This holiday season, Wisconsin teachers are helping to launch the American Federation of Teachers’ ‘Reading Opens the World’ initiative. This multi-year, multi-million-dollar campaign is designed to get free books into the hands of children to spark and grow a lifelong love of reading. The AFT is set a goal of distributing 1 million books to kids across the country.
In the lead up to the New Year, AFT-Wisconsin is hosting several family literacy events in rural parts of Wisconsin in partnership with the Butternut Federation of Teachers, the Menasha Federation of Teachers and other community partners. Butternut Teachers Union distributed books to the whole school at their holiday program on December 16.
AFT-Wisconsin plans to distribute over 1,200 books.
Peter LaCourse, a third-grade teacher and member of the Menasha Teachers Union AFT-Wisconsin, helped launch Reading Opens the World with an event in Menasha, explaining that he is “passionate about getting kids literate and providing them with books that they can read and grow their minds and expand their learning. This is a great opportunity to reach out to our community and give them books they can take home and read and learn from.”
Reading Opens the World, a new initiative that focuses on:
- Giving teachers and school staff the tools and professional development that translate the science of reading into usable resources to help students read and read well.
- Giving parents and caregivers fun and research-based tips and tools to support literacy.
- Building on and forging new connections among families, communities, educators and schools to be partners in students’ literacy.
- Giving children and young people free books to read, love and keep, because …Reading Opens the World!
Jodi Hesselman, a fifth-grade teacher and member of the Menasha Teachers Union, AFT-Wisconsin, handed out books stating, “it was a pleasure to join the team from AFT-Wisconsin to distribute books to our community of readers. Great organizations work to leave a legacy that impacts people in a positive manner, and AFT-Wisconsin is supporting the work of educators and families to build a love of reading and impact students in our area.”
Across the country AFT members are hosting holiday events to engage families and caregivers and to provide books and literacy resources for kids.
“Reading is foundational to everything we do,” says Kim Kohlhaas President of the AFT-Wisconsin. “Every educator would tell you that first we need to help our students learn to read, and then they can read to learn. So now more than ever, after two years of disruption as the result of COVID-19, harnessing the love of reading is essential to helping our students and families recover, grow, and succeed.”
The AFT is dedicating $2 million this year to kick off this multiyear effort with inaugural partners, First Book and the AFL-CIO.
“AFT’s Reading Opens the World campaign is another great example of union members coming together to give back to the community,” said Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale. “Strong unions strengthen our cities and towns and connect us to each other. This holiday season, AFT-WI union members are leading the charge to get free books into the hands of kids across our state.”
In 2022, the AFT will expand the campaign and continue to connect with communities by hosting book events, holding webinars for educators, taking a brand-new bookmobile to book deserts around the country and hosting ongoing programs for family engagement in rural and hard-to-reach areas.
You can find out more about the campaign and how to get involved by visiting www.aft.org/read.
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