Multicultural Children's Book Day

#ReadYourWorld

January and Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021

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Planning and implementation for Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021 is zooooommming right along!

Can you believe that MCBD2021 is less than 30 days away? As my grandpa used to say, “We’re on the downhill slide to the finish line!”

Here’s what’s new and interesting

  • Book Matching Has Wrapped: From mid-November to the end of December, the MCBD Team worked hard to match reviewers with authors or publishers and it was no small task. As much as we want to keep going and keep assigning authors to reviewers, we know from past experience that it gets stressful and frustrating for all parties involved when review books don’t arrive on time. We do, however, have wonderful PDFs of diverse books to share and review so contact Admin (at)
  • Our Project Manager did an excellent Facebook Live Friday Chat on 1/8 about the basic format of book reviews for MCBD and how to also “Next Level” your reviews to set yourself apart from the crowd. Watch this Chat on replay HERE.
  • Sponsorships Are Closed and WOW, do are we impressed with our Medallion  Level and Author Level 2021 Sponsors!
  • TWITTER PARTY! Yes, it’s true–we can hardly contain our excitement. Our annual MCBD Twitter Party is not only crazy-fun, it’s a chance for educators, parents, readers, reviewers, authors, publishers, and literacy organizations to come together for an hour of intense discussion on relevant topics on the diverse literacy for kids world.

A Meaningful Group Chat

If you haven’t joined our private MCBD Facebook Group, please do! The group is growing like crazy and we have a nice mix of educators, parents, book reviewers, influencers, authors, and publishers.

Not only have we shared our vision for the new group rules, but we are also excited about Becky’s new Weekly FB Live called Meaningful Group Friday Chat.

Why “Meaningful Groups?”

A Meaningful Group is an engaged community that comes together for a common purpose, passion, or reason. Also, a community committed to supporting each other. Sounds like the MCBD Facebook Group, yes? Our goal with this reoccurring Facebook Live every Friday to share what’s new and upcoming for Multicultural Children’s Book Day

Then our Hostess with the Mostess, Project Manager Becky Flansburg, will talk about a topic that would appeal to the wide range of group members that we have. Weekly could include topics like blogging, social media, publishing, promotion, and marketing, or even topics from a parent’s perspective work/life balance, time management, anxious kids, etc.

We have an amazing pool of Smart People in this group, and on the MCBD Team, so we want to use our knowledge bank to make our private Facebook Group a Meaningful one.

P.S. These Lives will be archived so they can be watched at a later date too 🙂

You can watch Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4.  As of 2021, our Friday Nite Chat has shifted to a Friday DAY Chat! The topic for the January 22nd Facebook Live within the MCBD Group is more info and what to expect with our crazy-fun 1/29 Twitter Party. AND the why/how/what-the-heck Q&A about our Big Giant Linky
As always, THANK YOU ALL for your support and efforts to keep this diversity in children’s literacy blooming!

**If you have questions about Multicultural Children’s Book Day, how to get involved, or how to get free books for your school or classroom, email Admin (at) MulticulturalChildrensBookDay (dot) com **

 

SUMMARY OF THE Multicultural Children’s Book Day EVENT

FIRST, a giant blog tour —
Readers, parents, teachers, librarians, and caregivers are coming together to explore lots of books with diverse content and sharing their thoughts and feedback via book reviews, book lists, and links.

SECOND, a giant networking event —
This global event connects readers, caregivers, educators, librarians, non-profits, organizations, sponsors, co-hosts, bloggers, and thought leaders so we can all achieve a common goal of raising awareness on the importance of diversity in children’s and YA literature.

THIRD, a virtual book drive —
Through MCBD initiatives like the FREE Diverse Books for Classrooms Project, The Offline Classroom Swag Pack,  and continued outreach to underserved readers, proceeds raised during the course of this online event (and all year-long) go towards getting free multicultural books in locations where they are needed and into the hands of young readers.

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021 Book Reviewers-Deadline Looming

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It’s not too late to sign up to review a diverse children’s or YA book on social media in honor of the 8th annual Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021 event!

The option to sign up as a reviewer will close in early December so please pass the word to anyone you know who would like to receive a free diverse book to review in honor of our 2021 (1/29/21) event.

