Literacy Now

Since the kickoff of the ILD 60-for-60 challenge last month, IRA staffers have receive a daily treat in their email inboxes:  a 60-second literacy activity. For our latest two-week round, we imagined what it would be like to pack for a yearlong trip to space. There are some very specific parameters to what someone can bring to the International Space Station and we started small and went smaller.

For our personal belongings lockers, we asked questions that included what three CDs, books and movies had to be onboard, among other sentimental items. After admitting that, sure, you could take some type of tablet that could probably hold all the music, books, and movies you would ever want or need, we asked the staff to suspend their disbelief and work with us here. Our responses ran the gamut from The Bible to The Bell Jar, from reggae to experimental hip-hop.

IRA’s brand new copywriter, Jessica Abbey, had a 60-for-60 baptism by fire when she started midstream. She says getting the questions every day helped her transition into the organization while she’s still working remotely from Brooklyn. She says she’s already found some common ground with new coworkers, even if she hasn’t met them face-to-face yet.

“Overall, I think that the staff participating in the ILD 60 day challenge is a great idea, in that we are practicing the literacy lessons that we preach,” she says, “and having fun at the same time!”

The second week of our challenge made things even more difficult when we had to pack our Personal Preference Kits. Just 3-inches-by-3-inches, this kit can hold items that are small in size, big in meaning. A photo, a special lucky charm, a slip of paper—not much more can fit. So we asked about those things, including a favorite quote that would be of comfort during a long year away from Earth. Answers included song lyrics, passages from books, and quotes from athletes.

IRA Development Manager Rachel Krall said this latest round of activities is her favorite so far.

“Like getting lost in a great story, a 60-second literacy activity allows us to explore the world in new ways,” Krall says. “I personally have never dreamed of being an astronaut—just the idea of space makes me sweat—but allowing ourselves to dream, even if only for 60 seconds, shouldn’t be something that we lose as adults.”

As we enter the second half of the 60-for-60 challenge, the staff will have a chance for a little reflection from our 2014 ILD activity kit. Taking a cue from the “six-word memoir” movement, Jayme Gravell, IRA social media strategist, will send out a theme each day to inspire a six-word story (to be written in 60 seconds). Today’s prompt is “describe your weekend in six words.”

Can you? Share your six-word story at social@/.

April Hall is the editor of Reading Today Online. She can be contacted at ahall@/.

We’re nearly halfway through the International Literacy Day 60-for-60 challenge and had a blast with our “word of the day” activity for two weeks.

Every day social media strategist Jayme Gravell e-mailed the entire International Reading Association (IRA) staff with a word and its definition. (She also shared them via our Twitter account.) Some were obscure, some were fun to pronounce, some were downright difficult.

We made the word our own in a few different ways. Some responded to Jayme with a sentence using the word. Others took to social media to share the word of the day with friends and followers, and others worked it into conversation as much as possible, like Wes Ford, IRA digital projects manager.

“‘Hempy’ was probably my favorite word—both the sound and the definition (mischievous; often in trouble for mischief) appeal to me, being a bit hempy myself, but alas I failed to actually use it in conversation,” he said. “‘Rapier’ (extremely sharp or keen) was the one used most often the day it was announced, I think, but with a rapier wit like mine, this is not surprising.”

“Chansonette” (a little song; ditty) may have had the largest reach, spurring an extensive all-staff e-mail chain about a certain IRA director who is known for breaking into one at the drop of a hat. (Dan Mangan, we’re looking at you!)

Our challenge continues! For the next two weeks, IRA employees will be asked what sort of things they would bring if they were headed to the International Space Station for a yearlong mission. This was inspired by the “Pack It Up” activity in our 2014 kit. This week, we’re focusing on items for the Personal Belongings Locker; next week, we’ll turn our attention to the Personal Preference Kit, the items for which must be contained in a 3” x 3” bag.

The Personal Belonging Locker is tight for space, but astronauts have been known to pack books. So of course we asked our staff for three books that would be a must.

Several staffers said they would take the Bible, both for spiritual and literary reasons, in addition to selections including Shakespeare, a favorite installment of Harry Potter, Anna Karenina, and, naturally, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Which three books would you take? Let us know at social@/.

April Hall is the editor of Reading Today Online. She can be contacted at ahall@/.

Are you afraid of Captain Underpants, lead character of Dav Pilkey’s series of the same name? Does a superhero clad only in his underpants spark offensive language, violence, and danger? According to the American Library Association’s “Top Ten Challenged Books 2013”, the Captain Underpants series does that in the mind of many. It was the most challenged book last year and from the most well-known children’s books to relatable young adult novels and classics, books in schools are challenged for sexual explicitness, offensive language, and racism among a host of other reasons.

Young adult favorite The Hunger Games made the list for containing religious viewpoints and being unsuited for the 12-14 age level the story targets. Jeffrey Wilhelm, English professor at Boise State University and author of more than 20 literacy books, taught The Hunger Games as a lead-in to George Orwell’s 1984, a frequently challenged classic. He described how, by reading both books, students were interested in the topics at hand and reading strategy improved. “Reading [both texts] taught current culture and predictions of what might happen, making a text to world connection,” he says. “It is important to have [students reading] books related to their current state of being.”

Here’s the 2013 challenged book list:

1. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey
   Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group, violence
2. The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison
   Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, violence
3. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
   Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, offensive language, racism, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
4. Fifty Shades of Grey, by E.L. James
   Reasons: Nudity, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
5. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
   Reasons: Religious viewpoint, unsuited to age group
6. A Bad Boy Can Be Good for A Girl, by Tanya Lee Stone
   Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, nudity, offensive language, sexually explicit
7. Looking for Alaska, by John Green
   Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
8. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
   Reasons: drugs/alcohol/smoking, homosexuality, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group
9. Bless Me Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya
   Reasons: Occult/Satanism, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit
10. Bone (series), by Jeff Smith
    Reasons: Political viewpoint, racism, violence

Banned Books Week (Sept. 21-27) is meant to raise awareness of how books are still challenged or even removed as an option for school children. And, of course, there is no shortage of educators willing to speak out against book banning.

