Go on Record: Día Program Registration

Día, El día de los niños,El día de los libros/Children’s Day,Book Day, is a daily commitment: day by day, día por día. Hundreds of annual Día events occur across the country in April. In the spirit of Día, these book fiestas are literacy celebrations that unite communities. Often reading advocates including parents and families collaborate in planning how best to share bookjoy. Join us by insuring that Día is celebrated at your libraries and schools and make sure to promote their local event(s) by registering your program in the 2013 National Día Program Registry. I'm so grateful to ALSC (Association of Library Service to Children)  and REFORMA (National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking) for collaborating with me in expanding Día's impact. In 2013, let's share bookjoy and help grow a nation of readers.

April Literary and Literacy Celebrations

April: an exciting literary and literacy month! Look at the varying observances in this Wordle and savor the thought that all over the country diverse people and organizations work to share bookjoy.

Apply Now for the USBBY Bridge to Understanding Award

The USBBY (United States Board on Books for Young People) Bridge to Understanding Award Committee seeks to identify and honor innovative programs that use children's literature as a way to promote international understanding.

Schools, libraries, scout troops, clubs and bookstores are all eligible for this award. Does your school or library program or do you know of another organization that "promotes reading as a way to expand a child's world"?

Learn more about the award, view information about past winners, and access entry, criteria, and application forms here. Submission deadline for the next award is January 31, 2012.

Bookjoy at NCTE

As a former English teacher, there’s always something exciting for me about being invited to speak at NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English). I joked with the Random House team (the press that was kind enough to sponsor me) that many teens might shiver at the thought of the two Chicago hotels full of English teachers.

I had the pleasure of preparing for two programs. I say “pleasure” because I love presenting as much as I love writing and because such preparations are opportunities to think, and we all know that creating thinking time can be a challenge. I joined poet Joyce Sidman and two faculty members in offering a master class on “Poetic Voices: Writing, Reading and Responding to Poetry.” Frankly, I seldom have the opportunity to hear another writer, and I so enjoyed hearing Joyce read her fine poems and explain how a poem evolves for her. For the first time, I prepared a PowerPoint of my books of poems and rhymes in the order the books were published. In addition to reading some poems especially from Dizzy in Your Eyes: Poems About Love, I asked the audience to think about what voices (and languages) are included in our poetry. I was asking: who belongs in poems and what do poets look like?

I was introduced at the Conference on English (CEL) breakfast by my friend Dr. R. Joseph Rodríguez from the University of Texas. Joseph, a dear friend, often knows my work better than I do. I struggle almost daily to find time to continue my own writing and to promote Día  and family literacy. I seldom consciously sit and think about leadership, also a topic of great interest to me. My title, “Creatively Practicing Resilience: The Zing of Bookjoy” allowed me to address some of my key themes but also to explore potential: our personal potential as leaders, the potential of the literature and literacy field, and the potential of our collaborators.

May we all be bolder and more creative leaders in 2012! Wishing you health, happiness and bookjoy.

In 1986, I was fortunate to receive a Kellogg National Leadership Fellowship, a three-year experience that greatly enriched my life. In 2001, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation published a book entitled, Leading from the Heart: The Passion to Make a Difference. My essay and its introduction are from that book. It’s interesting how many of the ideas in this piece are part of ZING! published in 2010.

Meet the 2011 Mora Award Winners

I'm so pleased that the contact personnel at the two 2011 Mora Award winning libraries agreed to a blog interview. First we'll hear from Sylvia Cisneros, Senior Librarian, Youth Services at the Santa Ana Public Library (CA.)

1. How did you first become interested in Día and how long ago was that?
SC: I had the privilege to live in Mexico for eleven years, between the ages of one and twelve. During that time, I learned and lived everything about the Mexican community like never imagined. Día de los Niños has been one of the most important celebrations within my family and the Mexican community. Schools, businesses and large organizations close every year on this day to dedicate it to the children in Mexico. This was not an exemption in our small town, called El Granjenal in the state of Michoacan. This celebration stayed with me all my life, and therefore, when I started conducting Spanish storytime in 2002, I always had the desire to incorporate Día as part of my themes. It wasn’t until 2007 that I decided to celebrate, and without knowing that Día already existed within libraries, I created my own program. It was a simple program, with games, stories, and cupcakes for the kids.

