Posts by Mary Beth F.

First Book and Target Celebrate the Launch of Target Read With Me with the Donation of 1 Million Books

Sep30
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

We are thrilled to announce that First Book is donating one million new books to elementary school students across the country in celebration of the launch of Target Read With MeSM.

When Target was looking for a partner to help make this unprecedented book distribution possible, they came to First Book and together we are distributing new books to schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia!  As you read this, thousands of schools across the country are receiving their part of the one million book distribution.  We’ve been so excited to share this announcement with you, but our lips have been sealed until now.

Target Read With MeSM celebrates Target’s continued commitment to reading and education and calls upon parents and caring adults to pledge to read with a child by visiting www.target.com/reading or by texting READ to TARGET (827438). Once one million pledges have been received, Target will donate an additional one million books, for a total donation of two million books across the country.

Together, First Book and Target are working to give students a brighter future by eliminating the key barrier to literacy – access to books.

To learn more about Read With MeSM and to make your pledge, please visit www.target.com/reading.  To register your school or program with First Book to gain access to free and low-cost books, please visit www.firstbook.org/register.

Check back soon for stories and testimonials from parents, students and educators who have received books from this exciting distribution!

Posted in Book Distributions, First Book Partners - Tagged , ,

Pledge to Make a Difference

Jun10
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

With the upcoming release of WAITING FOR “SUPERMAN” directed by Davis Guggenheim, Participant Media, Paramount Vantage and Walden Media are sparking a national, action-oriented conversation about the current state of public schools in the United States.  Prior to the film’s release this fall, Participant Media is calling upon individuals to pledge to see the film by visiting  http://www.WaitingForSuperman.com.  In support of the “Take the Pledge” campaign, First Book has committed to donating 250,000 new books to schools and programs in low-income communities across the country once the pledge meter reaches 50,000 pledges. When you take that first small step to pledge to see the film,  you are joining with First Book to bring thousands of new books to children who need them most.

Posted in Books & Reading, First Book Events, General, Literacy Links and Articles, Movies - Tagged ,

BookRenter.com teams up with First Book to Donate Books to Young Readers

Jun08
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

We are pleased to announce First Book’s newest partner, BookRenter.com.  BookRenter.com has teamed up with First Book to make educational resources more accessible and affordable for everyone.  As part of an ongoing dedication to providing its customers with community giving opportunities, BookRenter.com has made literacy a top priority.

BookRenter.com supports education by renting textbooks to students for up to 75% below retail price.  Since 2008, BookRenter has supplied more than READ MORE »

Posted in Book Distributions, Books & Reading, First Book Events, Literacy - Tagged ,

Join the Cheerios 100,000 Book Giveaway!

Jun04
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

As part of First Book’s ongoing partnership through the Spoonfuls of Stories® program, First Book and Cheerios have joined with author, Jon Scieszka, to launch this year’s  100,000 Book Giveaway!

For every trivia question you answer correctly now through August 31st, 2010, you can cast one vote for the state you want to receive new books. The more questions you answer correctly, the more votes you cast!

The trivia questions cover children’s books including Jon Scieszka’s Trucktown, other favorites such as Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Guess How Much I Love You? and many others.  Plus, 100 brand new questions have just been added to the site from favorite authors such as Eric Carle and Doreen Cronin.

The five states receiving the highest number of votes will each receive 20,000 new books for local kids – and you can help decide where the books should be donated! Take a second to help the kids in your state by playing around on the 100,000 Book Giveaway site!

Feel free to forward this to friends and family, especially those who have children who can join in on the fun!

Posted in Authors & Illustrators, Book Distributions, Books & Reading, General, Literacy - Tagged , , , ,

Longtime supporter and best-selling author, Laura Numeroff, teams up with First Book and Sleepy’s to celebrate the importance of bedtime stories

Mar31
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

For somBedtime Storiese of us it may be Goodnight Moon, for others perhaps it’s Harold and the Purple Crayon, but for most of us there is one story always brings back wonderful memories of moments shared with loved ones at bedtime.  Here at First Book, we are committed to helping bring these memorable moments into the lives of children in need.  Now, thanks to our newest partnership with longtime First Book supporter, Laura Numeroff, and Sleepy’s, The Mattress Professionals, First Book will be celebrating the importance of bedtime stories and providing new books to children and families in need this spring.

Together with First Book, Sleepy’s has launched Sleepy’s Bedtime Stories, a program that encourages families to pledge to read together at bedtime. Parents can visit any one of Sleepy’s 700 locations in the Northeast to post their pledge or visit www.Sleepysbedtimestories.com. Additionally, parents can log onto www.Sleepysbedtimestories.com to enter for a chance to win lunch with Laura Numeroff, the author of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and If You Give a Pig a Pancake, in New York City.

In addition, Laura Numeroff and Sleepy’s will host a series of in-store book readings at select Sleepy’s stores, where Laura will read two books from her collection including When Sheep Sleep and her newest book The Jellybeans and the Big Book Bonanza recently named to the New York Times Best Seller list.

Posted in Books & Reading

Join the Cheerios 6 Million Minute Read-A-Thon!

