On Monday, 13 November we will be in Wales to celebrate Adventures in Wonderland, the social reading project run in Blaenau Gwent libraries from May to October.
Adventures in Wonderland: the project
From the end of May to mid October the network of Blaenau Gwent libraries was actively involved in Adventures in Wonderland, a social reading project based on Lewis Carroll’s book.
Elders, people with mild dementia, intergenerational and family learning groups,”isolated” people, economically inactive library users and adult Welsh-language learners were invited to read and comment on the book using the app Betwyll and the TwLetteratura method for social reading, in the attempt to encourage reading, support well-being and address isolation.
The project, led by Cardiff Institute of Health and Wellbeing (CISHeW) and the Cardiff University School of Social Sciences and funded by City Region Exchange, was implemented by our partners Head4Arts, Literature Wales and Aneurin Leisure online on Betwyll and offline through a series of workshop were writers, animators and illustrators encouraged participants to develop their own creative interpretation of the text.
The final event
On Monday, 13 November at 3:00 p.m. we will celebrate Adventures in Wonderland at Abertillery Library showcasing the project to the public with an exhibition of the art works produced during the workshops, face painting, storytelling, dressing up and letterpress printing. And, of course, an hands-on experience of creating and posting twylls.
The event will also be an occasion to present the summary conclusions of the project evaluation carried out by Dr. Ellie Byrne from Cardiff University under her broader research project on cultural participation.
Download Betwyll from the App Store or Google Play!