Yesterday I received some pretty exciting news....our school was awarded $4,500 to create a Book Mobile for our community! Last summer the Book Mobile was literally the back of my car with books organized in laundry baskets....not the fanciest of operations but we were able to serve the community and give away many books. This fall I decided to apply for a grant which I felt was a long shot but as it turns out, it wasn't. Now, we are tasked with creating a way to get books into our community through an official book mobile. These books are given away to children- there is no check out procedure as my goal is to get books into the homes of every child in our community at no cost to them. I want them to be able to own books, not borrow, and am hopeful that literacy will then begin to become a part of the culture of each home. My mantra is ensuring that literacy extends beyond the walls of our school and permeates into the homes within our community.
So, I need some ideas....have any of you worked with a Book Mobile in the past? What did it look like? How did children access books? Any ideas or feedback are welcomed as this is a brand new project and I would like to consider all options and ideas before I solidify a plan.
Oh, and if any of you have free time this summer and would like to come help out- let me know....I can always use people who value literacy and love to encourage children to read :) We'll be throughout the Duluth community on Saturday mornings...guaranteed to make your heart full of joy.
That is wonderful that you received the grant! Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteI have no experience with a book mobile as I was the kid that loved to go to the library and check out my weekly books during the summers. Literacy beyond the walls of the school is very important. What was taught at school needs to be reinforced at home. I was fascinated by the idea and went online to explore what GOOGLE had to offer. There were plenty of resources on HOW to create a book mobile and getting books, but nothing on the actual process for distribution.
APS gave books one year to students for the summer. They gave a backpack with 4 or 5 books from the summer reading list. I can share some thoughts or questions that I have:
-How many books will I have to distribute?
-How many students will I serve?
-Will I have any books for the parents/guardians?
-Will there be a set day and time that the mobile comes around?
-Do I have any incentives? (That always got me? Chick-fil-a used to sponsor a program like that in the summer where if you read so many books (and provided a summary) you received Chick-fil-a coupons and a pair of Six Flags tickets. I always got the food and tickets.)
-Do I have enough money to give the books in a cute package? (Cute bag that can be used over at the book mobile)
-How do I have the books organized? (Grade level, Lexile score, etc.)
-Who will help me? If I have to do it by myself, how to make it work without being overwhelming?
Most of these questions, I'm sure you have asked and answered. I would love to know what system did you actually devise to distribute the books.