Hours of reading: Together more fun in Gulbene children's library

In the schools of Gulbene region, the project Reading Joy Lessons resumed this school year, in which the author of the book meets with children. This time the author was with the artist / illustrator of the book during the lessons, because it is more fun to perform together!

The children met with 5 book authors and 5 book illustrators / artists. Already at the end of September, Luīze Pastore, Inga Beitiņa and Reinis Pētersons were welcomed in Gulbene. Louise Pastore is the author of the book series "Art Detectives". The books deal with an exciting detective intrigue about a well-known painting by a Latvian artist. Inga Beitiņa is the author of educational books about the curious girl Mulu, who is very interested in art. Reinis Pētersons is a well-known children's book illustrator who has collaborated with both Luize Pastor and Inga Beitins, as well as working in animation. All three creative guests met with students at Galgauskas Primary School and Gulbene Art School.

Valentīna Sārna, a librarian from Galgauskas Primary School, talks about the Reading Fun lessons :
"It is a great pleasure that rural students had a new opportunity to meet artists. It is really necessary for children to get to know people in creative professions. It was also a very useful event in the field of art knowledge. It was interesting to watch the animated film and hear the story of its creation. ”

Mairita Ķuze-Nakoskina, a teacher at Gulbene Art School :
“The children of Gulbene Art School had an interesting game of art detectives, later the students of the school also tried this game at the newly opened State Art Museum in Riga. The artist Reinis Pētersons showed the children how to draw book illustrations with the help of a graphic tablet. For most children, it was a new experience with the possibilities of graphics programs. Thank you to Gulbene Library and VKKF for the opportunity for art school students to meet artists and gain insight into the work of book authors and illustrators! ”

The other couple who were kindly admitted to the Gulbene Children's Library and Litene Primary School were the children's writer and poet Ieva Samauska and the illustrator Anda Strautniece. An interesting fact - the two authors of the books met for the first time only in Gulbene, because until now they had communicated only via the Internet! "Season of Giggle" is the book of poems shared by both artists, which has earned recognition among both children and parents. Ieva Samauska also involved the children in writing poems, while Anda Strautniece told her about her path to the first illustrated children's book.

Irīna Graholska, a librarian at Litene Primary School, talks about Reading Lessons :
“I interviewed 3rd - 5th grade students and gathered feedback.

• Thank you very much! Was it interesting.
• I really enjoyed being able to watch drawings and a book with illustrations at the same time. (most reviews)
• It is clearer how the book is made.
• I liked to compare the drawings.
• The idea to create your own book came up.
• I really liked the drawings and stories about them.
• I liked the drawings, which were sad.
• The poet has interesting poems.
• After the event, I picked up Ieva Samauskas' book in the library and read poems.
• I liked that the poet gave leaves with poems, I tried to create, design and give them myself. Thanks!

I, too, thank you very much for the opportunity to participate in such a project!
I understood which class of students would be happy to take part in a similar event again if there was an offer, and who did not really appreciate the opportunity offered. ”

Tells Gulbene Secondary School 4th grade. brought up by Zinta Belayeva:
"It simply came to our notice then. The writer knew how to interest children in listening to poetry. The children were fascinated by inventing the titles of the poems, because the real satisfaction was the poem cards given by the writer. The students listened with great interest to how the writer collaborates with the artist who creates the drawings for the books. The students "flooded" the poet with questions about the life of the poet, how she decided to become a poet, etc. This meeting also encouraged the students to try to become poets at least once! ”

The third meeting was with the very well-known children's book author Inese Zander and the children's book illustrator Reibi Peterson. Both guests do not even ask for any comments, because they are real masters in their field! The poetess Inese read poems to the children and the artist Reinis illustrated them in front of the children's eyes, using the drawing tool she took with her - a graphic tablet. The two best-known collaborations are the book about Lupatiņi and the book of poems "Līze Analīze". This time, however, more attention is paid to the theme of Halloween or ghosts. The children especially liked it. In both lessons - both in Stāķi Primary School and in Gulbene Children's Library, an original drawing of Inese Zandere's poem about the guilds of the Riga Guild in the mood of Halloween was made on the spot! Both authors visited Stāķi Primary School and Gulbene Children's Library.