Sylvia's school

2. When did you begin to plan your 2011 celebration? Did you work with a team and who created the team?
SC: Our planning for our 2011 celebration began in November of 2010. This was going to be our 3rd year celebration and we knew we wanted to have a greater celebration than what we had in our previous years, therefore Lupita Vega (Youth Services Principal Librarian) and I, decided that we were going to have all the youth services staff involved in the project.

Sylvia and her team
Top row, L to R: Michelle Loera, Linda Hanks, Lupita Vega, Olga Gallardo, Rose Navarro
Bottom row, L to R: Elvia Hernandez, Sylvia Cisneros, Kevin Le

3. What do you think made your 2011 celebration special?
SC: The enthusiasm from our team members and the community was great, and this made the entire planning process and the event itself to come out as expected. The invited authors, book sale, and special performances made this celebration especial!

4. How do you and your library feel about winning the Mora Award?
SC: Día has become our most attended event in our library and therefore the most important. Winning the Mora Award is very satisfying; it brings us joy! Most important it lets us know in that we are doing a wonderful job promoting literacy, cultures and celebrating children all at the same time.

5. What did you learn from your celebration this year?

SC: I have learned that Día can really bring families together and that it can be an event that not only promotes the importance of reading but that it informs our community on different services that they probably are not aware of and from which they can benefit from.

6. What three key pieces of advice would you give to those ready to plan their first Día celebration in spring 2012? Advice to those who have celebrated before?
SC: For those libraries that will be planning their first Día, my advice would be:

1) Start planning and promoting early 2) Always work with a team 3) Don’t be afraid to go big and ask organizations for help.

For those who have celebrated before, my advice is to continue with the celebration, and to find ways of making their event larger and better each year.

7. Do you think of yourself as creative?
SC: I believe everyone is creative. As we start imagining, ideas come out. When I plan any events, I think of originality, and look for alternatives and possibilities, but I always think about the audience we will be serving in the program. I focus on the words FUN and EDUCATIONAL and proceed from there.

8. Why are Día and sharing bookjoy important to you?
SC: Día is very important for me and the staff here at Santa Ana because we are not only celebrating with the community an event that they respect and believe in but because we incorporate and make it stronger by promoting the joy of books. We try to promote the pleasure of reading, the outcomes of a good reader, and the importance of sharing books as a family.

My name is Emily Ziglinski and I am the Latino Liaison for the Springfield Public Library (OR.) I have been working in libraries for about 8 years and with the Latino community for over 20. Being a librarian is the best job in the world. I am soooo lucky to do what I do.

1. How did you first become interested in Día and how long ago was that?
EZ: My first library job was with Multnomah Public Library in Portland, Oregon. I was hired as a bilingual clerk and worked at the St Johns branch. I started working for MCL in 2003, the year after they had won the Mora Award. We had a wonderful bilingual Library Assistant who was in charge of organizing our Día event. I learned a lot from her in how she involved our community and really made it a neighborhood celebration. My contribution to the event was helping with the table activities, which were literacy based. My experience helping with and observing the Día events at MCL during my three years working there, definitely helped me be prepared for organizing the event here at Springfield Public Library.

2. When did you begin to plan your 2011 celebration? Did you work with a team and who created the team?
EZ: I had a small, but dedicated team for our Día event; our wonderful library volunteer, Faviola Arceo Garcia and the Latino Liaison for the Girl Scouts in our area, Martha Morales, and myself. We started working on ideas in January. I have already had community members and organizations asking to be involved for Día 2012!

3. What do you think made your 2011 celebration special?  EZ: Community involvement

4. How do you and your library feel about winning the Mora Award?
EZ: We are ecstatic! We are pleased as a smaller library to be recognized for our work reflecting and embracing our entire community. The monetary award also triples our program budget for Día, for this we are VERY thankful.

5. What did you learn from your celebration this year?
EZ: I need to schedule more people to help with clean-up! This is true, but seriously, I think that the thing I learned most from Día this year is that once you have your base program plan in place, it is easy for the event to generate excitement and grow on its own. This was my second year planning Día for SPL and so I had a general idea of what the day would look like. I could then concentrate my energy on bringing more people to the table. With each person that gets involved more energy and ideas are generated. It becomes organic – growing and blooming with only a little care. It is fun to watch and to be a part of.

