Forum Topics

Read with children!

Do you remember a character from a childhood book as fondly as an old friend?If you do, you’ll know the magic of being able to slip into another world as and when you need to, or how books can make your world a bigger, brighter place.For bookworms especially, it’s hard to believe that anyone could see reading as anything other than empowering, or even just a pleasure. For the third of children from disadvantaged areas who leave primary school without being able to read well, often it’s nothing but a chore.That’s why we like to turn up on the doorstep, with a backpack of books, two little stools, and a pair of volunteers who know that words take you places. Every week, come rain or shine, our volunteers bring the magic of reading directly into families’ homes every week, in low-income areas across London.Doorstep Library volunteers don’t just read stories; they do the silly voices, handpick the books, and give special recommendations. By making it fun first, we get to watch children transform into budding readers. We love when parents get stuck in with the sessions too and encourage them to get involved in their children’s education.Sometimes though, we’re just there to give a bit of extra support, whether we’re passing on info about a family activity, lending an ear, or even just being a friendly face. Then, before we go, we leave behind a selection of books for each child to borrow for the week.If this sounds like the role for you, these are the basics. We run projects on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons in estates across Westminster, Hammersmith and Fulham and Lambeth.In Hammersmith and Fulham, we start at 3.45pm and finish at 6.30pm. If you'd like to know more contact Daniela Cardoso at digital@doorsteplibrary.org.uk

Emily Oliver ● 2815d0 Comments ● 2815d

B.B.C. Documentary.

B,B.C. 2 Wales at 9.00 pm on January 12. For viewers with Sky and Freeview it can also be seen on the same date and time. Otherwise for viewers throughout the U.K it can be viewed at 9.00pm pm on B.B.C.4 on January 22.                                                                                                                             It is the biggest unsolved serial murder case in British criminal history - the so-called 'Jack the Stripper' murders took place in Swinging Sixties London.Six women lost their lives to a killer who was never caught. Criminologist Professor David Wilson leads an investigation to unmask the killer, who claimed more victims than even his notorious Victorian namesake, Jack the Ripper.Professor Wilson and his investigative team - which includes former detective Jackie Malton and forensic psychologist Professor Mike Berry - begin their hunt for the killer not in London, but 150 miles away in Abertillery, South Wales. In 1921, the Welsh mining town was devastated by the double murder of two schoolgirls when eight-year-old Freda Brunell and 11-year-old Florence Little were killed just weeks apart by a local boy 15-year-old Harold Jones, who the Abertillery residents still refer to as their 'Dark Son'.Those murders - especially the sadistic nature of their deaths, and the treatment of the bodies afterwards - have eerie parallels with the 'Jack the Stripper' murders. Could Harold Jones the boy killer really have matured in later life into a serial killer?To test this theory, the team revisit the scenes of the murders in west London. They use contemporary policing techniques such as geographical and offender profiling to see if the crimes of Jones the boy can be measured against those of Jack the Stripper. And from the outset, it becomes apparent there are many chilling similarities.

Neil Milkins ● 2842d0 Comments ● 2842d

Volunteering with Doorstep Library- Read with Children

Do you remember a character from a childhood book as fondly as an old friend?If you do, you’ll know the magic of being able to slip into another world as and when you need to, or how books can make your world a bigger, brighter place.For bookworms especially, it’s hard to believe that anyone could see reading as anything other than empowering, or even just a pleasure. For the third of children from disadvantaged areas who leave primary school without being able to read well, often it’s nothing but a chore.That’s why we like to turn up on the doorstep, with a backpack of books, two little stools, and a pair of volunteers who know that words take you places. Every week, come rain or shine, our volunteers bring the magic of reading directly into families’ homes every week, in low-income areas across London.Doorstep Library volunteers don’t just read stories; they do the silly voices, handpick the books, and give special recommendations. By making it fun first, we get to watch children transform into budding readers. We love when parents get stuck in with the sessions too and encourage them to get involved in their children’s education.Sometimes though, we’re just there to give a bit of extra support, whether we’re passing on info about a family activity, lending an ear, or even just being a friendly face. Then, before we go, we leave behind a selection of books for each child to borrow for the week.If this sounds like the role for you, these are the basics. We run projects on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons in estates across Westminster, Hammersmith and Fulham and Lambeth.In Hammersmith and Fulham, we start at 3.45pm and finish at 6.30pm. If you'd like to know more contact Daniela Cardoso at digital@doorsteplibrary.org.uk

Emily Oliver ● 2899d0 Comments ● 2899d