Helena Kluce, a librarian at Stāķi Primary School, talks about reading lessons:
“On October 31, this year, poetess Inese Zandere and book illustrator Reinis Pētersons visited our school. During the meeting, 4th and 5th grade students learned how to create poems and illustrations for children's books. The involvement of place names in poems was very exciting. Inese Zandere read to her students her latest works, which have not yet been published. During the performance, the artist created appropriate illustrations on the interactive whiteboard. The children really enjoyed this creative process. The artist Reinis Pētersons sent an illustration of the poem about the genus to e-mail for students to include in their class albums. ”

Gulbene Secondary School teacher Dzintra Kokoreviča :
“Pupils' knowledge after the meeting with Inesa Zander

• enjoyed listening to interesting poems;
• intriguing information about a book that is still being created;
• a nice animated film drawn by the artist during the meeting;
• interesting drawings by the artist on a computer;
• I had the opportunity to ask myself questions that the poet and artist patiently answered.

Thank you for this meeting! "

Writer Māris Rungulis and illustrator Agija Staka are present on November 2 and at Stāmeriena Primary School and Gulbene Children's Library. Māris Rungulis is a very prolific author of children's books. The writer prefers to write for teenagers, but there are some books that can be read by children of different ages. There are at least eight books in common with Agija Staku. The children especially liked the puzzles and the ghost stories read by the author.

Zita Grīnberga, a librarian at Gulbene Secondary School No. 2, talks about Reading Fun lessons:
“In October, November, 1st-5th grade students of Gulbene Secondary School attended reading lessons in Gulbene Library, where they met with poets, writers and book illustrators.
The children were delighted to have the opportunity to meet real book authors and book illustrators. They listened with interest to the artists' thoughts on creating stories, poems and illustrations. Listened to how the authors read their poems and stories. The students enthusiastically engaged in a conversation with the artists and illustrators. The children really liked to mention the names of the poems they read, to make up their own names. And even for a prize for the most originally invented name, get a poem! Many 5th grade students have vivid memories of the ghost story "Old Man and the Taxi Driver" read in front of the writer M. Rungulis.
Thank you to the staff of Gulbene County Library for the opportunity to meet the authors of contemporary children's literature! Such meetings delight, enrich and encourage! ”

The closing couple who visited the Gulbene Children's Library were the children's poet Māra Cielēna and the illustrator Irēna Lūse, who have been working together for a long time. The best-known collaborations are "Little Cloud Zoo", "Theo and Mummy", "Silence and Strap". This time two meetings took place only in Gulbene Children's Library. The children especially enjoyed looking at the real, large, colorful drawings of the artist and comparing them with what they saw in the books. The kids thought the difference was pretty big!

Vija Andževa, a teacher at Gulbene Secondary School, talks about reading lessons :
"Some students were interviewed. They said:

• It was interesting to see and hear a live writer and artist.
• Their autographs and picture will make you remember this meeting for a long time.
• I enjoyed the discussion.
• Wanted a longer event.
• Irēna Lūse was more interesting.
• She wanted the writer to read more excerpts and tell about her work.

Thank you for the opportunity to meet the writer and illustrator! ”

Gulbene Secondary School Librarian Sandra Resne:
"For my part, I can add that teachers and students are very much looking forward to these reading lessons. I have no problem organizing a class for your events. The children are happy to attend!
The biggest fans are the 2nd class and the teacher Vija Andrzeva. I think that a computer is quite a competitor for reading books, but when children see a "living" writer in their lives, reading has a completely different value. Often after such meeting hours, students ask for books written by a particular writer. Thank you for your work! ”

For reference.
Reading lessons is a project supported by Gulbene Children's Library and VKKF, which has been going on for two years. In the first year, the authors of the books visited the small first-graders in the schools of Gulbene region. This year, Reading Fun classes continued and an illustrator of the book also visited the schools of Gulbene region together with the authors of the books. You can see the photo from the lessons in the Galleries section of the Gulbene County Library website for children and youth.
We very much hope that this project will continue next year, when special attention will be paid to young people in the last grades of primary school.

Solvita Lībere, head of Gulbene Children's Library