travels the world, living with people of different cultures, and uses her photographs to illustrates books about people, their culture and traditions. … Continued
The CLiF team is thrilled to welcome our new Data/Office Manager, Kat Lane! While it may be an unusual time to start a new endeavor, Kat is up to the challenge and is already learning the ropes to help keep CLiF running smoothly. She’ll maintain our donor database and finances and perform administrative tasks to … Continued
Join Eric on July 15 at 1 p.m. EST for a virtual author visit. Watch the recorded session here. CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Eric Pinder of Berlin, NH. Eric writes books and teaches writing in Vermont and New Hampshire. CLiF created the outline below to help students of all ages think about … Continued
CLiF staff and presenters are saddened that COVID-19 means we can not visit camps, libraries, and out-of-school-time programs for our traditional Summer Readers program. While we will still send books to partner programs, we will offer your campers, students, and children the chance to interact live with our presenters who will present from their home. … Continued
CLiF would like to introduce or re-introduce you to Ashley Wolff of Leicester, VT. Ashley is the author and/or illustrator of over 65 books, including the beloved Miss Bindergarten series! CLiF created the outline below to help students of all ages think about her art and writing. Ashley both writes and illustrates her own stories and … Continued
Photo by Gustavo Fring from Pexels On a given day, a child may endure an argument with a friend, a disapproving remark from a teacher, a bad grade, or any other number of discouraging experiences. As a parent, you want your child to move past these experiences, learn from them, and maintain a positive outlook. … Continued
We asked kids 12 & under in New Hampshire and Vermont to reimagine their favorite fairy tales in keeping with the Collaborative Summer Learning Program’s 2020 theme: “Imagine Your Story.” We were impressed by all of the creative “fractured fairy tales” we received! Stories included “Humpty Mumpty,” who puts the king’s men together again, the … Continued
61% of low-income families have no children’s books at home.