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You are currently browsing the First Book Blog weblog archives for March, 2007.
Archive for March 2007
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A Year in the Life of First Book
March 30th, 2007
Clarissa P.
Leave a Comment »A lot has happened at First Book in the past year, since Rachael wrote our first blog post about a book distribution in Bernice, LA.
Here are some of the highlights of the past year:
- We attended BookExpo America, where we launched a national literacy awareness campaign, Literacy and Justice for All. BEA attendees voted for the state to win a 50,000 book distribution. The winner — Louisiana!
- We distributed books for kids in need in cities across the country, like Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Long Beach, San Antonio, Boise, and New Orleans.
- Borders National Benefit Day raised more than $270,000 for First Book.
- We announced our very first First Book Marketplace Special Edition, Playing Loteria/El juego de Loteria
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A Blogtastic Blogaversary Party!
March 29th, 2007
Nicole T.
1 Comment »
At First Book we never miss an opportunity to have cake. Our HR director recently joked that he was going to add cake to our benefits list as an enticement for new employees. So when we began planning the celebrations for the 1st anniversary of our blog, of course we included a party with cake.We recreated the fun of the children’s birthday parties from our youth complete with party hats, favors, and games. One colleague exclaimed, “This is the best blog party I’ve ever attended!”
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Our Top Picks!
March 28th, 2007
Erin T.
Leave a Comment »As a continued celebration of the blog’s first anniversary, we’ve asked our First Book Blog Team to share their favorite blog moments from the last year. Take a look, and then share with us what your favorites are. We would love to hear from you!
Our Favorite Posts
I had a blast chatting with Robert Sabuda and Matthew Reinhart during the Children’s Book Week 2006 podcast-palooza and enjoyed hearing about their fantastic pop-up books. – Katie
My favorite post to write was Fortress of Illiteracy about my visit to a monastery in Kyiv, Ukraine. I was on vacation, far from DC, not thinking about work, and the idea for the post just popped into my head. I wrote it within a few minutes on my flight home. – Erin
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One small step for mankind, one giant step for First Book.
March 27th, 2007
Diane N.
Leave a Comment »“Blog readers beware: What happens in Bernice, no longer stays in Bernice…,.” wrote First Book staffer Rachael V. one fateful afternoon in March 2006.
On one level, it began a playful (and thorough) chronicle of one of our many book distributions. In a bigger sense, though, Rachael’s post marked First Book’s daring launch into the unknown — a.k.a. The Blogosphere.
In typical First Book fashion, we didn’t just dangle our feet in the water. No, we dove in head first. Subsequent posts ranged in topic from staff outings to articles on literacy, from announcements of exciting new partnerships to a how-to (or how-not-to) on cooking green eggs and ham. These days, when anything interesting happens, our first thought is to post it to the blog in order to share it with you, dear friends and readers.
This is all to say that the blog has come to occupy a special place in our hearts here at First Book, signifying yet another exciting step in our growth and expansion into ever-widening new territory. I hope you’ll join us this week in celebrating this special milestone by donating to First Book in honor of the blog. As with all we do, we could never have gotten here without your support. Thanks!
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Blogging About Blogging
March 27th, 2007
Clarissa P.
Leave a Comment »First Book makes a guest appearance this week on the Nonprofit Blog Exchange, a blog with news and information about nonprofit blogging and nonprofit technology. Please check out First Book and Blogging, written by our own Stephanie R.
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Happy Anniversary to the First Book Blog!
March 26th, 2007
Erin T.
2 Comments »All this week at First Book we are celebrating the one year anniversary of the First Book Blog!
In the last year the First Book Blog has had over 280 posts from 40 different authors. To date, 84,728 words have been posted. The blog currently averages 1000 visits per week, with over 80 feed subscriptions.
There have been stories about our travels, our partners, our mission to end illiteracy, and our staff. There have been posts from the Gulf that showed the devastation of nature and resiliency of the human spirit, and posts about our celebrations and accomplishments.
Along the way, we hope that you have been entertained, inspired and educated. Thank you to all who have read and commented on our blog in the last year. We are looking forward to another great year to come!
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A Bit of Reading With My Coffee
March 23rd, 2007
Elizabeth M.
Leave a Comment »I was pleasantly surprised to find this quote about reading on my Starbucks cup this morning:
The Way I See It #203
Reading is a child’s first subject. A parent is a child’s first teacher. Reading aloud is Early Childhood Development. Reading aloud helps a child build a strong foundation for life. Reading takes you everywhere.- Wally Amos
Chairman and president, Chip & Cookie Read Aloud Foundation -
Reading with First Book
March 22nd, 2007
Stephanie R.
1 Comment »This post is part of a weekly series of synopses of children’s books, written by First Book staff members.
Kites, written and illustrated by Hitz Demi. This is a beautifully illustrated story about the traditions of kite flying and kite festivals in China. The book includes directions for making and decorating your own kite! Grades K-2.
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Illiteracy in Washington, DC
March 20th, 2007
Clarissa P.
Leave a Comment »The need for First Book is apparent in many places, but often it seems especially obvious to us here in Washington, DC, where the First Book national office is located. DCist posted their thoughts about a study by the State Education Agency that shows that a third of the people in Washington, DC are functionally illiterate. For the United States overall, the number is only one in five.
A person who is functionally illiterate is able to read and write in her native language, but is not able to do so well enough to complete basic tasks such as following a recipe, understanding a bus schedule, or filling out a job application.
At First Book, we know that a key to preventing illiteracy is to get kids reading at an early age, so it becomes a life-long habit. Kids in low-income homes simply don’t have access to books of their own, and if a child doesn’t have any books, how do you expect him to learn to read?
So far, First Book has distributed more than 180,000 books to kids in DC alone — and many millions more to kids in every state. But when we see articles like this, we know that our work is far from done. If you want to help, please make a donation
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Local Spotlight: Sara Ashmore: First Book-Pepperdine University
March 19th, 2007
Erin T.
Leave a Comment »This month’s Advisory Board Spotlight is on Sara Ashmore and the Campus Advisory Board at Pepperdine University. Both faculty and students are active in the Campus Advisory Board (CAB), and this combination creates a great mix of skills and ideas. The CAB works through the Volunteer Center of Pepperdine to reach out to many worthy groups in their community.
Recently, the Campus Advisory Board incorporated a First Book Speed Read into their campus’ homecoming festivities. By engaging different campus organizations and sports teams competing for the school’s homecoming spirit award, they raised over $700. Congratulations to Sara and First Book-Pepperdine University!
If you are a college student or faculty member, you can search for an Advisory Board on your college campus or in your community.