In collaboration with the Bulloch County Literacy Council, the Statesboro Family YMCA is supporting literacy through a summer book drive. Beginning Tuesday, June 1 through Tuesday, June 15, new and gently used books appropriate for kid’s ages 0 – 5 years old can be dropped off at the Statesboro Family YMCA.
“One of the causes of the Statesboro Family YMCA is to strengthen our community through social responsibility. The YMCA of Coastal Georgia supports reading in multiple ways: we participate in Celebrate Reading Day in July during Summer Camp, we incorporate daily reading as a part of our summer camp curriculum and we offer our Y Readers Program at our afterschool program sites,” said Dorsey Baldwin, Statesboro Family YMCA Branch Director. “We are excited to partner with the Bulloch County Literacy Council to provide books for the children of our community,”
The purpose of the Bulloch County Literacy Council is to create a sustainable community collaborative that works to increase kindergarten readiness for students’ birth through pre-kindergarten and to support the improve of literacy levels for all children in kindergarten through 5th grade.
According to the 2019 data from the Georgia Department of Education, 50.2% of Bulloch County third grade students are not reading proficiently. 90% of a child’s brain will be developed before they enter kindergarten.
“Building literacy and language skills helps children be kindergarten-ready and helps them develop a love of books. Reading become critical when a child enters third grade because that is when the shift goes from learning to read to reading to learn,” said Crystal Simpkins, Director of Early Learning and Literacy for Bulloch County Schools. “Early literacy sets the foundation for a child’s cognitive development and school readiness. Literacy becomes important from the time a child enters the mother womb.”