Mar15
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

Thanks to the Cheerios® Read-A-Thon, now when you read together with your child, you can help provide a new book to a child in need. Through the Read-A-Thon, Cheerios is encouraging individuals to pledge to read to your kids for at least 15 minutes a day by today, March 15th.

If they reach their goal of 6 million reading moments pledged by the end of the day, Cheerios will donate 250,000 books to First Book to benefit the kids who need them most.

Visit Cheerios on Facebook and select “Get Started” to make your pledge today!

Posted in Books & Reading, Literacy, Nonprofit Technology, Philanthropy - Tagged , , ,

The search is on for Huggable Heroes

Feb02
2010 Written by Mary Beth F.

Build-A-Bear Workshop®, a long-time First Book supporter, is excited to announce the launch of the 2010 Huggable Heroes® program.

This initiative highlights dedicated, hard-working young people ages seven to 18, who are a part of incredible efforts to make the world a better place. Now through February 26, Build-A-Bear Workshop is accepting entries for its seventh annual Huggable Heroes® program.

Ten Huggable Heroes from the United States and Canada will be selected and each will be awarded with a $7,500 educational scholarship and $2,500 in the form of a donation to the 501 (c)(3) charity of his/her choice, as well as a celebration trip to St. Louis in July. Entry forms are available at all Build-A-Bear Workshop stores in the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada, and online entries are being accepted at buildabear.com/huggableheroes.

Posted in Philanthropy, Social Entrepreneurship - Tagged , , ,

Three Cheers for Heather Henson’s That Book Woman!

Nov16
2009 Written by Mary Beth F.

That Book Woman

First Book and Simon & Schuster are cheering for Heather Henson’s book That Book Woman, recently chosen for the 2010 – 2011 Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List!

Last December, Simon & Schuster and First Book simultaneously released That Book Woman, a story about the 1930’s Pack Horse Librarians who carried books to children in the hard-to-reach Appalachian Mountains.  Illustrated by Caldecott award-winning illustrator, David Small, That Book Woman tells the story of a country-loving boy named Cal who lives in the hills and hollows of the Appalachian Mountains. He can plow.  He can take care of sheep.  He can do just about anything . . . . except . . . read.  That is until the Book Woman climbs the mountains in sun, rain, or snow, shining the spotlight on the power of books and turning Cal into a reader.

With a character as cool as Cal, and a story that is both touching and entertaining it is no wonder That Book Woman has made the Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List. During the 2010 – 2011 school year, children across the state of Texas will read books on the Master List and vote for their favorite book.  The book with the most votes will receive the Texas Bluebonnet Award.  Previous winners include books by some of First Book’s favorite authors, such as Kate DiCamillo’s Because of Winn-Dixie and Jon Scieszka’s Math Curse.

This year, the Master List features books about fantasy, pirates, the deep seas, faraway and not-so faraway lands! The competition may be tight, and the race, close, but we will cross our fingers and hope our little Texan friends vote for That Book Woman to join the list of Texas Bluebonnet Award winners.

Posted in Authors & Illustrators, Books & Reading - Tagged , , , ,

Wake Up to Reading with Cheerios®

Oct23
2009 Written by Mary Beth F.

8th Annual Spoonfuls of Stories programThis month, Cheerios® is launching its 8th year of inviting families to wake up to reading – with a whopping six million children’s books free inside cereal boxes.   This year’s books, all from Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing and specially printed in both English and Spanish, are Tea for Ruby, Ballyhoo Bay, What’s Under the Bed?, Sleepyhead and Junkyard Fort – a brand new “Trucktown” book available only in Cheerios boxes.  A cutout window shows which book is inside – so families can pick the book they want.  Cheerios is also making a financial donation to First Book.  Over the past eight years, Cheerios has distributed more than 40 million books inside boxes, and donated $3.2 million to First Book.

First Book home page_157_x_138_Oct 09But wait, there’s more!   First Book and the family of Cheerios cereals have teamed up with
Jon Scieszka, author of Junkyard Fort and the current National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, to help distribute 100,000 books to children in need across the country – by inviting families to come online and answer trivia questions related to Jon’s books and other children’s books.

For every question answered correctly, you can cast one vote for the state that you’d like to receive books.   The five states receiving the most votes will get 20,000 books each, for a total of 100,000 books.   Encourage friends and family to test their knowledge at  www.FirstBook.org/Scieszka to help earn books for your state!

Posted in Books & Reading - Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

“One Day” at Collington Square Elementary

Oct15
2009 Written by Mary Beth F.
First Book staff and Target team members pose in front of the new mural in the Collington Square Elementary School library.

First Book staff and Target team members pose in front of the new mural in the Collington Square Elementary School library.

With hands clapping and faces smiling the students of Collington Square Elementary sang their school song, One Day, and welcomed the First Book staff and Target team members into their school library.  On this one day, we had come together to renovate the school library, as part of the 2009 Target Volunteers School Library Makeover.

Thanks to Target’s ongoing support of education, makeover events, like the one at Collington Square Elementary, have been taking place this fall in Title I schools across the country.  After all the planning and preparations for this program, it was wonderful to have the opportunity to see a library makeover in action and to witness the impact this renovation will have on the students of Collington Square for years to come.

Posted in Books & Reading
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