| DID YOU KNOW... |
Over 40 schools in lower-income neighboorhoods of Sacramento and Placer Counties have applied to implement the Preschool Library Initiative. We are actively seeking local donors to make these implementations a reality.
We'd like to say a big "THANK YOU" to the Rotary Club of Granite Bay for their contribution to fund a Bookcase Library for Cirby Preschool.
It's easy to give:
- $500 supports one First Teachers workshop, helping
20-25 families
- $850 supports one Bookcase Library with 30-35 books per class, reaching over 40 children a year (+ 2nd year replenishment).
Donate to support your local state-funded preschool. (Note: Add "Sacramento" in the Comments box.)
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| LOCAL OUTREACH |
Bring Me A Book has been busy around Sacramento reaching out to families with young children. In April we hosted a booth in State Senator Darrell Steinberg's "Passport to Summer" Faire. We provided craft activities and information to encourage summertime reading and promote literacy-related activities.
Future events in fall 2008 include:
- 9/27-9/28: Fairytale Town Children's Book Celebration
- November: Presentation at Migrant Education Annual Conference
Email us for more information about our events or community outreach efforts. |
| SUPPORT SCHOOLS IN YOUR COMMUNITY |
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Sacramento supporters provide funding that help schools in these districts/areas.
- Sacramento City Unified District
- Twin Rivers District
- Folsom-Cordova District
- Placer County/ Sierra College State Preschools
- Roberts Family Center
- St. Hope/Triumph Center
Contact us for details about how you can support family literacy at these and other schools. |
| CONTACT US |
P.O. Box 41002
Sacramento, CA 95841 Phone: (916) 390-1575
Fax: (916) 880-5285 | |
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SACRAMENTO - Summer 2008 NEWSLETTER |
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Dear Friend:
Welcome to Bring Me A Book ("BMAB") in Sacramento. We just completed our inaugural school year and are excited to share details with you.
We extend deep gratitude to the Morgan Family Foundation for supporting our expansion to Sacramento. Their two-year commitment enables us to implement our programs at underserved preschools and nurture local partnerships and donors around Sacramento.
The first year of funding allowed us to make tremendous progress. Some highlights include:
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23 Bookcase Libraries ("BCL") and over 700 books were installed at preschools in Robla and North Sacramento Districts. Over 930 preschoolers use the books daily.
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12 First Teachers workshops were conducted in 4 school districts. Over 180 parents and caregivers attended workshops and can practice the read-aloud routines with 350+ children at home. Approximately 200 books were given away at these workshops, enabling attendees to start or continue their home book collection.
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7 Facilitators were trained to deliver First Teachers workshops. All facilitators are Sacramentans working with children or education.
 This summer our main task is to continue raising local funding to support all our goals for the second year. We anticipate a busy start as over 40 preschools from 4 districts have already applied to partner with BMAB for 2008-09. We also plan to train 4 more facilitators in a day-long session in September.
Thank you for your continued interest and support of BMAB in Sacramento. It is truly an honor to serve the population that we reach; there is nothing more rewarding than the adorable faces as preschoolers "tear into" shiny and colorful new books with awe and enthusiasm.
If you would like to join our efforts, please call (916.390.1575), email, or donate online. I hope to hear from you!
Warmest regards ,
Jane Tsai Weaver
Regional Manager |
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Reaching the Most Deserving and
Needy Areas of Sacramento
Sacramento is one of the most diverse cities in the country, and Bring Me A Book is focused on quickly impactinhg parts of the County with greatest economic, social and langauge needs. Here's a snapshot of who received our programs this year:
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100% of our recipients reside in households earning less than 75% of the state median income.
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On average, 85% of the students in the districts we serve qualify for free or reduced lunches. (County average is 48%)
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50% of our students are English learners; they live in homes where English is not the first language. (County average is 19%)
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On average, 85% of our recipients classify themselves as an ethnicity other than Caucasian. (Hispanic and African American are top-two reported groups.)
Contact us to find out more about our work in Sacramento or Donate to support preschools in this region!
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Celebrating Bookcase Libraries with
2 Ribbon-Cutting Ceremonies
In April and May, we conducted ribbon-cutting ceremonies at Robla and Staruch Preschools to commemorate their beautiful new bookcases. We delivered 11 bookcases to Robla Preschool and 2 bookcases to Strauch in North Sacramento (Twin Rivers District).
 The Robla event was attended by Superintendent Ralph Friend and John Finegan from Morgan Family Foundation. Over 100 preschoolers were at the assembly as we viewed a slide show about Robla Preschool and received beautiful "Thank You" books the children created.  At Strauch, District Representative Norma Hammer-Agor was on hand to help us celebrate along with 40 eager children who couldn't wait to touch the books. Over 20 parents also attended, and many of them stayed behind to read a book with their children. Click here to see more photos! |
First Teachers Facilitators:
Building Family Bonds One Book at a Time
Facilitators are the key to Bring Me A Book's successful First Teachers program. They help bridge the gap between parents and the training materials and empower parents to speak openly about their challenges and successes with reading aloud at home. Some of the best learnings stem from the parent discussions, and facilitators draw that out in every workshop.
Our Sacramento facilitators all share a common background and passion for education and children's issues; over 50% of our trained facilitators are bilingual in English and Spanish. Below is a profile of one facilitator:
Name: Kim Frisella
Background and Experience: BA Degree in Recreation Administration, 2 years as Volunteer with U.S. Peace Corp in Guatamala teaching environmental education to elementary students. 6 years teaching Spanish and math to grades 1-8. Currently the Assistant Director of Camp Pendola.
Languages spoken: English and Spanish
Favorite Part About Facilitating: Getting people excited about reading to their kids; meeting and getting to know other facilitators and BMAB staff who are really passionate about children's literacy.
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Special Message from BMAB President!
Dear Friends,
Thanks to the Morgan Family Foundation and our many partners in Sacramento, we have had an outstanding first year in Sacramento. With Jane Tsai Weaver as our Regional Program Manager, Bring Me A Book has provided classroom libraries of high quality children's books to 23 preschool classrooms in the greater Sacramento area. In addition to providing preschools with high quality books, Bring Me A Book has also conducted 12 First Teachers parent workshops on the importance of reading aloud. We thank all of your for helping further our mission of providing easy access to the best children's books and inspiring reading aloud to children!
Best,
Dianne
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