Bolivia Library Project

Would you like to participate in an education/outreach program on Bolivia to internationalize your school? The partnership is offering the opportunity to teach about Bolivia in their library and classrooms through the use of multimedia kits and curriculum connections established by Appalachian State University's library science students and Belk Library's Instructional Materials Center. The goal of this project is to teach children of any grade level about a little known country, Bolivia, and offer them the opportunity to connect with the children of that country through donations to the only children's library in Bolivia --Th'uruchapitas. This children's library has been connected to Appalachian State University since the year 2000 when it was formally inducted into the Sister Libraries program by the White House Centennial Commission. On April 2003 in Bologna, Italy , this program was awarded the highest reading promotion award in the world - the International Board of Books for Young Children (IBBY) Asahi Reading Promotion Award - 2003. Please consider trying this program out in your school.

1. What is required?
   In order to participate in this educational outreach project, media specialists also must participate in the outreach aspect as well by collecting money either to buy books or to contribute to the library's new building fund. There is no minimum amount of money or books that must be collected, but the Sister Libraries program does appreciate all efforts in helping to raise funds.
2. How did this project get started?
   The project started with a visit by Gaby Vallejo, founder of the Th'uruchapitas Library, to Appalachian State University. Dr. Linda Veltze later visited Cochabamba, Bolivia, saw the infrastructure for the already established library, and began to build a program of university cooperation across the miles.
3. How do I get the multimedia kits?
   Kits are available by contacting Pat Farthing in the Instructional Materials Center located in Belk Library. Her email is farthingsp@appstate.edu. Phone: (828) 262-2778. Some schools have the kits located in their district offices, and Ms. Farthing can advise you as to which schools these are. Kits should be used for no longer than two months in order to be able to circulate to various schools. If the kit at your district office is in use, contact Pat Farthing to make other arrangements. Extension students can have the kit sent to them by Pat Farthing. Other may need to make arrangement with Ms. Farthing to pick them up at Belk Library. If you wish to purchase a kit of your own for permanent use in your school, contact Dr. Linda Veltze, email: veltzela@appstate.edu.
4. What is contained in the multimedia kits?
   Each kit contains several authentic Bolivian handicrafts, including colorfully woven artifacts, musical instruments, and music. There is a 8 min. video explaining how the program originated, and another tape that has interviews with Appalachian students who participated in the book transport and interacted with the children at a special reception.
5. How do I use the kit in my school?
   The kit is a great tool for internationalization. Each teacher and media specialist will utilize these most beautiful objects in different ways. In the past some students have taken an imaginary trip to Bolivia , learning about Bolivia through websites, books, and the objects found in the kit. Other media specialists have involved the entire faculty, even cafeteria workers cooking a simple Bolivian meal. The art teacher involved students with crafts making objects similar to those used in Bolivia , the music teacher teaching dance to the music provided in the kits and as shown in the videos. Some programs have involved the honor society and Spanish language teachers.
   
   Many have involved the book fairs held in the schools where books in Spanish can be ordered through Scholastic or other companies. With the money contributed, the school can decide to buy books at the bookfair to send to Bolivia , or just use that money to donate to the Biblioteca Th'uruchapitas Fund. Some bookfairs have parents purchasing a book directly and adding it to the box of books to be sent to Bolivia . Some schools invite local companies to support their school's service learning programs by contributing to this international project. Some schools have involved their PTO's and have conducted schoolwide international days with fundraisers conducted at those events. Each school can organize their donation efforts in the way they wish.
   
   In short, the school can use the materials for an educational program of their choosing. The website established by Belk Library includes links to the North Carolina Program of Study and lists of activities appropriate for a particular grade level. Do a search on the Appalachian State University website for Sister Libraries at: http://www.library.appstate.edu/imc/sisterproject/sisterlibraryproject.html. Please note that new things are continually being added to this website, so check back frequently.
6. What kind of donations are needed for the Library of Th'uruchapitas?
   The Library of Th'uruchapitas needs children's books in Spanish, Spanish and English or money to buy these books and contribute to the fund for the new library building.
7. Who is responsible for making these donations?
   Each media specialist or sponsoring school is responsible for collecting the donations for the project.
8. To whom do we give the donations?
   Donations of books can be sent to: Dr. Linda Veltze, Appalachian State University Library Science Program, Dept. LES, Boone , NC 28608 She can be reached by email at veltzela@appstate.edu. In some cases, arrangements can be made for books to be picked up at the individual school.
   
