The first Sequoyah Children's Book Award was given in April, 1959, making the award the third oldest children's choice award in the nation. In 1988, the first Sequoyah Young Adult Book Award was given. Both awards are given annually, usually as an event at the Oklahoma Library Association's Annual Conference.
The Oklahoma Library Association honors Sequoyah for his unique achievement in creating the Cherokee syllabary, the 86 symbols representing the different sounds in the Cherokee language. His statue is one of the two representing Oklahoma in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
The son of a Cherokee mother and a white trader father, Sequoyah, Cherokee for "Lame One," was also known by his English name, George Guess. A cabin built by Sequoyah as part of a United States government grant still stands near Sallisaw. This grant was the first given for literary achievement in the United States
The Sequoyah Book Awards program encourages the students of Oklahoma to read books of literary quality.
Masterlists are released by the Sequoyah Reading Teams in the spring so that schools and libraries can order the books early.
The new masterlists are ready for promotion in May, and should be promoted from May to the following April.
Students in grades 3-6 who have read or listened to at least three titles from the Children's Masterlist are eligible to vote for the Children's Sequoyah Book Award.
Students vote for a favorite title in April, and winners are announced in May. Winning authors are invited to award presentations at the Oklahoma Libra Association's annual conference the following spring. Students are encouraged to attend the award presentations.
Readers Celebrate
The books on the Sequoyah Masterlists are selected by the Sequoyah Reading Teams. Criteria for selection include: published three years prior to the award date, author lives in the United States, originality, literary quality, interest, appeal, and developmentally appropriate for the designated age level.
4th graders presenting a reader's theater of IZZY'S PLACE by Marc Komblatt