Update for North Valley Public Library

Plans are under way for "Fiesta Hispana" to be held in conjunction with Sept. First Friday celebration on Main Street Stevensville. Latino music will be played while library patrons sample both Spanish and Mexican food and peruse the growing collection of Spanish materials. Although not yet confirmed, a couple may perform a samba dance routine.
The translation of the most important or most frequently used forms is almost complete. We hope to have this finished and printed for the "Fiesta Hispana."
Two instructors have been selected and four students engaged for the 4 week pilot ESL program which will begin Sept. 14th. The purchase of Spanish materials has begun! We are really enjoying shopping for these items. Cataloguing is underway, as well.
The book "Serving Latino Communities" has been a terrific resource.
More after our fiesta!

This notice was just on wired-mt:

Washington Learning Systems has posted the SPANISH VERSION of parent-child early literacy materials titled "On the Go," developed by Dr. Angela Notari-Syverson and colleagues as part of a US DOE grant.

These materials include 14 activities designed to be used outside the home: in the car, while walking, during bus rides, etc. The activities are designed to encourage parents to interact with their children to encourage early language and literacy development (from birth through preschool) and positive parent-child interactions. Included are hints about how to modify each activity to meet specific developmental needs of the child. The activities are appropriate for children with disabilities as well as children who are developing typically.

To download materials go to www.walearning.com and click on the purple button that says "Free Parent Education Handouts" on the home page. Look for the "On the Go" files to download the materials in PDF format.

Colet Bartow from OPI posted a message on wired about Hispanc Heritage materials that are available on the galeschools.com website. It includes activities, cultural quiz, music, biographies, timelines, etc. that can be used to get kids involved in the celebration. If you're planning events at your library for young people during September 15-October 15, you might find some great ideas to use.

http://www.galeschools.com/hispanic_heritage/

Oportunidad Magnífica

A long while back, I signed up to be a Spanish translator for the local hospital and haven't thought much about it. Friday night, I got a call that a translator was needed in the ER. I jumped in the car with my two young boys and we went to help out. Several people asked who I was affiliated with and I said that I worked for the library but wanted to volunteer this service. It was tremendously fulfilling and greatly appreciated.

North Valley SLO update

Last Monday Amy met with four Latino women (all from Mexico) to brainstorm about local Hispanic needs and the NVPL SLO program. These women will form the initial SLO Advisory Group. For three, the highest priority is obtaining MT driver manuals in Spanish so they can learn to drive. ESL (English as a 2nd Language) classes are next highest priority. We have set a date to meet with an ESL instructor on August 17th to plan a 4-6 week introductory course, after which we will assess the students' progress, etc. Last night Amy met with one of the members of the SLO Advisory Group to assist her husband in creating his first resume. How exciting!
Soon, we shall have completed our draft budget and time line for our project. We are also working on a Hispanic related September First Friday event in Stevensville to be held at the library.