100 Years of Beverly Cleary

Program Ideas

100 years of games (games BC might have played as a child)

Button, Button, Who’s Got the Button
string spinners (video and printable instructions)
Games from the 1900’
In Girl from Yamhill, Mrs. Cleary mentions playing board games like Parcheesi, Uncle Wiggly, and Lotto, as well as card games like Old Maid and with Tinkertoys (work in some STEM!)

Try some activities mentioned in Cleary books:

Bubbles--make your own. could use receipt paper spools for blowing (from Ellen Tebbitts, p. 40)
Hopscotch - outdoors with chalk, indoors with tape (from Ellen Tebbitts, p. 121)
Gray Duck/Duck, Duck Goose circle game (from Ramona the Pest, p. 24)
Make animals from initials such as Ramona did with her Q (from Ramona the Pest, p. 78)
Animal masks (Ramona made a cat mask for book report in Ramona Quimby, Age 8, p. 144-145)
Paper bag owls (puppets) (from Ramona the Brave, p. 68-74)
Make a (coloring) book (from Ramona the Brave, p. 131)
Crown (Ramona made one of burrs -ouch!- in Ramona & Her Father, p. 52-54)
Picture mural on rolled out paper (Ramona and her dad drew Oregon in Ramona & Her Father, p. 111)
Tin can stilts (from Ramona & Her Father, p. 126-130)

Create a digital and print library scavenger hunt for elementary and older students to find information from 100 years ago (who was president in 1916? Find two inventions patented in 1916. What was the population/GNP/top news story of 1916? Other question suggestions can be found here).

Concept of 100:

Do a 100 day countdown until her birthday with a trivia question every day (get questions from here and here and here)
connect with a school’s 100th day celebration and do a Cleary reading (she has picture books and chapter books)

Have a birthday party at your library on April 12, 2016, to celebrate Beverly Cleary’s 100th birthday.
Beloved Oregon author Beverly Cleary turns 100 on April 12, 2016! OPB is excited to be partnering with the Oregon State Library and Oregon Library Association to help make this a fun, statewide celebration and to help you best engage your local community. We are producing a number of resources that will be available to all libraries, including:

Oregon Art Beat’s “Beverly Cleary” special episode
Opportunities for engagement
Screening event and resources
Co-branded birthday cards

Hold a screening of Art Beat episode, hosted by OPB
OREGON ART BEAT “BEVERLY CLEARY” SPECIAL
Among Beverly Cleary’s many prestigious accomplishments, she is most often credited with getting kids excited about reading. As a young girl, Mrs. Cleary struggled with reading and found herself in a low reading circle; an experience that gave her sympathy for the problems of other struggling readers. Mrs. Cleary set out to write books that she longed to read, but was unable to find on library shelves – stories about her neighborhood and the kids she knew. Today, Mrs. Cleary is one of the forefront leaders in children’s literature and the impact of her work is felt around the globe. More than 91 million copies of her work are translated into 14 languages and published in 20 countries. She has received a Newbery Medal, multiple Newbery honors, a National Book Award, a National Medal of Arts, as well as being named a Library of Congress Living Legend.

OPB’s Oregon Art Beat Special features an exclusive interview with Mrs. Cleary, and takes a look at both her life and award-winning work. It explores her strong connection to Oregon, from her time growing up in Yamhill and Northeast Portland; her legacy and the impact of her writing on both the field of children’s literature and on young readers worldwide; and her impact on the community, from getting kids excited about reading, to the national fundraising effort that created statues honoring Mrs. Cleary in Portland’s Grant Park.

The Oregon Art Beat Special will also feature:

Interviews with authors who have been inspired by her work, including Brian Doyle, Renee Watson, Dhonielle Clayton and more.
Interviews with The President of University of Washington, where Mrs. Cleary earned a degree in library science, and the Dean of the University of Washington iSchool.
An interview with Portland Mayor Charlie Hales, who was a Portland Parks & Recreation Commissioner when the statues honoring Mrs. Cleary were installed in Grant Park.
A tour of the Northeast Portland neighborhood where Mrs. Cleary’s books are set.

The Oregon Art Beat Special is 30 minutes and scheduled to air April 7 at 8 p.m. on OPB TV and online at watch.opb.org.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENGAGEMENT
OPB has an interactive website, in conjunction with the Oregon Art Beat special, that will be available as a resource for Libraries statewide. The site includes behind-the-scenes video, web-extra videos, an opportunity for people to wish Mrs. Cleary ‘happy birthday’, a spot to showcase libraries birthday cards (see below) and more.

SCREENING EVENT
We encourage all public libraries to host a birthday party/screening event between April 9th and 16th to best capture the excitement surrounding Mrs. Cleary’s birthday. To help with supplies and resources, OPB and the State Library are providing all public libraries with a “Birthday Party in a Box!” The box will include:

Copy of the Oregon Art Beat Special on DVD and a link to view the episode online.
A special video of Mrs. Cleary thanking the community for signing her birthday card.
Bookmarks for party attendees.
Information for engaging in a statewide social media party.
Balloons.

The box should arrive at public libraries the first week in April. State Library will send an email to all public library directors when the boxes are shipped.

CO-BRANDED BIRTHDAY CARD
Download the Image Here
One way to build engagement around this topic at the screening events – or at your library anytime leading up to April 12 – is with a birthday card for Beverly Cleary. OPB has created a birthday card template and will add your logo – or your library’s name – and send you a file to print.

How to request a birthday card file:

Email OPB’s Jessica Bania at jbania@opb.org with ‘Cleary card’ in the subject line.
Please include either your logo, or the complete library name that you’d like added to the card.
Please allow one week from your request to get your file in hand.
Jessica will work with you to determine the best way to get your file: email, ftp or dropbox.

Currently, OPB is determining the best way to use these cards as part of the statewide celebration. At a minimum, we’d love to see a photo of your card filled out and we’ll share it on our social media accounts and website. Instructions for this will be included in your birthday party box.

Host family writing or storytelling workshop about sharing family stories.

Host a Truck Petting Zoo in honor of Ralph S. Mouse and his motorcycle - Ralph admires Keith’s entire toy vehicle collection, including a sports car, a sedan, and an ambulance.

Make crafts from old library books you are weeding.

Many of the Cleary books talk a lot about the neighborhood the characters live in, giving details about stores, parks, and other landmarks that are important for various reasons. Host a map-making activity where kids can make their neighborhood maps featuring what is important to them or they can even map out the library!

Participate in Drop Everything and Read (D.E.A.R.) at your library on April 12, 2016. Resources are available on the D.E.A.R. website.

Partner with humane shelter in the area for a pet adoption event in honor of Ribsy and Socks.

Passive program: Patrons can make birthday cards or write messages to Beverly Cleary and post them on a bulletin board in your library.

Show the Ramona and Beezus movie. Make sure your library holds the necessary performance rights before you do this!