Spreading the wordAnd Libraries aren't just for books. At least our library here in Corry isn't. It is a place to play literacy games, do arts and crafts (we have a die cut machine with some awesome dies), get movies, play with educational toys, share ideas with friends, surf the internet, and well yeah read some good books. Smile. And we have books on cassette tape . Our library is a non for profit organization, they don't get any County funding. Shelley L. Rhodes, VRT Guide dogs for the Blind Alumni Association www.guidedogs.com Reading a book is like rewriting it for yourself. You bring to a novel, anything you read, all your experience of the world. You bring your history and you read it in your own terms. -Angela Carter, novelist and journalist (1940-1992) ----- Original Message ----- From: Valerie Maples To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Wednesday, December 02, 2009 12:03 PM Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Spreading the word Dear Kim; After having had mixed results on other levels, I met with our head librarian at our local library with some trepidation. My fears were totally unfounded, and he was incredibly interested in finding ways to promote Bookshare, even being willing to contact the staff and ask if we could keep brochures at our local library and instruct the librarians about its existence. Unfortunately, occasionally in this tight economic times or just because the personalities occasionally you find librarians that feel like you are taking away from their library, rather than enhancing the gift of literacy. You never know which kind of library and you will get unless you know them well. Nichole finally got an opportunity to meet Jan yesterday, and he was absolutely ecstatic about getting to put a face with the name of a little girl who has encouraged so many people to get library cards and to begin going to the library. He has been instrumental in getting me books from out-of-state when necessary and waving the fees to us so that I could work on a book for Bookshare. I am incredibly grateful to him. We are still very limited compared to other cities/states, but he is a gem! Sadly, the schools on the other hand, are of totally different mind. They all feel that it is too much work and not worth their time. I probably need to make contact with the librarians within the schools, but since the special education teachers or other professionals are the ones to sign the authorizations, getting in with the librarians usually isn't good enough unless they already have well-established relationships with the said teachers. On the other hand, they might be an "inside" ally. The truly sad part is most of our self-contained classrooms here don't ever see a library, and that is absolutely criminal in my opinion. I have yet to find a child who hasn't enjoyed the library, despite expectations that kids who have not been read to or are not literate would not like it. Every child we have taken to the library has been in total awe that there are so many different books in one place. The key is in getting them there within individual, preferably a friend, parent, or teacher, who enjoys reading. From there you can teach them about book responsibility. In the meantime, I keep plugging away. Smiles. Have a great day! Valerie From: bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Kim Friedman Sent: Wednesday, December 02, 2009 3:37 AM To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Spreading the word Hi, I'm wondering if we could call librarians and ask them "Have you ever heard of Bookshare?" I'm wondering what they'd make of this. I'm wondering if librarians, teachers, and folks concerned with literacy out of general principles might be interested. I know bookstore owners are interested in making a profit. We are contributing somewhat to their profit margins when we buy books from them. Just a thought. I think I'll ask librarians near me if they've heard of Bookshare. Now I must tell them how to contact the organization we all know and love. Regards, Kim.