We are pleased to share Raising A Reader‘s Press Release
Fundraiser to Provide Books for Low-Income Bay Area Children
Supporters indulge their inner child at El Cerrito’s Playland-Not-At-The-Beach
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EL CERRITO, CA—
WHAT: Raising A Reader, San Francisco, Alameda & Contra Costa Counties invites the community to enjoy an evening of food, drinks, fun and games in support of early literacy programming in the Bay Area.
By the time many children arrive at school, they have already been left behind. By age three, children in low-income families have heard 30 million fewer words than their peers. As a result, these children typically enter kindergarten 12 to 14 months behind in pre-reading and language skills. Without intervention, these early gaps in school readiness are mirrored in third grade test results. In Oakland, only 33% of low income children are reading at grade level and a recent report found that 60% of kindergartners lack the skills needed to qualify as ready for school. Raising a Reader Bay Area is hosting a fundraiser to change this startling fact by bringing more books into the homes of low-income children and providing early literacy support to their parents throughout the Bay Area.
Raising a Reader already serves 15,000 low-income children annually, providing a rotating collection of books for children to enjoy with their parents as well as early literacy training and workshops. By the end of the year, children who otherwise would not have books at home will have been exposed to over 100 different high-quality, age- and culturally- appropriate titles.
To help this beneficial program reach even more Bay Area children, Raising A Reader is hosting a fundraiser on Friday, January 23rd 2015.
Supporters will join staff and Board Members for an evening at Playland-Not-At-the-Beach, indulging their inner child while supporting Bay Area children. All games (over 30 pinball machines!) will be on open-play and prizes will be won! Enjoy food, drink, a magic show, pinball tournament, and more!
To purchase tickets, visit bit.ly/rarnewyears or contact Julie Barton, julie.barton@rarbayarea.org or 510-296-5462. Free press tickets available.
WHEN: Friday, January 23rd
7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
WHERE: Playland-Not-At-the-Beach, El Cerrito
WHO: Raising A Reader is an award-wining early literacy and family engagement program currently serving over 15,000 children and families in San Francisco, Alameda, and Contra Costa Counties. Working with early childhood educators, RAR rotates a set of red bags filled with culturally and linguistically relevant children’s books into the homes of low-income families weekly.
WHY: Thirty years of research shows the strong correlation between parental involvement and increased academic achievement. In fact, a home environment that encourages learning is more important to student achievement than the family’s income, education level, or cultural background. Sharing books at home regularly has been proven to bolster children’s school readiness skills and excitement about reading, leading to long-term success in school.
For more information please contact
Mike Serangeli
Business Development
Raising A Reader, San Francisco, Alameda & Contra Costa Counties
470 Third Street, Suite 102
San Francisco, CA 94107
Ph: 415-683-5460