Donations - Children's Literacy Foundation
Reading All About It
Reading is such a fundamental part of daily life that most of us do it without a second thought and without thinking of those for whom such vital skills don’t come easily. Yet it’s a fact that in many parts of Vermont and New Hampshire all too many low-income children lack the tools and help they need to become good readers. Without ongoing support, these kids often fall behind their more advantaged peers and fail to acquire the reading ability necessary for productive lives as literate adults.
At the heart of the effort to prevent this learning deficit is the Children’s Literacy Foundation, which works to deliver both books and an enthusiasm for them to kids throughout our region. Recently, a Seventh Generation donation helped their Summer Readers program provide new books with important environmental themes to an estimated 1,200 children throughout Vermont and New Hampshire.
Summer Readers was created to make sure that kids’ reading skills don’t atrophy during the summer months when school is out and working parents are unable to fill the educational gap left by public schools on hiatus. Between June and September, the initiative visits various locations, including child care facilities, summer programs, and housing centers, to offer a series of interactive storytelling presentations in which staff members share their love of reading and writing. To maintain this enthusiasm after the children head home, Summer Readers provides each young participant with two new books that help keep literacy skills sharp and ensure that their desire to read remains strong.
We’ve said since the very beginning that educated citizens are the healthiest kind for our planet to have, and we’re pleased to have been able to play a small role in making sure that tomorrow’s stewards of the Earth will be able to read their way to that better world.
