Summer is here, but this is unlike any summer on record. School may be “out,” but young readers are still at home searching for productive and creative ways to pass their time, and the SAG-AFTRA Foundation believes that opens up new avenues of reading opportunities and storytelling for children worldwide.
That’s why the Foundation’s free online literacy website Storyline Online is launching its inaugural Storyline Online Summer Camp with help from readers Jaime Camil, Mark Duplass, CCH Pounder, and Mary Steenburgen.
Summer Camp is a time when young people join together in arts, crafts, sports and storytelling — especially around the campfire. While many kids can still engage in these activities, they’ll be doing it with parents and siblings instead of a gang of other children. That’s why Storyline Online is inviting all young readers across the world to join its first-ever Summer Camp by recording themselves reading their favorite book — or writing their own book and reading it to us — in the spirit and style of Storyline Online.
Young readers can post their stories on Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #StorylineOnlineSummerCamp, and their read-alouds will be shared on the Storyline Online Instagram platform (@storylineonline) in its Summer Camp Stories so that every child “camper” all over the world can join in the fun and enjoy stories read by their friends and peers.
Storyline Online Summer Camp runs through August 31.
Storyline Online continues to add stories to its bookverse and currently provides 60 video read alouds by some of the world’s most beloved storytellers who engage young viewers with their animated interpretations of historic, adventurous and fantastical tales that promote imagination and inclusion. The Storyline Online® cast of readers includes Kristen Bell, Jaime Camil, Viola Davis, Allison Janney, Rami Malek, Chrissy Metz, Chris O’Dowd, Sarah Silverman, Wanda Sykes, Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Yeoh and more, who have volunteered their time and talent to promote literacy and inspire a love of reading in children. The program also provides supplemental teaching materials for many stories, which means that whether they’re in a classroom with a teacher or at home with a parent or caregiver, every young reader has access to a full range of educational possibilities.
