The colorfully drawn bees have his group of preschoolers excited and they join in an energetic chorus of buzzing punctuated by giggles.

Smith is one of nearly 40 readers currently volunteering with Books for Wider Horizons, a program sponsored by the Oakland Public Library in collaboration with Head Start.

Every week, Smith visits the Brookfield Head Start Center to read with the group of preschoolers he has visited regularly for two years. Attracted to the program by a flier at the library, it only took three weeks of actual reading for Smith to find himself hooked.

"I was told you know you have them when at the end of class they hug you," says Smith. "It took three weeks and then one day they just rushed me... At that point, I knew I was going to do this for awhile."

Last Friday, Smith was reading "In the Tall, Tall Grass," by Denise Fleming. Punctuating the story's narrative with related questions about counting and colors, Smith's storytime took a conversational tone that had the children fascinated.

Smith says part of the program's success involves repressing the "I want to teach you" impulse. "I want them to enjoy it," he says. "(In training) you learn to talk to little people — to talk to them, not at them."

Volunteers do not begin unprepared. Books for Wider Horizons provides a free seven-session training program led by a renowned storyteller, Gay Ducey.

"It's a pretty extensive training," says project coordinator Marta Rodriguez. "They cover a whole bunch of stuff but mostly how to present a complete half-hour preschool storytime."

According to Rodriguez, a training includes choosing engaging books, getting over stage fright and interspersing songs, activities and stretches to keep the young children interested. Throughout it all, the program stresses volunteering should be fun.

For more information about volunteering with Books for Wider Horizons, call 238-7453.

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