ALSC’s Día Family Book Club program named 2014 USBBY Bridge to Understanding Award winner

CHICAGO — The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), has been awarded the 2014 Bridge to Understanding Award for their Día Family Book Club Program. ALSC President Ellen Riordan will accept this award from the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) during the USBBY Gathering from 8 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 30, 2015 at the Hilton Chicago – Williford A.

The Día Family Book Club project introduces books about diverse cultures from around the world to children and families through a series of book discussions. ALSC has selected books and provided toolkits, publicity kits and lesson plans that provide a strong starting point for libraries to match the activities to their own communities. In the two years of its existence, the Día Family Book Club, an extension of El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day), has succeeded in involving libraries nationwide, and thus children and families nationwide, in book sharing and discussion.

“Día Family Book Clubs provide families with the opportunity to take a trip around the world, together “ said Ellen Riordan, ALSC president. “ALSC is committed to putting multicultural resources into the hands of librarians. The resources provided through this program are great examples of how our association can assist our members in serving their communities. We thank USBBY for this great honor.”

Established in memory of Arlene Pillar, an educator who served USBBY as newsletter editor from 1984 until her untimely death in 1990, the Bridge to Understanding Award formally acknowledges programs that use children's books to promote international understanding among children. The responses of many of the families who participated in the Día Family Book Club show just how successful this program has been.

For more information about the Día Family Book Club program and to download the club toolkit and lesson plans please visit: http://dia.ala.org/content/start-book-club.

About Día

Día, El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day), is a nationally recognized initiative that emphasizes the importance of literacy for all children from all backgrounds. The Día celebration was founded in 1996 by children’s book author Pat Mora, who proposed conceptually linking the existing El Día del Niño with literacy. The founding partner of Día is REFORMA, the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking. For more information please visit http://dia.ala.org.

About ALSC

ALSC, a division of the ALA, is the world’s largest organization dedicated to the support and enhancement of library service to children. With a network of more than 4,000 children’s and youth librarians, literature experts, publishers and educational faculty, ALSC is committed to creating a better future for children through libraries. To learn more about ALSC, visit ALSC’s website at http://www.ala.org/alsc.