Calgary Reads

Read Every Day That You Eat

kferrier — Mon, 31 May 2010 15:50:16 +0000

Invite us to your workplace or community group meeting to learn creative tools to help young readers. Calgary Reads offers free brown bag “lunch and learns” for employees and other groups.

Contact Dariel Bateman for more information or to arrange a workshop, phone: 403.777.8254 or email: debateman@cbe.ab.ca.

For more information, please visit Calgary Reads.

Calgary Reads Together Events

kferrier — Mon, 24 May 2010 21:55:01 +0000

Volunteers listen to young readers and celebrity readers share their favourite books with Grade 1 and 2 students in Calgary Reads schools. Every child takes a book home, often the first they have owned. Hosted by a variety of schools these events celebrate the literacy development of young children. Celebrity readers share their passion for books by reading to all the grade one and two readers while the children, in return, show off their success by reading to adult volunteers.

If you are interested in more information about how your school can participate in this program contact Gena Howat, phone: 403.777.8254 or email: glhowat@cbe.ab.ca

If you are interested in more information on volunteering for this program see the Volunteer section of our site or phone: 403.777.8254 or email: info@calgaryreads.com

Faculty and students give back to Calgary Reads

kferrier — Mon, 17 May 2010 16:34:06 +0000

Rachel Wade, a fourth-year communications studies major, jumped at the chance to pad her resume and build a portfolio of work by completing a Community Service Learning (CSL) course. Through CSL, the Faculty of Communication and Culture is breaking new ground in teaching students to utilize their liberal arts education. The faculty has partnered with eight non-profit organizations to offer CSL opportunities to its students and is finding the experience is a win-win-win for students, non-profits and the university.

To read more visit the University of Calgary Faculty of Communication and Culture.

Calgary Reads Tips for Parents/Guardians: The importance of reading aloud

kferrier — Mon, 10 May 2010 14:27:35 +0000

Reading aloud is more than a fun way to pass family time. It will further your child’s literacy growth.

The benefits of reading aloud include:

It enhances a love of reading.
It expands your child’s imagination.
It strengthens listening and comprehension skills.
It develops reading skills.
It helps your child acquire vocabulary, background knowledge and an understanding of sentence patterns.
It gives your child an opportunity to bond with you through the shared enjoyment of reading a good book together.
Children learn about the world that opens up to them through reading.

How to Read Aloud to Your Child:

Choose a book that you and your child will enjoy together. You’ll find that your child often wants to make the choice.
Pick books with topics that interest your child: fantasy, fairytales, sports, poems, magazines, information/non-fiction
It is a good idea to start with books that have predictable language patterns. Your child can pick these patterns up and repeat them easily.
Read for a short time, but make it daily. Make it a habit.
Hold the book so that you both can see the print.
Before you start, share the title, look at the book cover, and wonder together about what the book will be about.
Point to each word, or slide your finger under the text as you read.
Spend lots of time talking about the book with your child. Encourage your child to do lots of talking about the book.
Read and reread your child’s favorite books.

Relax and enjoy your read aloud time together.

CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale left no page unturned.

mudcreative — Wed, 05 May 2010 15:25:10 +0000

It was a crisp, bright Saturday morning when my daughter, Sydney, and I decided to check out the CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale last weekend.

I had been a blogger for Calgary Reads for months and I wanted to see for myself what we had been talking about. A passionate reader, Sydney was more than happy to join me. She grabbed her Fair’s Fair book bag and jumped in the car.

We walked into the Triwood Arena in Calgary’s Northwest and were immediately greeted by friendly folks, rows and rows of tables loaded with meticulously categorized books and a palpable air of excitement. This was the invasion of the bookworms.

People were eagerly scanning tables for titles by their favourite authors. They gingerly turned the pages of literary gems they had been waiting to read. They filled their book bags with treasures.

I heard comments like “I feel like a kid in a candy store,” “Look, this one is signed!” And, “This book looks like it’s brand new!”

I lost Sydney to the Canadian Fiction table. I myself went to the Cookbook section and then Self-Help.

Half an hour later, my cell phone rang. It was Sydney. “Where are you mom? I can’t fit anything else in my bag!” I found her in Best Sellers, wearing a huge smile, eyes sparkling. She was weighed down by a packed Fair’s Fair bag.