Many banned books deal with social issues children and teenagers are faced with. The censorship of such novels hinders students from gaining support through characters that reassure them they are not alone, experts say.

“I think it is a wonderful idea for students to be able to read and discuss books that are ‘edgy’ so once they leave their community to enter the world, they will be prepared to understand people and be tolerant of lifestyles and ideas other than their own,” says Nancy Bauman,  retired librarian and literacy consult. “Books can help students through problems they aren't able to discuss with others, and helps them to feel they are not 'alone' in having feelings that may be different than their peers or community.”

“I see it as limiting the intellectual freedom of students and teachers and an attempt to keep certain points of view from being expressed. By doing so, aren’t we banning ideas and limiting the free discussion of different ideas and viewpoints?” asks Barbara Ward, literacy professor at Washington State University and chair of International Reading Association’s Children’s Literature and Special Reading Interest Group.

“The honest truth is that there is probably something offensive in just about every book being published,” says Ward. “To try to stick to the safe book means lulling yourself into a false sense of complacency and refusing to stand up for anything. That’s a terrible lesson to learn or to teach to someone else.”

Morgan Ratner is the communications intern at the International Reading Association.

There is nothing International Reading Association would ask educators to do that we aren’t willing to do ourselves. So when the International Literacy Day 60-for-60 challenge was launched, asking teachers to engage their students in an extra 60 seconds of literacy-focused activities every day for 60 days, we wanted to get in on the fun, too.  As a staff, we agreed to take part in the challenge and squeeze an extra minute  into our days. Every weekday for 12 weeks, we’ll complete an activity from the ILD 2014 kit (get yours here). The kit contains suggested activities for ages 4 to 15+, including a category that’s appropriate for students of all ages. We’ve chosen variety of activities from each of the age groups and are tackling them in two-week intervals. For example, today we are finishing up the “Would You Rather…” activity (from the ages 4 to 8 section). Every day our social media strategist, Jayme Gravell, sent a question to the entire staff at IRA. We took a minute to think about it and debate our answers with co-workers and/or email a response to Jayme.

Here’s a sampling of our questions and answers:

Would you rather watch a Quidditch match or the Triwizard Tournament?

Anette Schuetz, creative services manager: "Quidditch is a wizarding sport played on broomsticks. Having been accused of riding a broomstick to work, I find this sport engaging!”

Would you rather live in Narnia or Oz?

Sara Long, web content manager: “That is a really tough question! I definitely wouldn't want to live in Narnia when it's winter all of the time without Christmas. After spring returns, though, Narnia is beautiful with all of the talking animals and creatures, but so is Oz. I guess I'd choose Narnia because I'd rather live in a place with a powerful Aslan than a bumbling Wizard.”

Would you rather take a ride in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or Stephen King’s Christine?

Vicki Morris, accounting and finance assistant: “This is an easy one for me. I would rather ride in Christine since I am a huge Stephen King fan (and I would be nice to her), as opposed to the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (I don’t fly in anything anymore).”

Would you rather have the power of invisibility or the power to fly?

Lara Deloza, communications manager: Hands down: power to fly. Because who wants to be invisible? Sure, it SOUNDS good in theory, but in practice? You’d end up seeing things you could never unsee, hearing things you could never unhear. Plus, flying is just awesome. And you’d save a heck of a lot on gas.

Would you rather take Ophelia or Juliet to the prom?

Bill Hyman, purchasing/facilities/contracts manager: “Can I go with neither? I mean they both died, and who needs that aggravation, am I right?”

Play along with today’s question: “Would you rather have street smarts or book smarts?”

As for our next activity, Jayme will send out a “word of the day” and its definition to staff. The challenge will be to see who can work the word into conversation as much as possible each day. Want to join in? Follow @IRAToday on Twitter starting Monday, September 22. Tell us how you’ve made the word yours over the course of the day!

Don’t forget to share all of your 60-for-60 activities with us. Email stories and photos to social@/ or post them to Twitter or the IRA Facebook page using the hashtag #ILD14.

April Hall is the editor of Reading Today Online. She can be reached at ahall@/.

Have some news you want to share with the whole of International Reading Association? Want to spotlight a colleague’s accomplishment or announce your own? In the ongoing effort to better serve our subscribers, Reading Today recently started a “Member Spotlight” section with the spotlight on—you guessed it—our members.

If you take a look at the September/October issue of the magazine, you’ll notice the section has pertinent information about free benefits for IRA members, as well as a new feedback page called “In Your Words.” Starting in the November/December issue, we’ll take it a step further with our “News & Notes” member news page.

Members should submit career news, including new books published (professional development, fiction, nonfiction, etc.), awards/grants, promotions/retirements, and the like. Please include contact information and links to background information, if applicable, for verification. Photographs must be 300 dpi for reproduction and may be PNG, JPEG or GIF files. Submissions, which must be 200 words or less, may be edited for clarity or length, and IRA reserves the right to all final editorial decisions. Due to space, anything not included in Reading Today may be published on Reading Today Online.

Submissions should be sent either in Word or copied into the e-mail, with separate photo attachments, to readingtoday@/ with the subject line “News & Notes.”

For your news to be included in the debut “News & Notes” page in the November/December issue, submissions must be sent by Oct. 8.

April Hall is the editor of Reading Today Online. She can be contacted at ahall@/.