Read·Write·Bermuda is a collaborative partnership among the Bermuda National Library (“BNL”), CedarBridge Academy, The Reading Clinic, and the Buechner Society of Bermuda, using new and existing resources to expand their capacity to help young readers and writers.
The Bermuda National Library was founded in 1839 and is celebrating its 175th anniversary this year. The Library started out with 276 volumes in a single room. The collection has grown and is housed in not only the main library on Queen Street, but also in the Youth Library on Church Street, Hamilton. The BNL sponsors many programmes supporting readers, writers, and all community members.
CedarBridge Academy is the largest public high school in Bermuda and is currently celebrating its fifteenth anniversary. Located in Devonshire, its motto is: “At CedarBridge Academy, where excellence is valued, we cultivate Bermuda’s achievers.” Led by Principal Kalmar Richards, CedarBridge Academy has graduated over 1,000 alumni and continues to prepare its students for lives of success.
Founded in 1968, The Reading Clinic has grown from providing specialized tutoring based in the founder’s home to an array of services designed to meet the needs of individuals with a variety of learning differences in a purpose-built facility. Its work includes structured, multisensory, phonetic instruction for reading and spelling, neurodevelopmental assessments, and support for family members and educators.
Following the tragic death of his father when he was a child, Frederick Buechner found home in Paget and went on to attend Warwick Academy. Buechner has written more than thirty books, including Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist books. Through the Buechner Society of Bermuda and its efforts to benefit Bermuda’s children and writing community, Buechner is giving back to his “Oz of an island” – Bermuda.
Read•Write•Bermuda represents a new partnership bringing together disparate organisations that share common goals. While each of the Read•Write•BermudaCampaign elements will provide benefits to an individual partner organisation, theRead•Write•Bermuda Campaign has been designed as a collaborative partnership where individual resources are leveraged across organisations as all work together to promote reading and writing. Examples of integration designed to maximize cross-over benefits and social impact include the following signature collaborations:
A student at CedarBridge Academy will be tutored by a Reading Clinic tutor using the CedarBridge Academy E-book Centre to access books from the newly expanded BNL electronic library collection.
A poet from a BNL Writing Workshop will participate as a celebrity writer by bestowing awards to new writers as part of CedarBridge Academy’s “I am a Writer” programme for successful student writers.
The Reading Clinic will provide CedarBridge Academy volunteer literacy tutors support, training, and professional development to enhance their one-on-one tutoring skills for CedarBridge Academy students.
The BNL will work with CedarBridge Academy and The Reading Clinic to collect information about student and young adult interests and reading habits by subject area and then adjust the BNL’s collection to meet the interests and needs of the next generation of young Bermudian readers.