CDIC news – Children's Design International Collection, registered charity, Canada BN 770946317 RR0001

Together online

Once a year we share basic statistics about our website. We are happy to say that the site has reached 1M hits and over 50K unique visitors in 2025. Although the bulk of visitors come from the USA, they are also from dozens of other countries on every continents.

We would like to thank our social media volunteers who make sure we have a strong presence on the main platforms. Thank you also to those who keep their newsletter subscription active. You are over 1800 worldwide.

You might already have noticed that we use a new home page. This is just the beginning. Based on current discussions, the website will likely be revamped in the coming months.

We also added some contents in Portuguese for our Lives in Verses project. There are already many poems and drawings on the project page. The project is taking a pause during the summer holiday in Brasil and will resume in February.

**Website traffic in 2025**. Source: CDIC-CIDE.

December

What is this little elf up to? Mailing a Christmas card, a donation, both? It’s been almost twenty years since Claire made this drawing, on a school activity sheet. It is now part of Gisèle Dallaire fonds in our collection.

Little did she know that her elf would someday ask for your help! Please donate. Help us preserve children’s art for the generations to come. Use our online donation form.

Elf expression, donate generously. Source: CDIC-CIDE, 27 November 2025.

LIVES IN VERSES – Children’s poetry from Brazil

Registration now opened, in Portuguese, for children 10 to 14 of age, living in Brazil.

GOAL: To stimulate and develop the literary potential of young people from Brazilian communities through poetry, revealing to society each participant’s perspective on daily issues that impact their lives.

Through workshops led by teacher Lya Oliveira, these young people will be introduced to poetry as a literary art form, its diverse styles, and its importance in different cultures.

Each participant will be invited to write their own poems and, if desired, add a drawing to complement their work.

During this creative process, they will be introduced to the mission of the Children’s Design International Collection (CDIC), which focuses on preserving forms of expression for children and young people.

These activities aim to connect participants with the world and inspire everyone involved to appreciate literature as an artistic expression.

METHODOLOGY

To develop and/or enhance the participants’ skills and competencies in the practice of artistic creation and representation in the production of poems, audiovisual and digital resources will be used, such as:

1 – Discussion group to introduce the project and its objectives, as well as to explain how to share the activities developed within the initiative.

2 – Defining the concept and characteristics of the poem.

3 – Beginning of written production and artistic expression.

4 – Analysis and correction of the texts (if necessary), without altering their essence or identity.

5 – Completion of the writing of the poems.

6 – Organization and preparation of the event for the exhibition of the results of the artistic literature.

7 – Exhibition of the finished production on the website (texts, audio, drawings).

8 – Presentation: virtual fair, interviews, among others, to present our project “Lives in Verses.”

BACKGROUND

Lya J. Oliveira is a public elementary school teacher in São Paulo, Brazil. In recent years, she has dedicated herself to independently leading poetry workshops with young people from the Capão Redondo community in the city of São Paulo.

Part of this literary production has already been published online and has also been transformed into two books, sold at cost upon request.

The creative sessions foster a sense of pride and help develop self-esteem and autonomy among the young people involved in the project. In this process, the young people share their personal experiences and experiences with the other group members, contributing to their own self-discovery.

Lya Oliveira intends to continue the project by expanding it to a wider audience. She reached out to the Children’s Design International Collection (CDIC) and volunteers to expand the reach of this work in conjunction with the CDIC, whose goal is to collect and preserve all creative work developed by young people under the age of 18.

CDIC considers all of this production valuable and firmly believes that it should be shared with the public and also preserved for research purposes.

The CDIC’s collection development strategy seeks to engage young people and reach a diverse audience, thus legitimizing their role in society. The development of the CDIC collection, as well as its access and educational programs, support and complement Lya Oliveira’s work on this initiative developed in Brazil.

Many ways to make waves

The National Volunteer Week is on in Canada, and we would like to add our voice in celebrating the amazing contributions that volunteers are making every day to enrich our collective experience. We could not do without their commitment and generosity.

Take this opportunity to visit our recruitment page and to browse our online collection. Make sure to find your way to make waves with us.

If boating makes waves, at CDIC we know how to preserve children’s take on boating fun. The Red and Green Boat below was drawn nearly sixty years ago in a school notebook. The young artist made sure the whole boat was visible, propeller included.

CDIC’s Volunteer Canada 2025 NVW campaign.

Meet Ishita

We are happy to welcome Ishita Bisht as our new Events & Communications Volunteer. Full of enthusiasm for our mission, Ishita is already working on updating our communication plan and preparing a global survey which will be available in a few weeks.

Upon joining our organization she said: “I personally love being around kids and enjoy painting with them. Through these experiences, I’ve realized that children’s art is more than just art—it is their entire being speaking through shapes and strokes. I’m thrilled to volunteer for CDIC! With my skills and experience, I hope to contribute to increasing public understanding of the importance of children’s artifacts.”

Ishita holds a post-graduate degree in Public Relations and Corporate Communication from the Xavier Institute of Communications (Mumbai), a graduate certificate in Global Business Management from Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning (Kitchener, ON). Her creative outlets include storytelling and strategy for communication. She has had the opportunity to work across various industries like healthcare, international relations, retail, and quick service restaurants, gaining valuable insights along the way.