GO HERE to sign up.

Also, due to shipping costs and time delays, physical copies of books cannot be guaranteed to our overseas reviewers…but we will make digital copies are available to you!

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021 Recap

Multicultural Children’s Book Day (MCBD) is an online and offline celebration that attracts thousands of supporters, educators, parents, caregivers, book reviewers, and quality authors and publishers who join forces to shine the spotlight on diversity in children and YA literature.

Celebrated annually on the last Friday in January, this global non-profit offers a plethora of free resources, teaching tools, booklists, downloads, and a year-around initiative to get multicultural and diverse books into the hands of young readers. To date, they have donated over 8,000 books to underserved kids, classrooms, and organizations, and that number continues to climb. To learn more about MCBD, visit them on the web and be follow their official hashtag #ReadYourWorld on social media.

SO…if you love diverse books for kids and have a social media platform to share a review on, we want to give you a FREE diverse kidlit or YA book to review!

AND, you don’t have to be a blogger to review multicultural children’s books for our MCBD 2021 online event. You just need to have a love of diversity in children’s literature and be willing to share on your social media platforms such as:

Facebook (Pages only-no Facebook profiles)

Twitter (Private Accounts are not Eligible)

Pinterest

Instagram (Private Accounts are not Eligible)

YouTube

Blogs

Goodreads

Amazon

**Please note, not everyone is guaranteed to receive a book! We will do our best, but sometimes demand exceeds our supply of available diverse books**

GO HERE to sign up.

 

SUMMARY OF THE Multicultural Children’s Book Day EVENT

FIRST, a giant blog tour —
Readers, parents, teachers, librarians, and caregivers are coming together to explore lots of books with diverse content and sharing their thoughts and feedback via book reviews, book lists, and links.

SECOND, a giant networking event —
This global event connects readers, caregivers, educators, librarians, non-profits, organizations, sponsors, co-hosts, bloggers, and thought leaders so we can all achieve a common goal of raising awareness on the importance of diversity in children’s and YA literature.

THIRD, a virtual book drive —
Through MCBD initiatives like the FREE Diverse Books for Classrooms Project, The Offline Classroom Swag Pack,  and continued outreach to underserved readers, proceeds raised during the course of this online event (and all year-long) go towards getting free multicultural books in locations where they are needed and into the hands of young readers.

Go HERE to read one of our recent blog posts, How to Tap Into the Buzz of a Multicultural Children’s Book Day Celebration.

It’s September and we are OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

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It’s time! We are throwing open the hypothetical doors and kicking off the beginning of the adventure known as the 8th Annual Multicultural Children’s Book Day (MCBD)!

As of 9/1, the MCBD2021 book reviewer sign-up is open, all Sponsorship Levels are open, and Book Donator sign-up is open as well.

January 29, 2021, will mark the 8th year of Multicultural Children’s Book Day’s quest to get culturally diverse books into the hands of children, parents, teachers, and librarians. Let the book love begin!

Here’s The Breakdown of How you can get involved in Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021

 

Sponsorships for the Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021 Event are OPEN! 

How to be a Multicultural Children's Book Day SPONSOR

Sponsorship is a great way to support our non-profit initiative while tapping into some amazing visibility and exposure for authors and publishers of diverse board books, picture books, chapter books, and YA. Learn more here: https://wp.me/P5tVud-1A

 

Multicultural Children’s Book Day Book Reviewers-We Need YOU!

If you love diverse books for kids and have a social media platform to share a review on, we want to give you a FREE diversity book to review!

Book reviewers need at least one non-private social media account, plus the ability to leave a review on Amazon, to be able to qualify for a free book.

Acceptable social media platforms include Facebook (Pages only-no Profiles), and non-private Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, or YouTube accounts.

Get the full scoop HERE: https://wp.me/P5tVud-hm

 

Book Donator Sign-up for MCBD2021 is OPEN!

Publishers/Authors-if you have multicultural books for kids that you would like to get into the hands of deserving teachers, librarians, parents, and young readers, we could use your help!

Diverse board books, picture books, chapter books, and YA books that are donated to this non-profit initiative help us to continue to raise awareness on the importance of kids being able to “see themselves” in the pages of the books they read. Multicultural books also help readers learn about new traditions, cultures, religions, and ethnicities within the pages of a book.

