December News for You: Our Favorite Things from 2014

'Tis the season for reflecting, giving, and "best of" lists! We are so grateful for all who have given their time, talent, wisdom and energy to make this a momentous year for LitWorld. To celebrate LitWorld's 2014 milestones, here are some favorite stories from the past year. Thank you for helping the LitWorld movement soar.

A LitClub Trailblazer

Stephanie's LitWorld story began in 2009 when she joined our very first LitClub in Harlem. In the past five years we have watched her become resilient and strong in her own identity through literacy and the important work of writing down her own stories and seeking out the stories of others. Stephanie formed deep friendships with fellow LitClub members and has access to support and championing from LitWorld mentors. Belonging to this supportive literacy community allowed Stephanie to build confidence to pursue her passion for photography, the courage to be a community leader as a LitLibrarian, and the determination to live with a hopeful outlook for her future. Stephanie and every one of her fellow LitClub alumni graduated high school this year and began college.

To make sure more girls around the world receive the literacy mentorship and social support they need through LitClubs, LitWorld launched the 10,000 Global Girls Initiative with our partner Global Girls Rising. Our ground-breaking model was celebrated in Forbes Magazine, which featured an interview with Stephanie. Read the full interview here.

The Power Women: An Unstoppable Force

The Power Women Moms LitClub is a group of HIV positive women who live in the Kibera community of Nairobi. When we met the power women, we started our work together with this question: "What do you want literacy to do for you?" They told us they wanted to be able to teach their children to read, and they wanted to create a website to sell all of their handmade products to become economically independent. Their dreams became a reality. The women manage multiple businesses in Kibera including a daycare, a sewing shop and a hair studio. Stay up to date with the Power Women by following their Facebook page.

LitWorld's early work with the Power Women informed our work with families and intergenerational groups. We know that the key to lasting outcomes is to create a community around literacy. This wraps children in a culture of reading and writing from the earliest age, setting them up for lifelong learning success. LitWorld's Founder, Pam Allyn, shares her insight on the critical importance of early education in this piece for Scholastic titled, "On early learning: By the dawn's early light."

Reading Aloud Unites the World

World Read Aloud Day 2014 arrived during a time of transition for the families of Ulingan community in Manila, Philippines. As they were facing relocation to a city outside of Manila, LitWorld programs continued to run. On World Read Aloud Day the children knew they could rely on their LitClub leaders and volunteers of our partner Project PEARLS to run a story-filled celebration. Parents and volunteers told us that read alouds brought comfort, joy and time for the children to just be children while soaking in the power of words.

We are always moved by the way each person who celebrates World Read Aloud Day internalizes the larger message of the day. This deeply personal piece by Ron Charles of The Washington Post about the sacred role the read aloud plays in his home is profoundly beautiful, enjoy.

P.S. Save the date for World Read Aloud Day 2015 on March 4th! Our next newsletter will be full of action steps and resources.

Ten Reasons to Join LitWorld's #GivingTuesday Movement

We are so grateful for your generosity, tweets, love and support on #GivingTuesday. So grateful that we created these GIF(t)s for you. Without further ado, here are ten reasons to join LitWorld's #GivingTuesday movement.

1. Because your friends are doing it.
 

2. Because LitWorld values joy, don't you?
 

3. Because reading is cool and everyone should get to do it.
 

4. Because our awesome donor friend will match your donation. (Turning every dollar you donate into two dollars!)
 

5. Because there are people you meet in a book who will change your life.
 

6. Because books and libraries are where the wild rumpus begins!
 

7. Because everyone has a story that needs to be told. We help kids figure that out.
 

8. Because ten out of ten experts agree: asking a child to tell you a story results in increased creativity, inspiration, curiosity and laughter.
 

9. Because kids need people to care about what they care about.
 

10. Because if you give $35 to LitWorld you will change a child's world. Seriously.

Head to our #GivingTuesday landing page to learn more, or click the button below to make a contribution.

Honoring A LitWorld Hero: Bill Krupman

It is with a heavy heart that we share the recent passing of our founder Pam Allyn's father, Bill Krupman. As LitWorld's Chief Advisor, Bill's inspiring wisdom nourished the growth of LitWorld and he was a tireless champion for children. Bill joined a 2011 LitWorld trip to Kenya and Rwanda where his self-declared mission was to listen to the stories of our LitKids, those who face the hardest roads to travel, and he honored their stories with his support for our work. Bill's extraordinary spirit will live on through the children of LitWorld and all they are accomplishing with the power of literacy.

Bill Krupman (left) starting a wild rumpus with LitClub kids during a 2012 LitWorld trip to Kibera, Kenya.

We dedicate our Annual Appeal campaign this year to Bill and we have created a special fund in his memory, The Bill Krupman Literacy Legacy Fund. Our goal is to raise $450,000 by December 31st so that we can deepen and expand our programs for children whose challenging lives are made more hopeful by the power of stories and words. From the Za'atari Syrian refugee camp to the Detroit public schools, with your support we can be sure Bill's legacy lasts forever. Visit our donate page to make a contribution today and visit our In Memoriam page to learn more about the LitWorld heroes who are part of our work.

News for You: Giving & Gratitude, Our Two Magic G's

The season of giving and gratitude is here. We are thankful for the worldwide community of literacy champions and LitClub children who are changing the world with their stories. With your support, right now we can help many more children become story strong!

Honoring a LitWorld Hero: Bill Krupman

It is with a heavy heart we share with you the recent passing of our founder Pam Allyn's father, Bill Krupman. As LitWorld's Chief Advisor, Bill's inspiring wisdom nourished the growth of LitWorld and he was a tireless champion for children. Bill joined a 2011 LitWorld trip to Kenya and Rwanda where his self-declared mission was to listen to the stories of our LitKids, those who face the hardest roads to travel, and he honored their stories with his support for our work. Bill's extraordinary spirit will live on through the children of LitWorld and all they are accomplishing with the power of literacy.