6. What three key pieces of advice would you give to those ready to plan their first Día celebration in spring 2012? Advice to those who have celebrated before?
EZ: First Día – 1) Know your community: who will come, who can help, what languages and cultures do you need to consider when planning, etc. 2) Give away books in the different languages of your community if you can. We did not have enough for every child, but we had a raffle. Kids were so excited to have a new book. I think it also helps tie the whole day together – a fun day dedicated to BOOKJOY! 3) Take good notes to build on your base for the future.

To those who have celebrated before: One of the goals of Día is promoting literacy, be open minded about what can be considered a literacy-based activity. Some parents have a low literacy level, so including crafts & activities that they can participate in with their children is important. For example we had a piñata making workshop as part of our celebration. Parents and children talked about designs and parents shared stories with their children. These narratives are a part of literacy.

7. Do you think of yourself as creative? EZ: Yes, but not when talking about myself. (smile)

8. Why are Día and sharing bookjoy important to you?
EZ: I believe in the power of knowledge and the power of community, I guess that is why I became a public librarian. Día and bookjoy are really about embracing these two concepts. Plus, Día is about celebrating children, and programming for children is one aspect I love about my job.

NCTE Supports Día

From April 5 issue of the NCTE Inbox:

Celebrate El día de los niños / El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day)

In its 2005 Resolution, NCTE supports El día de los niños / El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day) because the day recognizes that students who participate in culturally and linguistically diverse literacy activities at home, in school, and in the community are more successful readers. Use the ReadWriteThink calendar entry and celebrate Día on April 30!

Red Oak Books

Warm congratulations to my friends at Red Oak Books in Fort Worth, Texas!  Today, they celebrate thirteen years in which they have donated 337,294 books to children in their city.  Now that's an example to for local and state foundations to follow throughout this country.

15 Día Nuggets: #11 Families as Día Partners

To assist those of you planning Día celebrations at your schools, libraries, etc., we’re sharing 15 Día Nuggets, 15 lists of 15 items to assist you in your planning. This month during our second Díapalooza, we’ll finish with Nuggets 11, 12, and 13; showcase the 15 Día Dynamos, and share Bookjoy quotes from kids, our final Nugget.

All 15 Nuggets are available as completed on Pat's web site, individually and as a single downloadable packet.

15 Día Nuggets for Día’s 15th Anniversary

#11 Families as Día Partners

Since Día is a daily commitment, creatively involve parents, adult and young adult family members throughout the year as literacy partners. This list focuses on the particular role libraries and schools play in empowering families who may not view themselves as literacy mentors. Diverse strategies are essential for motivating all community families to be reading families.


1. Provide staff training to increase the effectiveness of literacy programming and outreach for diverse populations within the community.

2. Affirm the importance of multilingual families as literacy partners by using multiple languages in greetings and on signs, ads, web pages, graphics, posters and in family bookjoy sessions throughout the year.

3. Partner with families who speak other languages in presenting bilingual story times, programs, and literacy games.

4. Demystify the library with family tours and presentations that address the interests and concerns of the families served, showcase resources and encourage participation in programs such as Summer Reading.

5. Engage families as storytellers and in creating and sharing literacy posters and kits, and in exploring ways to create and share stories digitally.

6. Model creative strategies for instilling bookjoy at home such as sharing family stories and reading together.

7. Be innovative in helping families create libraries at home, seeking book donations where possible.

8. Introduce and model reading, writing, and arts activities including having families write, illustrate and share their own books.

9. Establish monthly family literacy nights at which students, teachers, and families collaborate in presenting thematic storytelling, puppet shows, etc. to the community.

10. Provide relevant sessions to assist families to be literacy advocates in their family and community, tailoring sessions to their reading practices and languages.

11. With families as partners, plan, implement and assess family literacy leadership training as part of your efforts to empower families within the school or library community.

12. Start an outreach storytelling program in which families volunteer at hospitals and retirement homes or in which older children read aloud to younger ones.

13. Form book clubs for the various literacy levels in your community by assessing the impact of literacy and literature programs on the various communities served.