If you’d like to help do your part and make a difference. GO HERE and to see who you can help:   https://wp.me/P5tVud-MR

Questions? Email MCBD Admin Kristi at Admin (at) MulticulturalChildrensBookDay (dot)

 

 

A July Flash Sponsorship Sale Tutorial+ The Power of Collaboration

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As I type this, I am so proud that  Multicultural Children’s Book Day is in its eighth year. Eight years!

Time flies when you are loving your work! If you are new to this initiative, Multicultural Children’s Book Day (MCBD) is a non-profit initiative that is dedicated to supporting and shining the spotlight on diversity in children’s literature and their authors and publishers. Read more about our mission here.

The MCBD on and offline celebration occurs on the last Friday of January and our next celebration will be 1/29/2021.

So many amazing things have occurred over the last eight years and notable headway has been made in raising awareness on the importance of diversity in kid and YA literature. Check out our past post, 5 Ways that Increasing the Awareness of Diverse Books is Paying Off for more facts and victories.

But, I am also keenly aware that today’s world is not what it was 12 months ago.

If you are an Author or Publisher, I’m sure you have noticed that it seems that people are pulling back from buying a bit. And rightfully so. People are scared and unsure about where the next paycheck is coming from. I also know adults and kids alike need distractions, escape, and positivity that reading a book can provide. So if it feels like your book promotions/launches/sales are falling flat, don’t despair.

Keep going. Keep writing. Keep sharing.

I was recently doing some reading on innovative ways to marketing books during uncertain times and every.single.article mentioned collaboration as one of the most powerful ways to get your work in front of new eyeballs and pocketbooks.

THAT, is what MCBD is; collaboration. Authors and publishers support our non-profit with Sponsorship purchases so we can continue to donate books to organizations, centers, classrooms, and under-served readers.

In return, these same authors and publishers are tapping into a monstrous social reach and powerful name-recognition that we have worked 8 years to build.

It’s a win/win.

So, if you are a diverse children’s book author or publisher, being part of this epic online celebration is yet another unique and exceptional way to be seen.

To be heard. To be discovered. And our July Flash Sale is a way to save some moolah while locking in either a Platinum Level or Author Sponsor Level for 2021.

If you are a diverse children’s book author or publisher, go here to download our Sponsorship Packet for 2021 to see all the perks that are included in the different levels of participation.

**Our Super Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Levels will be available September 1, 2020***

If you want to save some $$ and get on board for our 2021 celebration….

Go here to read more details about the Flash Sale.

Go here to secure a Flash Sale Platinum Level (only 2 spots left!)

Go here to secure a Flash Sale Author Sponsorship spot for 2021 (unlimited)

**Our Super Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Levels will be available September 1, 2020***

In a nutshell, ALL MCBD sponsorships provide participants with an amplified level of visibility and recognition for their multicultural/diverse children’s and YA books.

Sponsorship Level Perks also include:

  • Social proof that publishers, book reviewers, book buyers, and educators take note of for years to come
  • Those who participate as a Sponsor during this wildly successful event also know they are tapping into epic buzz and visibility on social media.
  • Our Sponsors are also matched with as many or as few vetted book reviewers who will read, review, and share the book on their social channels.
  • The opportunity to be of service and work towards the greater goal of getting diverse books into the hands of under-served readers.
  • As a non-profit, MCBD also works tirelessly to get those books in front of parents, caregivers, educators, and librarians while also getting them into the hands of young readers. Read more about our mission here.

Proof of Success and Warm Fuzzies from our 2020 Event

Maybe it’s just us, but the MCBD Team felt that our 2020 on and offline diverse kidlit celebration reached a whole new level of “Epic-ness!”

Needless to say, there were many, many examples of Multicultural Children’s Book Day Celebrations that made our eyes leak with happiness. Here are three stand-outs:

#1-Heartwarming Classroom celebrations: Over the last seven years, support and recognition from educators and librarians have continued to increase. This makes us incredibly happy. Some of the best rewards for the hard-working MCBD Team are to see all of the smiling faces and little hands clutching multicultural books and enjoying a classroom celebration.

