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Prime Time Family Reading Time
Low-literacy, low-income Spanish-speaking families gather in libraries to read award-winning children's books with storytellers and scholars. Prime Time fosters high academic expectations for children and encourages parents to speak and read English. |
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Prime Time reading program returns to Omaha
Prime Time Family Reading Time, a Nebraska Humanities Council (NHC) family literacy program designed to help strengthen participants’ interest and skills in reading, will return to two Omaha libraries with opportunities for Spanish- and English-speaking parents and their children.
The South Omaha Library will host a bilingual series on six consecutive Thursday evenings, March 19 through April 23. The Washington Branch Library will host an English-only series on six consecutive Saturday mornings, April 11 through May 16. Each program is free and open to the public. Sessions begin with a light meal and continue with storytelling and discussion based on award-winning children’s books.
The six-week series are offered to families with children ages 6 to 10. They include sessions on fairness, greed, courage, ingenuity, loyalty, compassion and family. In the bilingual series, all books are read and discussed in both English and Spanish. Discussion leaders and storytellers will introduce parents to the benefits and pleasures of reading and discussing stories with their children. Families will also learn about library resources and services. Separate pre-reading activities will be available for younger siblings.
“It’s so important for children to learn the joys of reading early in life, especially when it involves reading and discussing books with their families,” said NHC Senior Program Officer Erika Hamilton, state coordinator of Prime Time. “A love for learning through reading has a positive impact on how well a child does in school.”
In a 2008 survey of Nebraska families who participated in Prime Time, 87 percent said the program changed the way they read and discuss books together, 68 percent improved their attitude toward the library, and 98 percent showed interest in participating again in Prime Time or similar family reading and educational programs.
Initially developed by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 48 bilingual and English-only Prime Time series have been held in 15 Nebraska libraries, five schools and one community center in the last five years, including programs in Lincoln, Omaha, Grand Island, South Sioux City, Norfolk, and Scottsbluff. Eight English-only and nine bilingual Prime Time programs have been offered in Omaha since 2004.
Prime Time is sponsored in Nebraska by the NHC with major funding from the State of Nebraska, Nebraska Cultural Endowment and Nebraska Library Commission. Primary sponsors and funders for Prime Time in Omaha include the Omaha Public Library and its Foundation, Friends of the Omaha Public Library, The Sherwood Foundation and Carol Gendler.
The NHC is a private, statewide, non-profit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. For more information about the bilingual South Omaha program, contact Liliana Lopez or Norma Pountney at (402) 444-4850. For more information about the English-only Washington Branch program, contact John Bernardi at (402) 444-4800.
Prime Time reading program returns to Norfolk
After its first session was delayed by icy winter conditions, the weekly Prime Time Family Reading Time returns to Lincoln Elementary School in Norfolk on March 17 with opportunities for Spanish- and English-speaking parents and their children.
Prime Time is a Nebraska Humanities Council (NHC) family literacy program designed to help strengthen participants’ interest and skills in reading. The six-week series is offered free to families with children ages 5 to 12. Each program begins with a light dinner and continues with storytelling and discussion based on award-winning children’s books. All books are read and discussed in both English and Spanish.
Lincoln Elementary School will host the bilingual series on Tuesday evenings through April 14. Selected books will help families discuss fairness, dreams, courage, compassion and loyalty. Discussion leader Darlene Rodriguez and storyteller Juanita Ramirez will introduce parents to the benefits and pleasures of reading and discussing stories with their children. Separate pre-reading activities, provided by Northeast Community College’s Early Childcare Program, will be available for younger siblings.
“It’s so important for children to learn the joys of reading early in life, especially when it involves reading and discussing books with their families,” said NHC Senior Program Officer Erika Hamilton, state coordinator of Prime Time. “A love for learning through reading has a positive impact on how well a child does in school.”
In a 2008 survey of Nebraska families who participated in Prime Time, 87 percent said the program changed the way they read and discuss books together, 68 percent improved their attitude toward the library, and 98 percent showed interest in participating again in Prime Time or similar family reading and educational programs. After attending Prime Time, one Norfolk participant said, “I try to be more enthusiastic when I read and let my children ask questions while I’m reading.”
Initially developed by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 48 bilingual and English-only Prime Time series have been held in 15 Nebraska libraries, five schools and one community center in the last five years, including programs in Lincoln, Omaha, Grand Island, South Sioux City, Norfolk, and Scottsbluff. This will be Norfolk’s sixth bilingual Prime Time, having held their first at Grant Elementary School in the fall of 2006.
Prime Time is sponsored in Nebraska by the NHC with major funding from the State of Nebraska, Nebraska Cultural Endowment and Nebraska Library Commission. Sponsors for Prime Time in Norfolk include Norfolk Public Schools, Read Aloud Norfolk, Norfolk Daily News, Culver’s and Runza Restaurants.
The NHC is a private, statewide, non-profit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. For details about Prime Time at Lincoln Elementary, call Lisa Guenther at (402) 644-2550.
Prime Time reading program returns to Scottsbluff
Prime Time Family Reading Time, a Nebraska Humanities Council (NHC) family literacy program designed to help strengthen participants’ interest and skills in reading, will return to Scottsbluff with opportunities for Spanish- and English-speaking parents and their children.
The bilingual series will be held on six consecutive Sunday afternoons, Feb. 1 through March 8, at the Guadalupe Recreation Center, 1200 E. Ninth St., in Scottsbluff. Each program begins with a light lunch and continues with storytelling and discussion based on award-winning children’s books.
The fifth week, March 1, will include a tour of the Scottsbluff Public Library. The program is free and open to the public.
The six-week series is offered to families with children ages six to 10. It includes sessions on determination, fairness, dreams, compassion and kinship. All books are read and discussed in both English and Spanish.
Discussion leader Nancy Escamilla and storyteller Maria Saenz will introduce parents to the benefits and pleasures of reading and discussing stories with their children. Families will also learn about library resources and services. Separate pre-reading activities will be available for younger siblings.
“It’s so important for children to learn the joys of reading early in life, especially when it involves reading and discussing books with their families,” said NHC Senior Program Officer Erika Hamilton, state coordinator of Prime Time. “A love for learning through reading has a positive impact on how well a child does in school.”
In a 2008 survey of Nebraska families who participated in Prime Time, 87 percent indicated that the program changed the way they read and discuss books together, 68 percent improved their attitude toward the library, and 98 percent showed interest in participating again in Prime Time or similar family reading and educational programs.
Initially developed by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 47 bilingual and English-only Prime Time series have been held in 15 Nebraska libraries and five schools in the last five years, including programs in Lincoln, Omaha, Grand Island, South Sioux City, Norfolk, and Scottsbluff.
The Scottsbluff Public Library was one of three Nebraska libraries in 2004 to pilot the bilingual program.
Prime Time is sponsored in Nebraska by the NHC with major funding from the State of Nebraska, Nebraska Cultural Endowment, Nebraska Library Commission, and the Gilbert M. and Martha H. Hitchcock Foundation. Primary funders for Prime Time in Scottsbluff include Platte Valley Bank and the C.W. Yount Foundation.
The NHC is a private, statewide, non-profit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. For more information or to register to participate, contact Jackie Cervantes-Guzman, program coordinator, at (308) 632-1475.
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![Prime Time participants at Grand Island's Edith Abbott Memorial Library [Courtesy Photo]](../images/primegi08.jpg)
Phone 402-474-2131 or e-mail nhc@nebraskahumanities.org |
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