Starting kindergarten ready matters. Studies show that kids who begin school with basic literacy skills are more likely to read and succeed into adulthood, going further in school and securing steady jobs. Thanks to you, we’re making sure children in southern Arizona have that opportunity!
Our Make Way for Kindergarten program is one of our favorite ways to do this. Each week, our Family Literacy Specialists provide programming the helps children and parents prepare for the transition to school. Children learn the skills kindergarten teachers want their students to have on day one! This is especially important for children who don’t attend preschool, as it could be their first experience with the school environment.
Of course, it’s also lots of fun! During our last Make Way for Kindergarten session, we divided up the classroom into four sections and used ‘mystery boxes’ full of items to give kids a way to interact with the new classroom environment they will experience in kindergarten. Crafts, snacks, and of course a Pete the Cat story about his first day of school all played a part!
One parent told us after Make Way for Kindergarten, “This program has definitely helped our family bond more over books. The free books have allowed my child’s love for books to grow with all the different stories she has to read. We definitely love it here.”
Our most important partner is you! Every time you support Make Way for Books, whether with time, in-kind donations or monetary gifts, these are the stories you’re telling. We couldn’t be more grateful to share them with you!
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This guest article was written by Make Way for Books Intern Jack Martin.
Jack Martin is completing an internship at Make Way for Books this summer. A Tucson native, he currently attends the University of Oklahoma, where he’s working on a degree in Nonprofit Enterprise. When not pursuing his nonprofit passions, you can find Jack spending time with his Shiba Inu and Corgi mix Sake or playing board games with friends.