Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting – about a father and son who live in an airport. This is an excellent and sensitive way to introduce the problem of homelessness. It is also in the Reading Rainbow series in DVD version. Suitable for grades 3-5.

For Early Elementary kids:

Homeless Hibernating Bear – this delightful book was actually written by homeless kids, “Kids Livin’ Life”

Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen by Dyanne DiSalvo-Ryan

Home – Poetry by over 30 authors and illustrators – about homelessness.

Keiki Cards = Making cards of cheer for terminally ill children around the world.

Read about this Honolulu based group of “angels:” www.keikicards.org

I highly recommend contacting Punahou English teacher Paul Hamamoto phamamoto@punahou.edu to find a time for him to speak at your meetings.

On his sabbatical last year, he visited American High Schools across the USA and made a documentary about his experiences. It is truly fascinating.

I recommend this Read to Me Literacy Project for Early Act, Interact , and Rotaractors to promote reading in early childhood programs.

The 4-H program has wonderful Read to Me kits where you make an interactive Story Apron to go along with an exciting picture book that you choose, then you read it to young children to encourage them to read.

All materials are free and come packed neatly in a Tupperware bin. You are asked to answer a survey and document your Read In.

Contact Claire Nakatsuka at the 4-H dept. at UH Manoa. nakatsuk@hawaii.edu Ph# 956-7196