Help Make Brooklyn Students Readers for Life

Behind_the_Book

Behind the Book is a non-profit organization that inspires a love of reading in students by bringing authors into classrooms in low-income community  schools to teach the kids how to write and illustrate their very own books.

We're looking for volunteers for our program for 5th grade students at PS 241 in Crown Heights. The kids will work with Joshua Farrar and his book A Song for Bijou, about a girl from Haiti who moves to Brooklyn. After considering the range of identities a person can have, especially as it
relates to being an immigrant, the kids will write and illustrate a book about their own backgrounds and experiences. 

No experience is necessary to volunteer. You'll coach and encourage the students as they work on their projects (help them spell, give feedback, answer questions). You can sign up for one or any combination of these dates:

Wednesday, November 12th
9:30 AM - 11:00 AM

Josh will talk to the students about the book, his creative process, and point of view in writing.  

Monday, November 17th
9:30 AM - 11:00 AM

Guided by our teaching artist, the kids will Illustrate their written pieces. 

Wednesday, November 19th
9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Students will show Josh their art, and discuss elements of their own writing. 

Tuesday, December 2nd
12:30 - 2:00 p.m.
Volunteer writing coaches will work with the kids to complete their second drafts.

Josh is a Brooklynite who's excited to work with local students. HIs program will be fun for both kids and volunteers--and you'll help make a lasting impact on literacy in New York City schools.

To volunteer for this program or others throughout the school year, please complete and send our brief questionnaire at http://www.behindthebook.org/join-us/volunteer/ or contact us at [email protected].

TinaTot

I hate how this kind of thing is always during the middle of the day - I get that it's when they're in school, but I'm never able to volunteer for this kind of thing and it sounds amazing! 

Hope lots of people sign up to help, and if there are other ways to get involved/help out that doesn't involve having to take time away from work, I'd love to know!

Behind_the_Book

Thanks so much, TinaTot! Actually, we could really use some more hands with our end-of-the-year campaign envelope-stuffing extravaganza, which runs til 9 PM on November 17th and 18th at our Harlem office. If you want to join the fun--we have snacks and great conversation while we work-- just let me know at [email protected].

And we can always use people who can help out anytime with PR and marketing, building partnerships with community leaders, identifying local businesses where we can display student work and recruit volunteers, and connecting with political leaders.
 

Behind_the_Book

Two more exciting author programs are also starting this month at PS 241 in Crown Heights. Volunteers not only coach and encourage students as they complete their class projects—they're mentors who can introduce the kids to career paths and life experiences
that are new to them.

Contact [email protected] to sign up for one or any number of dates.
 
Program 11EM
Using Elizabeth Mann’s book The Brooklyn Bridge,
4th graders will study how people were inspired to develop landmarks in
their communities. The students will research, write, and illustrate
the history of a local landmark to create a guide to
Brooklyn and Crown Heights. 

Friday, November 14 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
No volunteers needed, but you’re welcome to attend.
Elizabeth’s first visit.

Thursday, November 20 - 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
8 volunteers needed
Students take a field trip through Brooklyn to visit and photograph landmarks.  

Tuesday, December 2 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
8 volunteers needed
Students tell Elizabeth about their trip.

Wednesday, December 10 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
4 volunteers needed
Students create artwork to further explore the landmarks they're studying.

Friday, December 12 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
8 volunteers needed
Volunteer writing coaches work with students to guide them to their next draft.

Program 12AP
New York Times bestselling author Andrea Pinkney Davis will use her book The Red Pencil to inspire 5th grade students. They'll write about a personal connection they have to the
experience of the main character, a Sudanese girl who lives in a refugee camp, and create artwork to illustrate their exploration of human rights issues. 

Thursday, December 4 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
No volunteers needed, but you’re welcome to attend.
Andrea’s first visit.

Monday, December 8 – 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
5 volunteers needed
Students create line drawings, like those the book’s main character draws, to
represent the human right they think is most important.

Monday, December 15 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
No volunteers needed, but you’re welcome to attend.
Andrea leads students in discussion about the human rights they find most
important in both the main character's life and their own.

Friday, December 19 -  9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
10 volunteers needed
Volunteer writing coaches work with students to guide them to their next draft.

Behind_the_Book

Hey, Brooklynians,

The last date in author Andrea Davis Pinkney's program at PS 241 in Crown Heights has been rescheduled to this Wednesday, December 17th from 9:00 to 10:30 AM.

We could really use more volunteer writing coaches for the 5th graders working with her book The Red Pencil--which just won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work for Youth/Teens.

No experience or training necessary. You'll
help NYC public school students improve their literacy skills, and have
fun while you do it.

Please contact [email protected] if you can make it.

Thanks!