14. Encourage families to visit the local public and school libraries, to volunteer, check out materials, and collaborate in Día celebration programming.

15. Invite families to be active members of your Día celebration planning committee. You’ll wonder how you got along without their fresh ideas and enthusiasm.

This Month's Día Dynamo is Joseph Rodriguez

R. Joseph Rodriguez &
nephew Pete Ezekiel Rodriguez

About twenty years ago, when I was still living in El Paso, I received a letter from a boy in Houston asking if I would be his “poet friend.” The boy, Joseph Rodriguez, now my cherished friend, included his photo. The first ten Día Dynamos are librarians, most working in public libraries. With Joseph, I introduce other equally committed dynamos who don’t spend their days with library patrons. Joseph’s doctorate is in education, and he works at the University of Texas at Austin on improving teaching effectiveness. In the years I’ve had the pleasure to know Joseph, he has been a creative advocate for diversity and for literacy, for bookjoy. His passion and planning consistently inspire me. Gracias, Joseph, for your commitment to Día.



1. When and how did you become interested in sharing bookjoy?
RJR: In 2001, a group of community organizers and I got together to advance family literacy and promote college readiness. We founded the East End Education Project in Houston, Texas. We established “Bookjoy in the East End,” an annual program to celebrate the power and joy of languages, books, and storytelling. We established partnerships with the Children’s Museum of Houston, Houston Chronicle, Houston Community College, HoustonPBS Channel 8, and Houston Public Library, among others.

2. How did you first learn about Día and what has been your experience with Día?
RJR: I learned about Día in 1996, and since then I have worked with literacy teams and volunteers to adopt and promote Día. I have seen Día grow in the lives of children and families in places where I have lived: Gambier, Ohio; Willimantic, Connecticut; Houston and Austin, Texas.

3. What are your hopes for Día 2011, Día’s 15th Anniversary?
RJR: I hope that more organizations and schools adopt and promote Día—even on a daily basis—and recognize how relevant multiple literacies are to create and interpret meaning across world languages and human cultures. Literacy has been my passport to discover worlds beyond my own, and I want to share this experience and Día with more generations of readers and thinkers.

4. What helpful tip(s) do you have for those organizing a Día event for the first time?
RJR: My recommendation would be to adopt the practice of collaboration with organizations and businesses committed to linking families and children to books and diverse languages. Our Día work in many towns and cities across the country has been strengthened with people who recognize the benefits of literacy and multilingualism in the lives of readers of all ages, colors, and abilities.

5. What is your favorite example of Bookjoy as either a child or an adult?
RJR: A few years ago, I explained to an editor at the Houston Chronicle how our family would sit together in our living room to work on puzzles and board games or we would find our favorite reading spot in our house, including the front patio and backyard. Literacy happened everywhere and even in public spaces: riding on Houston’s MTA buses to the supermercado or neighborhood library or even while eating a raspa at the park. Words and ideas were alive—then and now. I am fascinated at how interconnected the word libre is to libro.

6. What are you reading now?
RJR: Every day, I read and reread to shape my thinking and creativity.

I just finished reading Pat Mora’s letters to teachers in ZING! Seven Creativity Practices for Educators and Students (2010). As an educator, I am motivated to practice my personal creativity with my students.

I am enjoying Evidence (2009), a volume of poems by Mary Oliver.

A native of Wisconsin recommended Rascal (1963) by Sterling North, and I am learning about a young boy’s adventures and how animals can become our best friends.

Since I was a young boy, I have been interested in the Statue of Liberty, which was originally named “Liberty Enlightening the World.” (Isn’t that a great name for a statue that also describes the power of literacy?) At a school book fair in Creedmoor, Texas, I found Lady Liberty: A Biography (2008) written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Matt Tavares. The words and art capture the detail and history of this gift to the U.S. from the French.

A Grand Autumn

What a glorious autumn in Santa Fe! Though soon all the gold leaves on the aspens and cottonwoods will fly away, they have been stunning and a grand source of energy. I’ve been traveling again: two wonderful Texas visits, to Brownsville and Fort Worth. At the former, I met many children, and wonderful librarians and community members very excited about growing Día in that region. In Fort Worth, I saw about a thousand students in two days from 250 kindergarteners—at once, and beautifully behaved; to a group of teens interested in creative writing. Again, I met more committed librarians. How they energize me and how grateful I am to them and to the wonderful teachers with whom they work. And speaking of teens, I was fortunate to be on a poetry panel at YALSA organized by poetry champion Dr. Sylvia Vardell. I so enjoyed meeting librarians who savor working with young adults. My final trips of 2010 are to the Savannah Book Festival and to NCTE in Orlando.


