Communities Mark Summer Learning Day to Promote Reading
Florida’s Palm Beach County and the City of Delray Beach were among many communities in the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading (GLR) that on (or around) June 21, 2013 marked Summer Learning Day, which was created by the National Summer Learning Association, a GLR campaign partner. The national advocacy day spread the word about how preventing learning loss during the summer is part of the work involved in closing the achievement gap and supporting children’s health development.
To mark the day in Palm Beach County and Delray Beach, almost 4,000 donated books were distributed to area schools and libraries, thanks to a partnership between the county, city, school district and municipal leaders. The school district created a suggested summer reading list for Pre‑K through 5th-graders. The county’s Children’s Services Council bought two copies of each listed book for each of their 10 sites, as well as for the city. The books hit the shelves on Summer Learning Day!
More than 1,300 miles north, in Syracuse, N.Y., Summer Learning Day was marked by a press event held at the Onondaga County Public Library featuring guests including U.S. Congressman Dan Maffei and Clifford the Big Red Dog. New York State Senator John DeFrancisco also taped a summer reading public service announcement.
