Read All About It!

just wanted to say a quick hello and introduce myself. my name is laura loeck. i’m a student at northwestern, studying psychology and legal studies. its lovely to be back at open books as a literacy intern. it’ll be great to get to know you all and see the exciting changes around here. my summer is already going by way too fast with a busy schedule of classes and work…but spending some of it here among good books and fellow bookworms will be wonderful! hooray for literacy!

Hi everyone!

My name is Shoshannah Feinberg and today is my first day as a marketing intern here at Open Books! I have been born and raised in the Chicagoland area and am a rising senior at Northwestern University, a student in the School of Education and Social Policy. Aside from reading, I enjoy watching Seinfeld, eating Chipotle burritos, playing sports, and hanging out with friends. While studying abroad in Madrid I also developed a love for traveling. I have spent time in Italy, France, Morocco, Israel, and Argentina, and hope to do a lot more traveling in the future. But enough about me…the real question is, why did I decide to work at Open Books this summer?

I have always been interested in education, volunteering, and community outreach, so Open Books sounded like the perfect organization for me! I also recently took an integrated marketing communications class, so I am excited and curious to explore the field of marketing here at Open Books. Last summer I worked in a cubicle at a large, for-profit corporation, so the small, friendly, colorful, welcoming, homey (I could go on forever!) environment at Open Books is refreshing to say the least. From the first day alone I can tell that this is going to be a FUN place to work and I can’t wait to get more involved!

- Shoshannah

To our avid fans:

First of all, I have to apologize. I’ve redefinied “slackerdom” when it comes to posting student work on Fridays. However, I have turned a corner, and Fridays are back on, full swing!

This week, Open Books was fortunate enough to do a little SLAM poetry with students from both local campuses of Lighthouse Academies: Bronzeville Lighthouse and W. Gary Lighthouse.  Here is a favorite piece from each school. I hope that you enjoy them!

My Hood

By Cassandra (W. Gary Lighthouse)

If my neighborhood were a color it would be pink and yellow

Like block parties, sleepovers, get togethers.

At the park I always see kids and pets.

I like when people are out of town for the summer

I dislike fighting and disagreements

G.I., West Side, Tarry Town, Crazy.

The sounds of motorcycles, kids, cars

The people are Kenny, Pumpa, David, Deja, Jamare

Something unique is people and ideas, bikes, and four-wheelers

My favorite thing to eat from Dairy Queen is large ice cream cones.

I go to sleep and listen to music.

I feel alone sometimes.

Animals surround my house a lot

Often I think of calling animal control when animals run wild

There is a scent of fresh air and fireworks.

My neighborhood makes me happy and sad; it really depends on the day of the week.




Who Am I

By Essence (Bronzeville Lighthouse)

The streets,

Everyday families strugglin’,

Need money, food, clothing,

So angry they take it out on the ones they love.

Kids, teenagers, turning to the streets,

selling drugs to survive.

And I wish I could fix it all,

but I’m not a god at all,

and I wish I could go back in time and stop it all.

I am Essence

My name means a new beginning.

If you stepped in my shoes you would feel anger boiling inside of you like lava,

because I don’t express my anger and sadness because I am afraid.

I want to change the way I feel by expressing myself.

I have a dream to become a famous singer.

I paint myself red for anger, throwing stuff.

I am a sad girl who may look happy on the outside but is sad on the inside.

If you stepped in my shoes you would see how I feel and how I want to cry

because I want my mother, who is lost in her own world.

I want to share knowledge and intelligence with the world.

I believe that people who live on Earth will be impressed.

I am human because I stay true to myself.

I wonder how it feels to be in somebody else’s shoes.

I think of my mother for strength.

My mother helps me think that I can overcome anything.

My granny believes in me.

I am Essence

Yes, I can change the world.

Hello! My name is Jennifer Plaskota — I’m getting a bit of a late start to my summer internship here at Open Books but I’m very excited to finally be here!

People often ask how I found out about Open Books, but to be honest, I’m not exactly sure. I can say that I knew right away that I wanted to be involved. While I’ve always  been interested in education and working with children and youth, I became particularly interested in literacy while serving as a grant writer for a social service nonprofit in Wilmington, Delaware. As I researched the issues affecting our clients, I felt that the most effective solutions often revolved around helping others help themselves, which would not often be possible without the abilities to read and write fluently.

When I returned to the Chicago area just under a year ago, I channeled this passion for literacy into my new position as a reading aide at an elementary school in Romeoville, where I am also working as a teacher’s aide in a special education classroom for the next few weeks. I have realized that I love teaching, and hope to earn my teaching certification in bilingual or special education this summer. I’m grateful for this opportunity to serve at Open Books — I think the experience will compliment my role as a teacher and I’m happy to contribute to promoting literacy in Chicago!

“Welcome to ReadKiddoRead.com… You’ve found your way here because you’ve decided to take your kid’s reading future into your own hands. Something told you the only way to get kids to read was to give them great books, cool books, books they would absolutely, positively love. These are very, very special books that kids will gobble up and ask for more. If your kids get a few of these books under their belts they’ll be well on their way to becoming readers for life. I promise you.”
-James Patterson, readkiddoread.com

James Patterson’s website ReadKiddoRead.com addresses a problem that has proved to be troublesome for parents and teachers alike: making their kids and students interested in reading. The site, which was started when Patterson realized his own son was having a hard time being interested in reading, suggests books for four different age groups that are guaranteed to make kids into lifelong readers. The books cover the toddler age (with ‘Great Illustrated Books’) to the tween age (with ‘Great Advanced Reads’). Patterson’s site also breaks these categories up into genres, with each book having its own detailed description along with where to find the book, critic reviews, themes, and books you might like if you liked this book.

This site is great for parents and teachers because it takes the guesswork out of trying to find books they think may interest their children or students. Patterson and his team have sifted through many children’s books to find not only the best of the best, but also the most interesting and books that will for sure make kids want to keep on reading once they turn that last page. Patterson does a wonderful job of also letting teachers and parents know as much as they can about a book without actually reading it, even highlighting the main themes of the book so parents can know what the book could teach their children. Patterson’s website really is the one-stop site for creating lifelong readers in children.