Our website in 2024

Most of our collection items were made before personal computers or Internet were a thing. This alone is a good reason to celebrate the fact that our website received 30k unique visitors from several countries, who left well over 600k hits in 2024.

Our blog entries often include reference links for further reading. Leave your comment. We love to share what you have to say on the subject.

Subscribe to our quarterly newsletter. Nearly 1500 people have already done so.

We do our best to expand the conversation about the preservation of children’s expression, regardless if it is artistically motivated or otherwise. We welcome volunteers, donors, and items contributors.

RShop team completes study

At the beginning of 2024, CDIC reached out to the McMaster University’s Office of Community Engagement (OCE), requesting support in researching some of the hypothetical factors related to the decision to contribute (or not) to CDIC’s collection. In no time, the OCE had a dynamic team put together under their Research Shop program.

The multidisciplinary team, led by Syed Mahamad, included Hamza Abouiznied, Mia Brufatto, Lily Li, and Lina Mabayyed undertook to identify motivations and barriers influencing the preservation of children’s artwork by families, and contributions to CDIC. Understanding these factors is crucial to increase CDIC’s ability to educate the public on the significance of children’s art and preserve it for future generations.

In total, 113 participants aged between 18 and 64 completed the online survey, and all Canadian provinces plus three territories were represented.

The team produced a report filled with never before documented insights on children’s art conservation as personal, family, or cultural heritage. Ninety (80%) of the survey participants reported that their parents saved their artwork when they were children, is but one such insight.

The study reveals that the main motivations for preserving children’s artwork within the home are:

Tracking the child’s artistic and personal development
Appreciating the artwork’s aesthetic value, and
Maintaining emotional connections to the pieces.

By far, the biggest barriers to preserving artwork in the home were a lack of space to physically store the artwork and time constraints.

Regarding contributing to the CDIC archive, the main motivating factors were:

The opportunity to share and celebrate the artwork with a broader audience,
The child desires to contribute to the archive, and
Receiving incentives, including crediting the child as the artist and/or small giveaways.

Factors that discouraged participants from contributing to the archive included:

A lack of knowledge about the CDIC and its mission,
Perceived logistical challenges with the artwork submission process, and
Reluctance within the family to part with the original artwork.

The research team included recommendations based on their findings. The new knowledge emerging from the study will help CDIC to review its communication tools, as well as its collection development strategies.

At this point, it seems that CDIC should simultaneously address the need of families that seek as much exposure as possible for their images, and the need of families that prefer a restrained access limited only for archival and research purposes.

Stay tuned to see how CDIC will adapt for better serve contributing families, and reach out to other collection users. For the great project partnership, CDIC would like to thank the research team, as well as Evan Gravely and the Office of Community Engagement, at McMaster University.

***Reasons why participants were interested in contributing to the CDIC archive***. Source: McMaster University, 2024.

CDIC set to expand its board

Children’s Design International Collection (CDIC) wants to hear from dedicated individuals who will help the organization solidify its base and develop new strategies. Board volunteers commit to a two-year term on our working board of directors. Previous experience with a registered charity is preferred. Both member and officer positions are available:

Treasurer: A passion for budgeting, bookkeeping, risk assessment, reporting, and team work is required. The Treasurer oversees the implementation and review of the Financial Management Policy. The Treasurer chairs the Fundraising Committee. The organization has relied on steady donations, has initiated its corporate sponsorship program, and has yet to receive foundation grants.

Secretary: A passion for record keeping, policy review, contract monitoring, and team work is required. The Secretary oversees the recording of meeting proceedings, as well as the organization’s calendar and notices. The Secretary ensures that the organization’s decisions are reflecting its by-laws, policies and programs.

Director: A passion for education, the arts, the humanities, networking, and team work is required. Board members ensure the sustainable well-being and development of the organization. The board member may chair a standing committee.

The board meetings are held online, two to four times a year. Committee meetings are schedules as needed. The organization has cumulated project partnerships, and aims at long term program partnerships. CDIC is a member of Archivists Association of Ontario and Volunteer Canada. CDIC enjoys a strong presence on the web through the web site, social media and newsletter.

To apply: Use this online form or email resume, with optional LinkedIn link, to info@cdic-cide.org with Board Member in the subject line, by November 15^th 2024. Take a step forward with us!

From **One Step Forward** (detail). By Yvon, c1965. Source: CDIC-CIDE.

Connecting generations

About one hundred people of different generations came to appreciate inspiring art, made by the student of the University of Guelph Child Care and Learning Centre (CCLC). The art for Exploring Connection was on display all week and part of the school day for students. A ceremony was held on Thursday.

Eight rooms were filled with hundreds of images made in various media, each reflecting a specific theme. They were created by the children over the recent months. It is always great to see artworks where they were made. Several of the images are displayed on our dedicated web page and will available all summer. We were given the opportunity to present some of our collection items to visiting families.

It is full of admiration for the CCLC educators who so wonderfully accompanied their students and documented the process, under the guidance of Pedagogical Leader Kimberley Barton, that I presented their director, Valerie Trew, with a certificate of appreciation. Both partners of this exhibition project are grateful for the sponsorships and kind support from LINAMAR and GUELPHTODAY.com.

The CCLC was the perfect place and team to hold our first ever exhibition partnership. It is a place where children, their care givers, educators and researchers can learn from each other. Several families have expressed the intention to contribute to the collection. More to come about new items soon.