|
|
|
|
|
Small People,
Big Topics
Open Books is all about the positive power of poetry this month (and always!), so we decided to showcase some work of a heavier variety. Are you eager to know what students say about the very mature topics of war and peace? Satisfy your curiosity by reading the poetry of 5th and 6th grade students from The Frances Xavier Warde School here. |
|
Open Books Recommends:
Over the last several weeks, we've been reading G. Neri's heartbreaking graphic novel, Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty, with a group of enthusiastic 9th graders at Chicago Talent Development Charter High School in West Garfield Park.
Read more about our experience teaching graphic novels and why we have loved delving into Yummy.
|
Thanks to all of you who have contributed to the Treasure Trove so far. The books you donate go straight into the hands of students who desperately need them!
This month, we are seeking books of -- yup, you guessed it, poetry!
Learn more about our Treasure Trove here and donate a title today!
|
|
Open Books
Wants You!
You read. You write. You care about literacy.
Take your enthusiasm to the next level by becoming an Open Books volunteer!
|
|
|
|
Dear friends of Open Books,
It's National Poetry Month, and we couldn't be more thrilled to have yet another opportunity to showcase and celebrate our students' words -- and better still, how they turn those words into actions and positive change.
This month, we also had the honor of being featured on NBC's Nightly News with Brian Williams. We're proud to be recognized in their Making a Difference segment and we're eager to share the clip with you, our fabulous supporters and literacy advocates.
Read on to watch Open Books on the news, learn about the genesis of our pencil costume, and find out about recent developments in our upcoming Make the Case event!
Anna Piepmeyer Program Director
|
|
Open Books on NBC!
Open Books was featured on NBC's Nightly News with Brian Williams! NBC Education Correspondent Rehema Ellis narrates the Making A Difference clip, which showcases our Adventures in Creative Writing field trips, Buddies program, and unique social venture bookselling model.
Thank you, NBC, for sharing our vision of enriching lives through reading, writing, and the UNLIMITED power of used books!
See The Clip
You can help us Make a Difference!
Donate books,
shop at our store and online,
or make a contribution.
|
|
The Unwritten
and the Power of Poetry
"Inside this pencil/Crouch words that have never been written/" are the lines that begin W.S. Merwin's imaginative poem, The Unwritten.
Merwin's poem is about the potential for writing, about words buried in the dark of the pencil lead, waiting to be put on paper. As any of you who have been a part of our Adventures in Creative Writing field trips know, The Unwritten is a venerated tradition at Open Books. Almost every morning, we meet with eager groups of students and delve into the difficult poem, asking them to explain nebulous phrases like "dark in the dark" and "every pencil in the world is like this." To help get our creative juices flowing, we don our signature pencil costume to impersonate being pencils ourselves, and then we pose the ultimate question: how can a poem about a pencil possibly teach us anything about being writers?
Poetry is an important avenue for students to share their wisdom and reflect on their challenges. For young readers, recognizing rhyme and rhythm are critical strategies for helping students understand how to build words and decode sounds; for older students, poetry's freedom from grammatical rules can be a way to express themselves creatively, allowing their thoughts to flow out onto paper.
Going back to The Unwritten, here's the quick answer: Merwin's poem teaches us that we are all writers, and that words don't come from pencils, they come from us -- our stories, our experiences, our way of moving in the world and making observations about our surroundings and our emotions.
And hey, dressing up as a giant pencil in the meanwhile never hurt anybody.
|
|
Make the Case for Literacy
You're invited to join Open Books at Make the Case, our first annual bookcase-decorating contest and fundraiser!
What: Enjoy Piece pizza, Haymarket craft beer, and live music while witnessing the spectacle of teams transforming standard bookcases into works of art. At the end of the event, Open Books will fill the cases with books and deliver them to local charities. In fact, we have already Made the Match between Catalyst Ranch and its beneficiary, A Safe Haven! Read about the match here!
Why: Support Open Books' literacy programming AND help put books in the hands of people without access to them.
Who: Authors Patrick Somerville, Amy Guth, and Jonathan Messinger will judge the cases based on creativity, execution, and fidelity to the theme.
Where: Enclave, 213 W. Institute Pl.
When: Friday, May 13 6-9 pm
Tickets: $35
Team Signup: $400 (up to 5 people)
Get your tickets or register your team now!
Generously Sponsored By:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Did you know that Open Books publishes 3 newsletters every month? Sign up for What's In Store, Volunteer Vanguard, and Literacy Landscape now!
Open Books is a nonprofit social venture that operates an extraordinary bookstore, provides community programs, and mobilizes passionate volunteers to promote literacy in Chicago and beyond. We enhance lives through reading, writing, and the WONDROUS power of used books. |
|
|