This fall season seemed a good time to post an essay on leadership (and geese) that I wrote years ago. Interesting that many of the ideas surfaced again in my newest book, ZING! Hope you enjoy the essay.

Wishing you a Thanksgiving that includes lots of laughter and becomes a wonderful and sustaining memory in your life. I’ll have two of my children and a dear son-in-law (I call him my son-in-spirit) here with me. I’m giddy with delight.

Literacy News

We’re catching up on some literacy related news that we didn’t get to last month. Reach Out and Read, the non-profit, national initiative that fosters reading readiness as a crucial element of school success, launched a Spanish-language version  of its website in mid-April. The ROR program already serves Latino children and families, and 86% of programs serve families for whom Spanish is their first language. The new website offers a multitude of resources including reading tips, recommended booklists, (including some of Pat’s books) guide to developmental milestones, and information on how Spanish-speaking families can support or volunteer for ROR in their communities.

Literacy Quote of the Week

"Many things we need can wait. The child cannot. Now is the time his bones are formed, his mind developed. To him we cannot say tomorrow, his name is today."

                                                  — Gabriela Mistral

Charlotte Mecklenburg Celebrates Día

This year the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library celebrates Día with author/illustrator Keiko Kasza. There'll be readings and signings, roving performers, theatre and puppets, books and music, and a book give-away.

These pictures represent the last three Día celebrations at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library (formally Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.) You can see more on the library's Flickr site.

Thanks to our guest blogger Meryle A. Leonard, Outreach Manager/ Community Engagement Department at the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

Día and Colorín Colorado

I hadn't heard of Día until I came to Colorín Colorado, but I quickly found that one of my favorite parts of the job was to learn more about multicultural children's books and the work of authors like Pat Mora. One of the early things I did as a website manager was to update our Día resources, which gave me a great introduction to the celebration.
Every year I track Día events around the country through news stories; it has been wonderful to see Día spread like wildfire as more communities begin to look for ways to bring Latino families together around reading and books. I think Día gives educators and librarians who may be new to working with Latinos a familiar model that can serve as a multicultural/multilingual bridge. It also encourages them to take a fresh look at their bilingual/Spanish-language books, resources, and literacy programs so that they can start building their own outreach efforts to the Latino community.

Many thanks to our guest blogger Lydia Breiseth, Website Manager at Colorín Colorado. We'll run a full interview about Lydia's work at Colorín Colorado in May. 

Literacy Quote of the Week

Reading makes immigrants of us all. It takes us away from home, but more important, it finds homes for us everywhere.
~ Hazel Rochman ~

Literacy Quote of the Week

Each Sunday during Díapalooza we'll post a literacy quote in addition to our regular post.

“It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth reading. Something that will stretch their imaginations--something that will help them make sense of their own lives and encourage them to reach out toward people whose lives are quite different from their own.”
                                     -- Katherine Paterson

Announcements

There's still time to register for the National Celebration of Latino Children’s Literature Conference, Connecting Cultures and Celebrating Cuentos, at the University of Alabama April 23 and 24. Nationally-recognized Latino children’s literature expert Oralia Garza de Cortés, award-winning Latina author Monica Brown, and award-winning illustrator Rafael López are all keynote speakers. There'll be breakout sessions, research posters, talks by authors and illustrators, and book signings.

The Reading Tub and others in the Kidlitosphere are winding down the annual blog tour for literacy, Share a Story - Shape a Future. The encouraging and enthusiastic posts offer a huge collection of ideas and thoughts about engaging children and teens as readers and building a community of literacy advocates.

Logo created by Elizabeth Dulemba

Doesn’t a night of storytelling sound like a grand family literacy program? REFORMA is planning such March festivities for Noche de Cuentos. The press release from REFORMA reads:

“The National Association to Promote Library & Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking is launching Noche de Cuentos 2010, a family literacy focus program generously supported by the American Library Association as part of ALA President Camila Alire’s Family Literacy Focus Initiative. Noche de Cuentos will be celebrated March 20-27, 2010 in conjunction with World Storytelling Day, observed during the spring equinox on March 20.

