Canadian Publishers Launch “Read Aloud Canadian Books” Program for Teachers & Librarians

Thursday, March 26, 2020

Association of Canadian Publishers & Access Copyright Announce Temporary Permissions for Online Storytime

As schools remain closed indefinitely and classrooms shift to online learning, educators and librarians are seeking out ways to connect with students and provide meaningful learning opportunities from a distance. In response, the Association of Canadian Publishers (ACP) and Access Copyright have partnered to start the Read Aloud Canadian Books Program.

Reading books aloud and sharing stories is a treasured daily activity in classrooms and libraries. Many educators and librarians have sought permission from Canadian publishers to read part or all of a book and to share a video of the reading for online story-time with their students.

“We are pleased to partner with the Association of Canadian Publishers to facilitate online story- times while schools and libraries are temporarily closed,” says Roanie Levy, President & CEO of Access Copyright. “The Read Aloud Canadian Books Program empowers educators and librarians to share stories from Canadian publishers with their students during a time when they are needed more than ever.”

The Program will allow, on a temporary basis, a waiver of licence fees related to the reading of all or part of select books from participating publishers and posting of the video recording online. Educators and librarians will be able to confidently bring Canadian stories and literature to students during this challenging time.

Ruth Linka, Co-Chair of the ACP Children's Publisher Committee and Associate Publisher of Orca Book Publishers, observes: “In the best of times authors and book publishers are active partners with educators and librarians in bringing excellent content to our youngest citizens. Now in difficult times we are proud to support educators and librarians in their extraordinary work in keeping children engaged, informed, and entertained.”

ACP and Access Copyright encourage educators and librarians who are taking advantage of the program to spread the word on social media using the hashtag #ReadAloudCanadian and tag @AccessCopyright, @CdnPublishers, and individual creators and publishers.

Publishers who have signed up so far include: Annick Press, ARP Books, Orca Book Publishers, Owlkids Books, Portage and Main Press, Running the Goat, Books and Broadsides, Groundwood Books, and Linda Leith Publishing.

For more information about the program, terms and conditions, and guidelines for use, please visit www.accesscopyright.ca/read-aloud.

ACP is the national voice of English-language Canadian-owned book publishers. ACP contributes to the development and maintenance of vibrant, competitive book publishing companies in order to support and strengthen the contribution that Canadian books make to Canada’s cultural, economic, and educational landscape.

For over 30 years, Access Copyright has facilitated content use for educational and professional purposes. Access Copyright has helped people make customized use of published materials combined with an assurance that the original creators and publishers also benefit, so that they can continue creating new and innovative works. This is vitally important to a strong Canadian culture and to all who rely on quality publications.

###

Contacts:

For the Association of Canadian Publishers:

Kate Edwards, Executive Director, kate_edwards@canbook.org.  

For Access Copyright:

Amy Cormier, Head of Communications and Marketing, acormier@accesscopyright.ca