Hi, I’m Linda. Thanks so much for checking out the June 2025 edition of my Linda Be Learning newsletter. If you are just discovering me, I encourage you to check out my website and my YouTube channel to learn more about the work I do in the field of learning technology and innovation.

I’m taking a bit of a detour with this month’s theme, which is literacy. This is in part because I myself am an avid reader and haved loved to read since I first learned how at age three or four. It’s also in part because of the work I’m currently doing with one of my clients. But mostly it’s because reading is the first “code” you remember learning how to break. Your adeptness at breaking this early code is predictive of your ability to break the future codes you will face in life; literally, figuratively, and symbolically.

In this month’s edition, instead of focusing on technology, I’ll share with you some of my favorites doing excellent literacy work, including a brief sneak peek into the work I’m doing with one of my clients.

Literacy Influencers to Get Excited About

I am always discovering new influencers. This month, we’re going to meet two literacy influencers: one who may be new to you and the other, a likely familiar face.

Mychal Threets

Mychal Threets is an accomplished library professional and the Resident Librarian for PBS and PBS Kids. He creates video content shared on PBS platforms that focus on the importance of books and literacy, and connects to PBS and PBS Kids’ assortment of shows, programs, and characters. He hopes that the videos he creates open up worlds of possibility, support learning, spark connection, and bring neighbors together as a community.

In addition to his social media content, Mychal also recently published I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy. Check out this LinkedIn post about his new book.

LeVar Burton

LeVar Burton likely needs no introduction, being an actor who became a household name early in his career. Actor, presenter, director, author, podcaster and founder at LeVar Burton Entertainment, LeVar has dedicated his life to the power of storytelling. He believes sharing stories is what he was born to do because storytelling is what we all have in common.

In his own words:

I believe if we can share our personal stories with each other, with an intention to listen without judgement and speak from integrity, we will no doubt identify points of commonality between us. If we find we have enough in common, we can potentially establish empathy for one another. And if we can generate empathy for one another then the space is opened for cultivating relationships grounded in compassion. It is our capacity for compassion and a willingness to first, focus on our commonality, that will heal the divide. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

If you are of a certain age, it is very likely that you remember LeVar from the acclaimed series, Reading Rainbow.

Reading Rainbow first launched in 1983 as a children’s television series designed to encourage reading. The show ran for 155 episodes over 26 years, becoming the third-longest-running children’s TV series in US history. It ended in 2009 with 26 Emmys, a Peabody Award, and over 200 other broadcast awards.

Check out Season 7, Episode 3 - Little Nino's Pizzeria. In this episode, LeVar makes a pizza, while "The Wonder Years" star Josh Saviano reads a story about a boy whose father runs a pizzeria.

Visit the Reading Rainbow website at https://www.readingrainbow.org/watch/ for family activities you and your child can enjoy together after watching this episode. Activities are available in both English and Spanish.

Literacy Programming for Good

Literacy has been a focus for many educational programs and technologies. Much of the effort is placed on decoding skills, the idea that learners need to first “decode” the words on the page in order to develop better reading comprehension. But some models challenge that idea, that there is more than one way to help kids understand books and stories, resulting in a life-long love of reading. Camp Read-a-Rama is one of those programs.

Camp Read-a-Rama

Camp Read-a-Rama seeks to make the US more literate, one child and one book at a time. They believe that literacy unlocks a brighter future and a world of opportunities for every child, that literacy is not just about reading, but about creating a foundation for success in every aspect of life.

The nonprofit is dedicated to working with underserved communities with a mantra of "100% engagement,100% of the time.” This engagement is accomplished through Read-a-Rama’s unique approach of teaching kids to “live books.” Storytimes are interactive experiences with inquiry about the illustrations as well as the text, with adult readers inviting kids to think deeper about the story being shared. Songs, games, and activities drawn from and connected to the book make the experiences even richer and more memorable.

A flexible format, Read-a-Rama implementations can be as short as 2-hour Storytime events to week-long day camps. I am currently working with the Read-a-Rama team, bringing their dynamic in-person professional development training for educators online. The learning portal we’re building will offer four certification learning paths, based on role (Site Director, Program Facilitator, Program Staff, and Counselor-in-Training), as well as access to live learning events, an extensive theme-based curriculum, a music library, research resources, and a community of practice for certified educators.

The certification is designed to mimic the in-person experience as much as possible, and includes brief background presentations, video demonstrations of the techniques and methods, knowledge checks, discussions, hands-on activities, and authentic assessments as assignments (with instructor feedback) to ensure the transfer of skills.

Read-a-Rama programming centers on children’s literature that is diverse, contains rich storytelling, and vivid illustrations. An example of an ideal book for Read-a-Rama programming is Gibberish, by Young Vo.

Featured Children’s Book: Gibberish

Young Vo is an animator, author and illustrator. He was six years old when his family fled Vietnam as refugees and settled in Spokane, Washington. Years later, his family moved to Los Angeles where he attended the California Institute of the Arts, majoring in Film and Animation. Graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, he went on to work in the video game industry for over 20 years. Some of his projects included Red Dead Redemption, Tomb Raider, Kingdoms of Amalur, and Elder Scrolls Online. He also taught animation courses at the Maryland Institute College of Arts.

Harkening back to my earlier comments about reading being one of the first “codes” we break as humans, Vo’s acclaimed illustrated children’s book, Gibberish, is literally about “breaking the code.” This extraordinary picture book shows kids how it feels to be an immigrant when everything is new and strange, especially the new country's language.

Gibberish is one of the featured storytime read-along demonstrations in Camp Read-a-Rama’s soon-to-be released online certification experience for educators. Visit the Read-a-Rama website to get on the waiting list.

Upcoming Learning Offerings

Remember those choose-your-own-adventure books you read as a kid? I sure do, and they inspired me, when I was just an undergrad student, to build technology that “branches” in the same way as those beloved books.

Some of the very best learning experiences I’ve designed over the course of my career involved branching as an instructional design approach. Branching Scenario Design is my next live learning session, scheduled for June 26, 2025, and I go deep in this one — the use cases, the design considerations, and the tools. I’ve been designing branching technologies literally since the late 1980s, and I have a lot of insight to offer on this topic.

Be sure to register to reserve your spot — I’ve kept this one limited to 50 participants.

That’s all for now. I hope this month’s edition has inspired you to step away from the computer, dust off your library card, and find a good book to read.

See you next month!