We dedicate our Annual Appeal campaign this year to Bill. Our goal is to raise $450,000 by December 31st so that we can deepen and expand our programs for children whose challenging lives are made more hopeful by the power of stories and words. From the Za'atari Syrian refugee camp to the Detroit public schools, with your support we can be sure Bill's legacy lasts forever.

Make a contribution to The Bill Krupman Literacy Legacy Fund. Share this blog post with your friends and family, inviting them to join you in supporting LitWorld's Annual Appeal. Follow LitWorld on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to track our Annual Appeal progress and to join our #GivingTuesday social media campaign on December 2nd. 

Stand Up for Girls: Honoring Stories of Strength

Our 10,000 Global Girls community mobilized for Stand Up for Girls, LitWorld's day of action in honor of the International Day of the Girl. On October 11th, LitWorld leaders in 15 countries held Story Summits, local events that bring girls and trained mentors together to celebrate their own strengths, share their stories with confidence and courage and learn from one another's experiences. 

Let us together champion every girl's right to a literate future year-round through LitWorld programs. Be sure to check out photo highlights from worldwide Stand Up for Girls celebrations on the LitWorld Facebook page.

Reading is Magic

LitWorld's Founder, Pam Allyn, was recently on NPR talking about what it takes to transform every child into a lifelong reader and about the importance of giving kids time to read and ownership over their reading lives. Listen to the interview here.

World Read Aloud Day grew out of these same core ideas. On March 4th, 2015 people everywhere will give and receive the magic of reading aloud. Together we will celebrate the idea that such a simple, joyful action has a powerful impact on a child's future literacy success. Visit our World Read Aloud Day page to learn more!

#GivingTuesday: Get Out Your Give!

LitWorld is celebrating #GivingTuesday on December 2nd, 2014 with with a special campaign during our Annual Appeal! 

We want to raise $10,000 in one day to support LitWorld's community library program. A donation of $35 can stock a library shelf with books full of stories and characters that will fill children with wonder. We need your help spreading the word about our campaign. Raise your voice on social media, and email friends and family who share your love of reading.

Here are sample social media posts to help you spread the word. Feel free to personalize or simply copy, paste and post! We are so grateful for your support and advocacy on behalf of LitWorld.

Sample Tweets

12/2 is #GivingTuesday & LitWorld is raising 10k to grow community libraries around the world. Spread the word! http://litworld.org/givingtuesday

What's in a book? Curiosity, empathy, comfort. Add a shelf of books to a @litworldsays library on #GivingTuesday: http://litworld.org/givingtuesday

A love of reading is yours to give! Stock a @litworldsays library shelf library on 12/2 #GivingTuesday for $35! http://litworld.org/givingtuesday

It takes $35 to give a child access to a world of stories & possibilities. Make a #GivingTuesday act of kindness: http://litworld.org/givingtuesday

Start a #GivingTuesday wild rumpus today with @litworldsays. $35 can add a shelf of books to a LitWorld library. http://litworld.org/givingtuesday

Sample Facebook & Instagram Posts

Share our images on your social media pages to spread the word about LitWorld's #GivingTuesday campaign!

Story21: What's It All About?

Last year LitWorld piloted a new variation of our LitClub program for families called Story21. This versatile program is all about combining LitWorld's great loves: reading, writing, storytelling, technology and community. The 21 in Story21 stands for 21st century learning. We believe that for children and families to thrive in the 21st century they need to be litearcy-strong and comfortable using their literacy in all sorts of situations. That means sitting down and reading aloud from a traditional book, but it also means creating collaborative stories using a tablet and apps.

Story21 brings families together once a week for family LitClub sessions that focus on our LitWorld 7 Strengths, the power of story and personal narrative with the layer of technology woven in. Our goal is to build community around literacy and to strengthen a family reading and writing culture.

And it's working! After the first year of Story21, the families of Broadway Housing Communities who participated in the pilot said that they read more now in the home and spend more time engaged in activities center around reading and story-sharing. The parents of our program began Story21 feeling uncomfortable holding and operating the tablets we used, but by the end they were iPad whizzes! They are now comfortable exploring new apps on their own and using the tablets at home to find whatever information they need, and most importantly they know how to support their children's reading and writing lives.

Because of our success we are expanding Story21 to our other programming site in New York, the Polo Grounds community in East Harlem. Sessions kicked off this week and we can't wait to watch a new group of families grow as literacy leaders in their community. We are also launching other exciting Story21 expansions, including tablet libraries for our Harlem programs and the wider community to use.

Worldwide Stand Up for Girls Story Summits

On October 11th, the International Day of the Girl, communities all over the world stood up for every girl's human right to literacy. All over the world communities stood up for girls. In New York City we came together with our partner Global Girls Rising and girls from the Harlem community at our Stand UP for Girls Story Summit. The day was full of strength (the LitWorld 7 Strengths to be exact!), much joy, and the power of love and magic. Thanks to all, girls and boys, men and women who shared their voices and support for these efforts from near and far. Now: let's make every day a day to Stand Up for Girls for their guaranteed right to read and write and change the world with their own stories.

Our local partners in 15 countries held community events led by LitClub members themselves. The power and impact of coming together to honor girl's stories and voices was immediate - after hearing these stories of strength and hope, but also stories of hardship, our partner in Pakistan, the Seeds of Hope Foundation, said the mothers of the community now say they will send ALL of their children to school. 

Check out the LitWorld Facebook page for more photos of our New York City event and international Stand Up for Girls celebrations. Today, tomorrow and every day we must continue to champion every girl's right to live out her story and belong to a safe learning community.