My daughter lobbied hard for a fish. I put it off until after summer travels, but I had to make good on my promise after Labor Day. I got a book about caring for fish out of the library; I wanted us prepared for the cleaning, feeding, and choosing the correct fish for our environment … Continued
In 2015, CLiF received a grant from the Canaday Family Charitable Trust to study whether schools that had received a Year of the Book Grant (YOB) were able to sustain their momentum around literacy once the grant ended. CLiF contracted with Evergreen Evaluation and Consulting, Inc. (EEC) to conduct an external evaluation that addressed the following questions: How … Continued
This summer we’ve been basking in the glory of so many female heroes, in politics and in sports especially. I didn’t get to watch much of the summer Olympics, but I sure did read about many of the extraordinary feats of athleticism and personal, political and historic victory. Many of the young female athletes from … Continued
As summer ends, we all begin to think about preparing our children for the school year to come – new backpacks, sneakers, pencils, and notebooks. You have double and triple-checked the list that you received in July – outlining everything that your child will need in the year to come, but you stop to wonder … Continued
I missed the original Harry Potter buzz – I’m not sure how as I worked in a bookstore off and on from 1996-2002, during which the first four books were released. I made up for this last week, when I got swept up in my eight-year-old’s excitement over Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. I could … Continued
Recently, while scrolling Facebook, I found myself stopping to watch a video comparing prisons in Norway to those in the United States. Before clicking on the video, my heart had already sunk to the bottom of my chest – I knew exactly what was coming next, but I still wanted to know more. I wanted … Continued
In my experience the movie version of a book is almost never as good as the actual book.
July 4th has come and gone, but during the holiday, NBC reported Americans celebrated by: Traveling: 43 million Americans traveled this Independence Day weekend. This represents the highest fourth of July travel volume on record. Eating: approximately 150 million hot dogs were consumed as 64% of Americans attended a barbeque or picnic, according to Wallethub. Shopping: the National Retail … Continued
Happy Independence Day from all of us here at CLiF!
In most of my life roles, I can feel overwhelmed by the information on how to be or do them better, how we can achieve that ideal balance where all parties (kids, friends, coworkers, and family members) feel heard, valued, and bolstered as individuals and also “team” members. No where do, I think, we as … Continued
Are you an enthusiastic, organized professional with communications experience and a love of literacy? CLiF seeks a part-time Communications Manager to manage our external communications, media relations, and overall outreach. CLiF has a small, committed staff and an 18-year history of substantial growth and results. Communications duties include: pitching media stories and op-ed essays to … Continued
General / Book Recommendations
El Deafo is a semi-autobiographical graphic novel about a young rabbit who loses most of her hearing at the very young age of five.
General / Book Recommendations
by Jane Knight – Bear Pond Books As I write this, there are four middle school kids hanging out in our play space in the Children’s Room at Bear Pond– ‘The Chicken Coop’—they are reading picture books to one another, laughing and reminiscing about their ‘childhood favorites’. I love that for these kids, there is … Continued
Summer is a magical season for kids – a time when they finally get to make many of their own decisions…Except when it comes to reading.
Tips on teaching kids empathy and kindness pop up everywhere. Recently, my daughter, our dog, and I participated in the Committee on Temporary Shelter’s (COTS) fundraising walk, a perfect opportunity to find out more about how “fundraising” connects with kindness and empathy in an eight-year-old mind. I did not involve her in the actual fundraising – I set … Continued
(Horse not included) The Children’s Literacy Foundation (CLiF) is seeking a summer intern who would like to work at a busy, innovative literacy non-profit. CLiF’s mission is to nurture a love of reading and writing among low-income, at-risk, and rural young readers and writers up to age 12 throughout New Hampshire and Vermont. We work directly with children who are at high … Continued
Recently, I saw a Facebook post on habits of productive people. I have a love-hate relationship with those lists, but this time I paused, because some of the highlighted habits were reinforced for my daughter at her second-grade student-led conference. Obviously, she is not worried about a strategy for sorting her email or for achieving a balanced … Continued
The Lake was placid, but a momentary commotion caused by a pair of loons who swooped down to breach the glass surface sent a wave of mirrored ripples across the lake. After the loons silent glide, they dove under the water for food, and all was calm again. Serenity. Despite the distraction of the amazing … Continued
CLiF has served over 350,000 children since 1998.