We decided it was time to check out. Together we had 21 books. Our total was $23.00.

After adding up Sydney’s books, the cashier couldn’t help commenting that my “daughter bought some very interesting books.” That’s an understatement. Sydney’s voracious appetite for reading can only be described as curiously eclectic.

She found: four Farley Mowat titles; Margaret Atwood’s Survival and Dancing Girls; Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café Diaries; Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson; Doctor Fischer of Geneva by Graham Greene; Places Far From Ellesmere by Calgary author, Aritha van Herk; Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne; Your own book of Campcraft by Catherine t. Hammett; New Age Politics: the Emerging new Alternative to Marxism and Liberalism; and The Charter of Rights and Freedoms: A Guide for Canadians (no lie!)

Me? I picked up four cookbooks and one book called The Wisdom of Menopause. What can I say? There was something for everyone at the 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale.

Thank you Calgary: The 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale was a huge success!

kferrier — Mon, 03 May 2010 20:18:29 +0000

The sale was a huge success!

Visitors to the sale enjoyed Smok’n Joe’s hot dog vendor, a fiddle player and a Stampede greeter!

The sale brought in over $123,000.00 for Calgary Reads.

Thanks to all the people who donated books and to everyone that came and shopped.

This all happened because of the amazing volunteers that support Calgary Reads. CBC and RBC were wonderful and put in countless amounts of effort helping this worthwhile cause as well as many Calgary Reads volunteers.

Can’t wait until next year when we do it all again!

CBC/Calgary Reads book sale starts TODAY!

dblacombe — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 18:11:52 +0000

We know you read, or you wouldn’t be seeing this blog post! Right away you are qualified for this event!

Imagine how different your life would be if you couldn’t read.

In the spirit of “Read every day that you eat”, we hope you’ll come down to the CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale at Triwood Arena (in the NW near Brentwood Mall) and stock up on fabulous book buys.

The prices are amazing, the selection superb, and the cause is deserving.

Thank you Calgarians for your generous donation of books. We look forward to seeing you at the sale at Triwood Arena, 2244 Chicoutimi Drive NW

Friday April 30, 2010 (4:00pm – 9:00pm)
Saturday May 1, 2010 (9:00am – 4:00pm)
Sunday May 2, 2010 (9:00am – 4:00pm)

View Larger Map

Bookworms unite! Two days to 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale

mudcreative — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 15:54:23 +0000

The wait is nearly over. Beginning this Friday at 4 pm, doors open for the 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale – the annual event that unites bookworms from across Calgary who come to find literary treasures to add to their collections.

Don’t miss the fun!

The 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale starts this Friday!

Where: Triwood Arena, 2244 Chicoutimi Drive NW

When: Friday April 30, 2010 (4:00pm – 9:00pm)

Saturday May 1, 2010 (9:00am – 4:00pm)

Sunday May 2, 2010 (9:00am – 4:00pm)

Donated books just waiting for buyers

Volunteers sorting books for the CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale

Don't just sit there - go to the CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale!

Volunteers needed to unload books Thursday

dblacombe — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 16:48:17 +0000

HELP! HELP! HELP!

The good news is, we have collected a record number of books for this weekend’s sale!

The not-so-good news is, a company which promised to release a dozen folks to help unload the bins at the arena has just informed us that it won’t be able to provide the volunteers after all.

If you can help or know anyone who can help with setting up tables and moving boxes out of the bins; please come to Triwood Arena at 2244 Chicoutimi Drive NW on Thursday morning starting at 8:30 am. Calgary Reads will even provide coffee, fruit and muffins!

We have a lot of books to be unloaded that day and need all the help we can get….even if it’s just for a few hours.

To volunteer please call Carol at 403 831-6729

Today is the final day that CBC is accepting book donations for the 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale!

kferrier — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 14:00:22 +0000

Visit CBC at 1724 Westmount Blvd NW between 8am and 8pm today to drop off your gently used books!

The 2010 CBC/Calgary Reads Book Sale starts this Friday!

Where: Triwood Arena, 2244 Chicoutimi Drive NW

When: Friday April 30, 2010 (4:00pm – 9:00pm)

Saturday May 1, 2010 (9:00am – 4:00pm)

Sunday May 2, 2010 (9:00am – 4:00pm)