REFORMA invites families from Latino communities across the United States to join the global community in the celebration of World Storytelling Day and gather at their libraries to share stories, songs and experiences from their families, their communities, or their countries.

“REFORMA believes that storytelling and the oral traditions are key in the transmission and preservation of culture, as well as a significant tool in developing literacy skills,” says Loida Garcia-Febo, President of REFORMA. The mission of Noche de Cuentos is to promote and preserve the art of storytelling within our Latino communities in the US. “Our language and our stories bind us together, they make us stronger,” says Garcia-Febo.”

In writing about her presidential initiative, Camila Alire noted in the November issue of American Libraries, “The plans [to develop family literacy projects and programs that can be replicated by libraries] are in the spirit of ALA’s Association of Library Service to Children’s El día de los Niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day), the family literacy program founded by Pat Mora in collaboration with the ALA affiliate REFORMA.” How wonderful to see Día’s influence spreading!

Yuri Morales created this amazing poster!

School and Public Library Collaboration for Día Events

When we read Hope Crandall's article "Community Collaboration for a Día Celebration," co-authored with Mary Parra and Deeda Chamberlain and published in the Winter 2009 issue of OLA Quarterly, we knew we wanted to interview her for the blog. Her enthusiasm and support of Día is infectious.

Hope Crandall provides library services in English and Spanish at Washington Elementary School in Woodburn, OR. She loves multicultural celebrations for all
ages. Hope is a member of OASL, OLA, and REFORMA.


Left to right: Mary Parra, Hope Crandall and Deeda Chamberlain

1. You've been involved in creating and maintaining successful collaborations between public and school libraries to plan and hold Día events. What are three key factors that ensure successful collaboration?
a) begin planning together at least 6 months in advance
b) maintain the focus on family and children’s literacy
c) leverage your unique pool of resources and patrons to plan a wide variety of activities and entertainment appealing to all participants

2. Tell us about some of your favorite literacy-based activities.
a) family members write and illustrate favorite riddles, proverbs, or tongue-twisters with examples of culturally and linguistically appropriate books on hand to view
b) rent a book character costume to roam the event for family photos and promotion of his/her books
c) wheel of fortune with book-related questions and literacy-related prizes
d) origami or similar craft books and supplies for a make-and-take option

3.In your article you point out that Día can be customized to fit any community size or ethnic configuration.? How do you go about reinforcing that idea within your community?
Each year we get better at knowing the needs and wants of our community. At a minimum these include the basic considerations of culture, religion, language, parent work schedules, transportation, and major commitments the families may have such as sports. Everything we plan aims to maximize the benefit and appeal to all our families. The event activities feature print and audiovisual resources, performing arts, food, and games which represent the interests of our three major ethnic groups: Latino, Russian, and Anglo. Private, parochial, and public schools, as well as child care centers, pre-schools, and houses of worship are contacted to sponsor activities and promote Día with their children and families.

4.What are you most excited about for Día 2010?
greater involvement of our Russian community

5.What do you think can be done on a statewide or national basis to increase Día's visibility in schools?
a) tie it to the school’s mandate for parent involvement and family literacy
b) configure it to the goals of each individual school or school district
c) know it is BookJOY, and a valuable break from testing mandates
d) give the school staff the necessary “release” time to plan and implement it

6.I always ask this question when interviewing for Pat. What's your most memorable Bookjoy experience as a child or adult?
The whole arc: know the Spanish book needs and wants of my staff and students, go to the annual Guadalajara International Book Fair, find and buy the books, have them rebound in industrial strength bindings, process the books, and share them with my students, staff, and parents. The critical segment of this arc is finding and buying the Spanish books. The joyful segment is reading the books to the children, and handing the books to the patrons.

International Literacy Day

September 8 is International Literacy Day, a day of reflection and celebration when a community of nations hosts
local and national events that recognize the value of literacy to individuals, families, and communities. The International Reading Association (IRA) has a special page which talks about events in Washington DC, and includes a downloadable brochure, fact sheet and ideas.