   Monetary donations can also be sent to Dr. Veltze. Checks should be made out to Biblioteca Th'uruchapitas.
9. How do the books and donations get to Bolivia and the Library of Th'uruchapitas?
   Appalachian State University professors and students hand carry all of the donated books to the Library of Th'uruchapits during their study abroad trip to Bolivia . Monetary donations are deposited into the account of the Library of Th'uruchapitas, a nonprofit organization in Cochabamba, Bolivia.

Building Book Bridges from Burke County to Bolivia

By: Nina Zanjani and Dr. Linda Veltze

Being the Media Coordinator at Oak Hill Elementary in Burke County, Carolyn Mann has purchased a large number of books to add to her media center. The books she purchased this last Christmas, however, were to benefit another library—the only children’s library in Bolivia, Biblioteca Th’uruchapitas. Ms. Mann was first introduced to the Th’uruchapitas Library this past year through the children’s literature class she was taking through the Library Science Program at Appalachian State University. The University has a partnership with the Bolivian Library through Dr. Linda Veltze, a Professor in the Leadership and Educational Studies Department serving as Project Director.

Carolyn Mann decided to help add resources to the small children’s library in Bolivia by involving her K-5 students at Oak Hill Elementary in Morganton, North Carolina. Using a little bit of creativity, she began a learning project that would involve the entire school and benefit the Th’uruchapitas Library. She began by sending letters to the teachers explaining the educational benefits of Oak Hill students helping the children’s library of Bolivia. She then started teaching her students about Bolivia using the authentic multimedia kit donated to the Burke County School District by the Instructional Materials Center of Belk Library. The “Friends of the Belk Library” at Appalachian State University donated funds for the kit. Through this education, the students learned that the country of Bolivia only had one children’s library, and it was very small with very few books. The students were amazed, because they assumed that all countries had libraries for children. Carolyn Mann then told the students how they could help the children of Cochabamba, Bolivia. All they had to do was bring in .25c and she would use the money to buy children’s books in Spanish to send to Bolivia. Each of the 32 classrooms bought one book. The students in each classroom placed a picture of their class in the front cover and put the book under the Bolivia Christmas Tree or the “Giving Tree” that was on display in the media center.

The students could continue giving by personally donating $1.00 to the library. Every student was given an empty envelope that said, “My donation to help build a children’s library in Bolivia, South America.” They then decorated the outside of the envelope, and Mrs. Mann displayed them on the bookshelves in the media center. The students participating in the personal donations were given a jingle bell with their name on it to place on the “Giving Tree.”

The students at Oak Hill Elementary took Mrs. Mann’s idea and turned it into an outpouring of generosity. The students donated a substantial amount of books and some seed money for the library building fund that began in 2003 when ASU and the Bolivian library won the $10,000 IBBY-ASAHI Reading Promotion Award. The fifth grade students also asked and received permission to send letters to the local businesses asking them to donate small amounts of money to help the only children’s library in Bolivia. Since the students had never before written business letters, Ms. Mann took this opportunity to teach her fifth grade students the five parts of a letter. The students were then given a different section of the Burke County Yellow Pages and asked to pick one company to receive their letter. Mrs. Mann did not tell the students what to write - she only guided their efforts. The end result was amazing. The fifth grade students collected over $300.00 from local businesses. Overall, the students at Oak Hill Elementary gave 33 Spanish books and over $800.00 to the Th’uruchapitas Library in Cochabamba, Bolivia. All of the books and monetary donations will be hand-delivered to Cochabamba, Bolivia in May when Appalachian Library Science students visit the library.

Taking what she learned in her children’s literature class at Appalachian State University, Carolyn Mann helped teach her 500 students about the necessity of books in a third world country, while providing literacy tools to the children of Cochabamba, Bolivia. She will continue educating her students about the people and culture of Bolivia, so her students will learn the importance of cultural diversity in our world. “My dream is for this to continue,” says Mrs. Mann, “I really want the students to be able to see that what they did really made a difference.” Carolyn Mann’s efforts have shown other library science students what is possible when ideas about diversity are placed in the context of the “real world.” Her example proves that an Appalachian graduate student from Burke County can empower children on two continents.