Progress report on CLEL's LSTA grant project: "Building Reading Readiness"

CLEL members who were able to attend last November's annual meeting heard about the latest LSTA grant project we are working on, which is to create a website with videos of rhymes/fingerplays and songs with early literacy tips.  Patricia Froehlich, Youth Services Senior Consultant with the Colorado State Library, has submitted this report on CLEL's progress on the grant so far:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2009 -1010 LSTA Grant:  “Online Road to Reading”

Mid-year Report to Jean Marie Heilig, LSTA Grant Coordinator, Colorado State Library

General overview of accomplishments to date: 

• We have a new name for the website:  “Building Reading Readiness” that will use the building blocks concept in the CLEL logo.
• Framework committee has created the general “look” and functionality that we want in the new website.
• Website committee has issued an RFP for a website designer.
• Content committee has selected 30 potential fingerplays and songs that will be featured.
• Content committee has created scripts for the 16 video clips that will be produced and featured online.
• Production committee has auditioned about 15 librarians and storytime presenters and selected 8 performers and 2 alternates.
• Production committee has overseen the taping of the 8 performers who did 2 songs or fingerplays each.  Four of them are in Spanish.
• Rocky Mountain PBS (RMPBS) has completed taping all 8 performers and is in the process of editing the performances to the required 60-second length.
• Evaluation committee has met and decided the outcomes we want for our website usage.
• Marketing committee has met and created a general plan for material and activities to support website launch, currently planned for April 2010.
•  15 librarians auditioned and 8 were selected as performers:
  • Cydney Clink and son (2 yrs.) – Poudre River Public Library District – Fort Collins.: “Itsy Bitsy Spider” and “Snowflakes”
  • Becky Corning - Exempla Lutheran Medical Center Library:  “Alphabet Monster” and “Monster Rhyme”
  • Taliah Abdullah and son (6 months) – Denver Public Library: “Baby Hop” and “Slowly, Slowly”
  • Mary Kuehner – Jefferson County Public Library:  “Can You Stretch?” and “Un Elefante”
  • Cindy Frye - Fort Morgan Public Library:  “Choo Choo Train” and “Soft Kitty, Warm Kitty"
  • Emilia Valerio – Denver Public Library: “Los Pollitos Dicen” and “De Colores”
  • Larry Maynard – Jefferson County Public Library: “Rain is Falling Down” and “Chocolate, Chocolate” (Spanish)
  • Cliff Davidson –  Douglas County Libraries: “ Dinosaur Rhyme
• Goal 2: CLEL, in partnership with RMPBS, will produce unique video clips of songs, rhymes, and stretches for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers.  (90% completed)
• Goals 1, 3, and 4 are still in process.

Anecdotal results

Cynthia Hessin, Rocky Mountain PBS:  We can’t believe how prepared the “talent” for the project is.  We planned about 90 minutes for each taping session.  One took only 20 minutes, and most of the others took 45 – 60 minutes. 

Cynthia Hessin:  Rocky Mountain PBS: We were taping one of the librarians and her 2-year-old.  After about 5 takes, the baby was getting more and more restless.  As I went into the control room as said that we’d do a take with just the mother, the baby performed perfectly… cut and print!

Bonnie McCune (production assistance):  I think the [RMPBS] production people were surprised at how professional and natural our folks were on camera.

Cindy Frye, Fort Morgan Public Library: “I’ve been practicing the two rhymes with my storytime groups.  Last Thursday, we ran out of time and didn’t do the “Soft Kitty” song.  One of my regulars, a little girl said… but Miss Cindy, we have to do the kitty song!  So we just stopped getting the kids ready to go and sang it all together.  It really showed me how much they learn by just doing the same song over and over.  They’re singing louder and better with all of the songs we do in storytime.”  For the Choo Choo rhyme, the movements and the rhyme tell a story through words and actions, helping the children to understand opposites like forward and back. This kind of storytelling helps younger children to learn more easily.”  See related article:  www.fortmorgantimes.com/fort-morgan-community/ci_14478757

Note:  Cindy is one of the new librarians who were part of the “Enhancing Library Storytimes” 2008-2009 LSTA grant.  She is an example of the power of that training project. 

Saroj Ghoting, www.earlylit.net/  “I’m very excited that your video clips will have early literacy tips with the songs and fingerplays.  Other websites have good video clips but don’t connect them with parent tips and how important these are to help children become ready to learn to read.”  [personal communication to Carol Edwards, Denver Public Library].

Patricia Froehlich

Youth Services Senior Consultant

Colorado State Library