ELC announces Literacy Buddy Project!

The Early Learning Coalition will continue a project during the 09-10 school year which is intended to provide children with books for high quality home / bedroom libraries. We believe that all children should have interesting and engaging reading materials in their homes. Children come to school better prepared to learn when they have experienced lots of modeling by adults who read, write and converse with them.

You can help by becoming an adult Literacy Buddy!
A Literacy Buddy agrees to receive letters from a child in an early learning facility served by the Early Learning Coalition. The Buddy will in turn send a letter and a high quality book to this child in response to the child's letter. This exchange may take place several times over the course of the year - from mid-fall to spring. The purpose of this project is to teach children about correspondence, communication, and instill appreciation of high quality children's literature. For some of our children, this provides the only opportunity for them to have books of their own at home.

In the past year we matched 1100 children with Literacy Buddies. Their joy and that of the teachers who were involved was immense! Not only does the child to whom the book is sent benefit, but also the others in the class. We have received glowing accounts from teachers about wonderful conversations that stem from reading the books in class, discussing the letters, and talking about their buddies. You can be directly involved in enriching the lives of many children through your participation in this program!

Please take a moment to download and fill out the application to become a Buddy. We would like to start our program in the fall with a full complement of adult buddies so that each child can be matched with a caring adult. You should receive a letter from a child with further instructions from the Coalition in October or November.

If you are a teacher and would like your 3-4-and 5 yr. old children to participate in the Literacy Buddy project for 2009-2010, please download both of the following forms and send them to the Coalition at the address on the forms. We look forward to your participation in the program this year.

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EARLY LEARNING COALITION OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA, INC.

5256 Summerlin Commons Way, Suite 201 • Ft. Myers, Florida 33907
Phone: (239) 267-4105 • Fax: (239) 267-4109 • Privacy Policy
TOLL FREE: 1-866-863-1366 • Office Hours: 8am-5pm Monday - Friday