{"id":4598,"date":"2025-06-06T17:12:58","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T21:12:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/?p=4598"},"modified":"2025-07-03T12:45:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T16:45:15","slug":"book-buddies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/2025\/book-buddies\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Buddies"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A

Cara Byrne<\/p><\/div>\n

Cara Byrne<\/b><\/a>, PhD, has immersed herself in the world of children\u2019s literature for the past decade, studying how stories shape perceptions of race, age and identity. As a lecturer in the <\/span>Case Western Reserve University<\/span><\/a> College of Arts and Sciences<\/span><\/a>\u2019 writing program, she explores these themes in her courses, research and a book slated to be published next year by <\/span>Johns Hopkins University Press<\/span><\/a>. The book analyzes children\u2019s books that include health and wellness messaging.<\/span><\/p>\n

But her work extends far into the community as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Byrne (GRS \u201911, \u201916, English) developed Book Buddies, a program that connects her students with second graders at <\/span>Noble Elementary School<\/span><\/a> in Cleveland Heights through pen-pal letters, one-on-one reading sessions and frequent visits\u2014to Noble and the CWRU campus. Byrne\u2019s students carefully select books covering a range of voices and perspectives and then meet with the younger students for meaningful conversations that foster a love of reading.<\/span><\/p>\n

Byrne, also a researcher at the <\/span>Schubert Center for Child Studies<\/span><\/a> on campus, believes children\u2019s literature can build bridges\u2014inside and outside the classroom. She spoke with <\/span>art\/sci<\/span><\/i> about the lessons picture books can teach.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A

Kwame Alexander, a best-selling author and Emmy-winning producer, read to elementary-school children and Case Western Reserve students participating in the Book Buddies program that CWRU faculty member Cara Byrne leads. The university\u2019s Baker-Nord Institute for the Humanities organized this campus event when it brought Alexander to campus for Awe, the Cleveland Humanities Festival held in 2024. | Photo by Nicholas McLaughlin<\/p><\/div>\n

What inspired you to create Book Buddies?<\/h2>\n

When I first taught a course on picture books at CWRU in 2015, I noticed my students had insightful takes on the texts but made broad assumptions about childhood. Many believed kids were shielded from difficult experiences, but I\u2019ve met children who have faced cancer, loss and war. I wanted to create opportunities for my students to engage with real children and see how stories resonate beyond the page.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2016, I started working with schools in [Cleveland\u2019s] Hough neighborhood, and, later, we expanded to Noble Elementary. These schools introduce college and career pathways early, often to students who would be the first in their families to attend college. Book Buddies helps make that path feel tangible, <\/span>and it has given my Academic Inquiry Seminar students insights into childhood as well<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How does the program work?<\/h2>\n

Now in its sixth year, Book Buddies fosters literacy through relationships between CWRU students and Noble Elementary students. Our students help younger readers develop confidence while introducing them to college life.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What do CWRU students take away from the experience?<\/h2>\n

Most of my students are future engineers, nurses or scientists\u2014not education majors\u2014and this may be their first time in an elementary school classroom since they were kids. They gain a new appreciation for the role of books in shaping young minds and often rethink their own perceptions of education and childhood.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"A

Children from Noble Elementary School who participated in CWRU\u2019s Book Buddies program during a Baker-Nord Institute for the Humanities event on campus. | Photo by Nicholas McLaughlin<\/p><\/div>\n

How have younger kids responded?<\/h2>\n

When they visit campus, they see themselves in a new way. [One] boy came to school in a Spiderman costume because he wanted his Book Buddy to know that he was a superhero. These are real relationships that are formed.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Support for the program comes from Noble Elementary School and its second-grade teachers as well as CWRU partners, including the CWRU <\/span><\/i>Writing Program<\/span><\/i><\/a>, <\/span><\/i>Baker-Nord Institute for the Humanities,<\/span><\/i><\/a> the <\/span><\/i>Kelvin Smith Library<\/span><\/i><\/a> and the <\/span><\/i>Larry Sears and Sally Zlotnick Sears think[box]<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cara Byrne<\/b><\/a>, PhD, has immersed herself in the world of children\u2019s literature for the past decade, studying how stories shape perceptions of race, age and identity. …Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":481,"featured_media":4604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2025\/06\/06171431\/20240423_CWRU_KA-80.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4598"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/481"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4598"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4598\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4822,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4598\/revisions\/4822"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}