Find a plethora of examples that will make your heart sing and give you the warm fuzzies for weeks on the Multicultural Children’s Book Day blog here!

#2-We Trended on Twitter!

January 31st was a tough day to try to trend on Twitter against a trifecta of disturbing and sad (Kobe Bryant, Coronavirus, Impeachment)…but we did it! During our #ReadYourWorld Twitter Party, we slightly broke the Internet with all of our diverse book-loving magic and trended on Twitter. Yay us!

Multicultural Children's Book Day 2020 Trends on Twitter!

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2020 Trends on Twitter!


From Super Platinum Sponsor, Make A Way Media

This is just a small sample of the global fun and book-inspired participation. Search #ReadYourWorld on any social media channel to discover MORE memorable moments of Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2020. THANK YOU, everyone!

Ways To Get Involved

Some other things you can do to not only stay in the loop on what Multicultural Children’s Book Day is up to but also raise awareness for your work in affordable ways. Here are a few ideas:

1. Join our private Facebook Group of over 1500 like-minded book reviewers, publishers, authors, and educators. Just be sure and note the rules (book promotion is limited to Monday Marketing only).
Multicultural Children's Book Day Facebook Group
2. View our timeline for event planning HERE. This will give you an idea of what our process is and know when and where to look for signups and updates.
4. Participants and supporters can also stay in the loop with the festivities via the event’s hashtag #ReadYourWorld on Twitter, Instagram, and other social media.

5. Social Media Shout-Outs! Leverage the robust social media presence of MCBD with the uber-affordable Social Media Shout-out to shine the spotlight on your book (or an author or book you admire). Multicultural Children’s Book Day has some serious social media juice on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and shout-outs are a marketing nugget of gold for authors and publishers! Get all the details HERE.

 

6. Guest Posts on the MCBD Blog: Tell us the story of your author’s journey. Tell us why YOU think diversity in kidlit is important. Tell us about a diverse book-related topic that you believe in, have experience in, or one that simply needs deeper discussion. Connect with the Project Manager at Becky (at) MulticulturalChildrensBookDay (dot) com with your idea and to request our Guest Post Guidelines.

Have questions on How You Can Get Involved In Multicultural Children’s Book Day? Connect with the Project Manager at Becky (at) MulticulturalChildrensBookDay (dot) com.

Others ways to participate in the Multicultural Children’s Book Day Initiative:

    1. 1. {Teachers} Multicultural Children’s Book Day FREE Book for Your Classroom Campaign-If you know of a classroom or library that would like a free hardcover, library-approved, diversity children’s book, have them sign up HERE.
    2. {Parents/Librarians/Teachers/KidLit Lovers} Free Book to Review. MCBD offers a free diverse children’s book to parents, grandparents, and educators that are willing to write a review and this year we are not limiting reviewers to just bloggers. Just share on your review on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or your blog. Get sign up details here.
    3. {Everyone} Be an MCBD2021 Sponsor: Sponsorship is not only a great way to support this event; it is an excellent way to get an author’s name and books in front of thousands of readers. Sponsorship levels range from Platinum to Author Level and a Friends of MCBD option is also available for those who would like to support the initiative with a monetary donation. MCBD Sponsors not only keep the MCBD machine humming, it enables us to support underserved readers, libraries, and schools all year long.
    4. {Everyone} Multicultural Children’s Book Day Free Resources, Booklists, and Extension Activities for Teachers and Parents. Enjoy this vast resource list of diverse children’s books categorized by culture, religion, sexual orientation, special needs or ethnicity.
    5. Check out the MCBD2020 Big Giant Linky for HUNDREDS of diverse kids’ and teen book recommends and reviews to help expand your home or classroom bookcase. Go HERE and scroll down.

 

– Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/MulticulturalChildrensBookDay

– Twitter https://twitter.com/MCChildsBookDay

-Instagram https://www.instagram.com/readyourworldmcbd/

-Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/pragmaticmom/multicultural-books-for-kids/

As the next MCBD event approaches on January 29, 2021, I encourage everyone to follow along via the MCBD website and social media to win even more books, hear from authors and learn the importance of “windows and mirrors” in today’s children’s literature.