MILTON, FL – Spread the word, Storybook Treasures is coming to town! StoryBook Treasures is a teacher founded nonprofit organization, dedicated to putting the best books into the hands, hearts, and homes of children! We use the most sought-after children’s literature to help children create vital lifelong literacy connections and ultimately fall in love with reading and books. StoryBook Treasures started out in 2 schools with 211 students. Today, the program has been implemented in 15 school divisions across 8 states and impacted the lives of well over 50,000 students.
Just 4 years ago, the StoryBook Treasures program was introduced at W.H. Rhodes Elementary in the Santa Rosa School District under the leadership of Ms. Michelle Barlow, Ms. Dianne Lewis, and Ms. LeeAnn Canada. The program’s success was shared with Dr. Karen Barber, the Title 1 Coordinator at the time, and she knew immediately the impact StoryBook Treasures brings to early readers. Dr. Barber wrote a grant to fund the full literacy enrichment program in several elementary kindergarten programs and this year, under Dr. Barber’s leadership, the division has purchased a book gifting component of the StoryBook Treasures program to reach the entire school division. This means every single PK – 3rd grade student will receive their very own StoryBook Treasures book!
Each PK – 3rd grade student will receive a StoryBook Treasures Book Collection tote bag, their special StoryBook Treasures book, and custom T-Shirt delivered to schools. (Distribution will begin with kindergarten and 1st grade deliveries the first week of February and PK, 2nd and 3rd grade delivery is expected by the end of February.) The grade level kits will arrive in boxes at schools, and they will be labeled by grade level for easy distribution to classroom teachers.
Teachers are asked to use the StoryBook Treasures materials to build excitement for reading through a shared read aloud experience emphasizing building a strong connection with the story and author. After teachers share the story with students in their classroom, students will bring their book and t-shirt home in their tote bag to keep and share with their family. Teachers should encourage their students to read the storybook frequently with their families and remind students to add this book to their home library to be cherished, loved, and read over and over again!
There will be a book packing event tonight, January 31 and Tuesday, February 1, 2022 at W.H. Rhodes Elementary beginning at 5:30pm. Come join in on the fun of getting books into the hands of our young readers.
