California Stories Uncovered
California Stories Uncovered in the Library
Programs for teens, adults and the whole family
Adults, teens and the whole family were invited to participate in a variety of library programs and events, from oral history programs to reading and discussion groups featuring CCH’s new anthology: “California Uncovered: Stories for the 21st Century.”
CCH's partner in the library component of California Stories Uncovered was the Califa Group, a membership-based service bureau designed to provide member-enhanced, value-added services to all California libraries.
A sampling of library programs:
Torrance Public Library. Singers Kim and Linda Medina led a family sing-along of California songs through history, including "California Here I Come," "This Land is Your Land" and many more. A speaker described how these songs tell the stories of California's past.
Pacifica Public Library. This library partnered with five schools to connect the community. Among the activities were a poetry slam for elementary, middle school and high school students; and reading groups for local community college students. In addition, middle school students in a Spanish class interviewed local Spanish-speaking immigrants. The interviews were taped and later aired on a local community access television station.
Lompoc Public Library. One of the highlights here was a photojournalism project for students at three local middle schools. Students received oral history training, a camera and photography tips, and then interviewed family members, neighbors or friends about their experiences of growing up. As a final step the students created a poster of their subjects, for exhibition at the library.
Belvedere-Tiburon Library. Among the programs here was an intergenerational writing project on the theme of “No Place Like Home,” culminating in a public reading by the participants. Also, in a program exploring teen issues – called “both now and then” -- students in a theater group at the local high school interviewed a cross section of community residents on the theme of growing up, and developed character sketches for public presentation.
San Jose Public Library. Two of this city’s libraries paired 10 high school students from different backgrounds with new immigrants from China, Japan, France and Russia, all participants in a library literacy program. The students and adults read selections from the new anthology and conducted oral histories of friends and family members.
Westminster Branch Library. This library collaborated with the local elementary school, high school and historical society in an effort to reach underserved people in this rapidly changing community know as “Little Saigon.” Elementary school students interviewed family members and created quilt squares to represent their families' story. The squares were assembled into a quilt for display at the library. Students at the high school were trained in oral history methods and then interviewed people in their family about their lives since arriving in this country. The general public had an opportunity to hear the stories at a library event.
Sutter County Library. This rural library system had an exciting array of programs for all ages. A local historian taught family history methods to 50 community college students and 50 elementary school students. The older students helped the younger ones develop and illustrate their family histories, and formated the material into Power Point presentations for viewing by the community. A Yuba High School photography class collected family histories and photographs, and took photographs of the people they interviewed. The work was exhibited at the library, with a reception for students, family members and the general public. Preteens at one branch library documented with a camera local landmarks threatened by development projects and interviewed community elders about common changes. The photographs and interviews were turned into Power Point slides. At another branch, eighth grade students recorded their school-year experiences and interviewed older people to find out what school was like in their day. The materials were published in a local newspaper and presented at a school assembly.
Tulare Public Library. This library developed an array of programs in collaboration with a literacy program, the local high school and a senior center. Second and third grade students in the literacy program, many of whom are Latino, Portuguese or Hmong, interviewed parents and grandparents. Selected students shared their stories and introduced family members at an April library event. On the same evening, teens from the high school and seniors from the senior center presented a panel discussion about teen issues, then and now.
San Rafael Public Library. A variety of programs reflected the many cultures represented in San Rafael. An group of older Spanish-speaking adults read and discussed selections from the anthology in translation. Adult English speakers from diverse cultural backgrounds, participants in the Marin Literacy Program Conversation Group, read selections and shared personal and familial stories. Prisoners at the Marin County Jail read and discussed selections and wrote their own stories, as part of the Marin Literacy Programs's writing class. Teens from the local schools attended a teen poetry workshop.
Ventura County Library. Programs at this library aimed to connect youth and elders. Students at two local high schools were trained to conduct oral history interviews with long-time residents. The interviews were added to a local museum’s collection. There was also a multigenerational panel discussion on the topic of growing up in Ventura, then and how.