KID LIT HEROES: Are children's books read in space? By Jan Godown Annino

Much of the time I’m in Florida, where ice cream from a walk-up snack window can melt in 60 seconds.

But Florida’s outer space ice cream lasts.  Fans of NASA and the Kennedy Space Center such as me and my family, know the Neapolitan-flavor trick to traveling with ice cream. Pack the freeze-dried kind for the family.

 (image credit: IceCreamNation.org) 

Here’s another NASA trick. And it’s in league with the International (which could easily be International and Outer Space) Reading Association (IRA.)

 If you know youngsters who are moon-gazers

 (NASA image credit/Bill Ingalls)

or science fiction fans or space-addicted, treat them to a story that is read from outer space, part of today’s KIT LIT HEROES.

 Stories from Space sites:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_AGLeemYPg

 http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-052114a-storytime-space-books.html

One advocate of this unusual story time is Reader-in-Space, Dad-in-Space, flight surgeon,  Kjell Lindgren. 

And next week, Astronaut Lindgren asks everybody sign up to pledge 60 (ice-cream-melt) seconds, to read or to enjoy writing, speaking or listening for 60 days in a row. 

Can I do this? 

Maybe I should eat ice cream with each read. 

The first day of the reading focus is called International Literacy Day. 

And this year, 2014, that is Monday, Sept. 8.

Kjell’s mission to have young people and adults reading is paired to a 

social media hashtag #ILD14, a website, www.reading.org/ILD and a poster.

The cool cartoon poster is from ASTRONAUT ACADEMY author/illustrator Dave Roman.  

Astronaut Kjell told the IRA magazine, READING TODAY, that he devoured space books even before he was 12 years old, which was also the age he first applied to the U.S. Air Force Academy. “I truly feel like books and reading have been fundamental to my success,” he said. 

Kjell is not only a surgeon to the astronauts, but also a veteran of working with Russian cosmonauts. He is preparing to lift off next year with the 2015 Expedition 44/45 to the International Space Station on a Russian Soyuz rocket from Kazakhstan, in May.

He told the IRA that his devouring of books, especially childhood books about weird futuristic science, is one reason why he will be one of the elite few who will be able to say he reads out loud to young readers from outer space.

“Books are fun to read – space history and science fiction captured my imagination and challenged me to pursue my goals,” he told the IRA.

Kjell and other astronaut/readers in space, Alvin Drew and Mike Hopkins, are among the Lift Off reading corps, who with the IRA, want every reader of all ages to  LIFT OFF TO LITERACY.

Book titles, among many that Kjell recommends for young readers, include

 I WANT TO BE AN ASTRONAUT, by Byron Barton and TOUCHDOWN MARS from Peggy Wethered and Ken Edgett and illustrated by Michael Chesworth.

Of course your 60 seconds pledged for 60 days can cover any

story or topic. I have a stack o’ reading to dig into, but if I desired even more, I might mix in THE ASTRONAUT'S COOKBOOK and,  AN ASTRONAUT COOKBOOK, Simple Recipes for Kids.

 

 

As a longtime member and fan of the IRA I plan to pledge and page through the 60-day challenge. 

I hope you can enjoy it, too. 
An IRA activity kit at the event site, www.reading.org/ILD,
suggests ways to spend those 60 seconds.

You can also share this information to inspire a reading club, class, or library group to Lift Off.  They can even mention one, or some, of their 60-second activities with an email to the IRA at ILD@reading.org

or a shout out in social media at hashtag #ILD14.
 Who knows? It might get attention from outer space!

 Note: I'm pleased that the LIFT OFF TO LITERACY project is created in part with ideas from educators including some in my state: Karen Jackson, Deobrah Kozdras and Sam Williams.

And, here are added stellar sites:

Dave Roman, LIFT OFF TO LITERACY poster creator & author of

 Astronaut Academy 

http://yaytime.com/books/astronaut-academy/

Dave Roman's online free Starbunny web comic:

http://starbunny.net/comic/prelude-page-01/http://starbunny.net/comic/prelude-page-01/