PTA Book Club is Mard Philanthropy's latest initiative. The goal of the program is to instill a lifelong love of reading, which will enable a life-long love of learning and a life of success.
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Through PTA Book Club, eligible children will receive a new book to own, every school term. The books will be distributed by the school PTA, who will approve also the book selections for their students. Participating students will be invited to enter a competition to engage with the books and the club. The competition will range in style throughout the year to include art, poetry, story writing, drama.
The program will serve children in diverse communities harmed by systemic inequities, whose parents’ financial situations make the purchasing of books impossible. The schools selected to participate in the program are Title 1 schools i.e. at least 75% of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals.
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The program is a partnership between Mard Philanthropy, Title 1 Palm Beach County Elementary School PTAs and a children's book publisher partner.
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The Importance of Reading
Reading has a multitude of benefits: improved general knowledge and vocabulary, an understanding of story-telling, increased empathy, and enhanced analytical thinking.
Another benefit of having books at home, is the possibility of parents and children reading together. This is rewarding bonding activity improves the parent-child bond – another predictor of success in life.
In addition, reading takes children away from screens, which have been shown to have negative social, emotional and academic effects.
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By enabling children to read their own books at home we are sharing the gift of literacy and a love of reading, and setting them up for a life of success.
School Partners
Nearly 70% of schools in Palm Beach County are designated as Title 1 schools, meaning that 70% or more of their student population participates in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program and are living at or below the poverty line, according to Federal Standards.
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PTA Book Club will serve children in communities harmed by systemic inequities, whose parents’ financial situations make the purchasing of books impossible. This empowering program will have lasting effects of these children's opportunities in life.
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The Power of Parents
PTA Book Club is puts parents in charge. By centering on parents and home, PTA Book Club is not another school assignment. It fosters a life long love of reading and brings families closer through the shared activity of reading.
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Reading at home is incredibly important. Research shows that having books at home and reading just 20 minutes a day helps children develop critical reading skills. Parents can make a difference even when their children are too young to read on their own - four to five year olds gain real improvements in reading ability by being read to several times a week. Good habits are made at home. While children spend 900 hours a year at school, they spend 7,800 hours at home.
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As the largest volunteer child advocacy association in the nation, Parent Teacher Association (PTA) reminds our country of its obligations to children and provides parents and families with a powerful voice to speak on behalf of every child while providing the best tools for parents to help their children be successful students.
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PTAs ensure parents are a constant, reassuring presence at school and provide continuity at home to support and reinforce positive learning attitudes.
Publisher Partners
We are looking for a publisher to provide a range of books to inspire our children - classics, adventures, mysteries, and stories that help navigate life.
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