WebJunction - Group: StoryTubes

StoryTubes Wins Public Library Association National Award

2009-01-29T21:14:14Z

StoryTubes Wins Public Library Association National Award - $1,000 Honorarium Added to Project

StoryTubes - the 2-minute or shorter "my favorite book" video project - has won the PLA Polaris Innovation in Technology John Iliff Award and that win couldn't have come at a better time. The $1,000 PLA award honorarium prize will go into the project.

Alan Harkness, Director of the Piedmont Regional Library System, chaired the PLA award jury. He said that the StoryTubes project was chosen for the prize because it "captured the essence of using technology in an innovative way to tie back into a core business function of public libraries: sharing the joy of reading.

"The StoryTubes project gave local kids a means to use technology they were interested in to talk about stories. The way that this project brought the community together to vote on the videos the children made was quite original and easily replicated in libraries everywhere."

Staff members at Gail Borden Public Library, creators, and now coordinators, of the StoryTubes project, were thrilled to hear the news. With so much economic uncertainty, support was a little harder to come by this year.

However, publishers did step up to support the project and the $1,000 will help ensure that coveted prizes will be available in all categories.

Simon & Schuster, Scholastic, DK, Little Brown, Charlesbridge and Harper Collins are publishers that will support the project with book prizes. The Sony Corporation has provided camera prizes.

The PLA Polaris Innovation in Technology John Iliff Award honors the life and accomplishments of John Iliff, early adopter and champion of technology in public libraries, and recognizes the contributions of a library worker, librarian, or library that has used technology and innovative thinking as a tool to improve services to public library users. The award provides a $1,000 honorarium, a plaque and a bouquet of roses for the workplace. The award is sponsored by Polaris.

RE: Are you a StoryTubes library? If not, you should be!

2008-12-10T23:57:26Z

Karen,
That's a really good question. I would recommend contacting the coordinators to be sure, but it look like they may have selected all the partners for 2009.

I did see this on the FAQ that there are still ways to get your school involved:

If becoming a regional partner is too much of a commitment for us, are there other ways to be involved in the contest?

There are lots of ways to be involved in the contest. First, we plan to offer taping sites. These sites simply choose one or more days and times to offer digital videotaping. To add your taping time to a national list of taping locations, email fbrautigam@gailborden.info. Second, link to the contest site from your library’s homepage or write about it in your blog. You are also welcome to release contest information through any of your traditional outlets, including your library newsletter or other publications or to print out downloadable flyers or posters. As the 2009 contest develops, additional opportunities may become available, so check the website at www.storytubes.info now and then for additional information.

RE: Are you a StoryTubes library? If not, you should be!

2008-12-04T19:39:27Z

The partners listed are all public libraries. Can school libraries become StoryTube libraries too?

I have let kids record short book videos to share with schoolmates. Sharing with StoryTube would be even more exciting - even without prizes.

Are you a StoryTubes library? If not, you should be!

2008-12-02T00:31:09Z

Be sure to check out all the info about this great project for kids to share video book reviews of their favorite books with other kids around the world. There are prizes for the kids, their schools or their libraries!!

http://www.webjunction.org/storytubes

Please use this discussion to ask questions, share your strategies and spread the word!