District Grant: Pre-School Literacy Project

In Troup County our children need our help to be able to read at grade level by the third grade. This is critical because from birth through third grade, children primarily learn to read: after third grade, children read to learn. Books provide a unique way for a child to hear words especially if families don't tend to converse with their children, many would read to their children if they had books in the home.

Rotary volunteers prepared the books with a note for the parents explaining the purpose of the project, a sticker identifying our Rotary club and then each book was placed in the special blue book bag. Volunteers then take the bags to eleven different pre-schools to introduce and read the selected book to the students and then finally distribute the books to the students. These visits are well-received by both and the students and the teachers.

Poor early education has become a concern for Troup County stakeholders. This Rotary project is just one strategy in our community-wide effort to address effective early learning. 

Seven hundred books were bought to distribute throughout the schools with an additional 100 books to be given to donated to the Troup County's Jungle Bus for further distribution throughout the county.