Elgin library to begin national StoryTube contest for children
During spring break, Elgin 9-year-old Maggie Kohler is going to read parts of "The Daring Book for Girls."
Then, she's going to tell why she likes the 288-page "reference" book for everything a girl needs to know.
On the Internet. In two minutes or less.
Kohler is one of thousands of students across the United States expected to participate in the first StoryTubes contest in the next month.
In a nutshell, students must produce a video for one of four book categories, upload it to YouTube and fill out other information at www.storytubes.info.
Beth Kohler, Maggie's mom, said the activity has broadened the horizons for the third-grader.
"It gives her an outlet to share one of the books she loves," Kohler said. "We're not doing it to win. We're doing it for the experience. But I wouldn't turn down $500 in books."
At the end of each week in May, a winning contestant will receive $500 in free books, and that person's sponsoring organization, such as a school, library or designated organization for home-schoolers, will receive $1,000 in books.
The StoryTube idea began at Elgin's Gail Borden Library.
In 2006, the library held a local contest called "Storypalooza" in which people made videos of their favorite books or something or someone who has made a difference in the community.
The videos, no more than four minutes in length, were sent to www.youtube.com and then linked to the Gail Borden Web site where voting took place.
Faith Brautigam, the library's director of youth services, said the videos resulted in more than 29,000 views.
"It's been almost two years and we're still getting comments and hits," she said.
So she and Denise Raleigh, the library's marketing director, went to work and persuaded six book companies to provide prizes and other libraries across from coast to coast to help promote the contest.
StoryTubes is open to anyone in the United States. Entries will be accepted April 1 through April 20 and must fall into one of four categories: Hair-Raising Tales; From or For the Heart; Of Heroes and Heroines; and Facts, Fads and Phenoms.
"It's obviously fun to do something yourself. The national element adds to it," Brautigam said. "It's also fun to vote."
The activity seems to be catching on in the suburbs.
Schaumburg resident Nancy Sauser home schools her two daughters, third-grader Elizabeth and fourth-grader Emily.
The children are still deciding which books to select and their parents will help them shoot and edit the video in coming weeks.
Sauser said the activity gets the girls out of their comfort zone.
"I'm always looking for different experiences for the girls, ways they can learn. This one seemed to fit the bill," she said. "It gives them an opportunity to share something they love and do it in a different fashion. It's pushing them in a new way that they can learn. That's what I like."
Maryanne Kyle-Dipietropaolo, a Carol Stream woman who also home schools, said her kids, second-grader Zoe and fifth-grader Joey, took a long time to select their favorites.
"I didn't expect them to be as excited as they are and I didn't expect those choice of book to be such an important choice," she said. "They get to show something they're excited about, their love of reading, and something they enjoy."
FYI
What: StoryTubes, an online contest in which readers make a video of two minutes or less about their favorite book.
When: Entries are accepted April 1 through April 20.
Where: Students in grades first through sixth across the United States are eligible. See www.storytubes.info.
Winners: Chosen via online vote each week in May. Winners receive $500 in books; their sponsoring organization, such as a school or library, gets $1,000 in books.