Book Magic

What Is Book Magic?

During Britain's literacy crisis which looks set to leave 2.5million eleven year olds illiterate, or of an inadequate reading standard by 2015, Baba Lula Arts has set up a project called Book Magic which targets pre-school children and their parents/carers. Book Magic is a weekly, two hour long session which introduces families to a range of activities all based around a different book each week. At the end of each session, every child takes a book home with them to enjoy until the next session.

We believe that the love of books is triggered early and once children are at school the boat has been missed. We also aim to involve the parents so that the fun continues at home - sometimes grown ups just need a little reminder of how to play!

Why does Book Magic need to raise funds?

The first six sessions were funded by Belper town council and The Herbert Strutt Charity but after that, Baba Lula Arts must find the funding elsewhere. The idea is to keep the session free for the families that use it. The money is used to buy equipment such as toys, cushions, mats all of which get used in imaginative play, to re stock on items like paint, glue, tissue and card, to buy a membership to a scrapstore and buy recycled, clean items for crafts from there, to pay a minium wage to two qualified participatory artists and to cover extra expenses such as snacks, drinks and printing.

Do people need Book Magic?

Already, Book Magic is proving to be a popular and valuable event for Belper's community. Here is some feedback comments from people who have come.

"Really enjoyed the session - a great range of activities - obviously a lot of time and effort has gone into the planning & resources."

"Lots of activities during the session. Kept the children entertained with lots of imaginative play."

"We both really enjoyed Book Magic. There were so many different activities based on the book. It was engaging,friendly, fun and educational. We had a great time."

And finally...

Thank you for taking the time to read our funding bid. Any amount, no matter how small, will be very much appreciated, not just by Baba Lula Arts but by the families that come to the sessions, as a love of books is invaluable.