The Salem Ed Foundation Launches "Feed the Need to Read!"

The Salem Education Foundation is excited to announce it's recent launch of the Feed the Need to Read book drive! Feed the Need to Read was created in response to the large number of grant requests received from teachers in 2013 to purchase books. In fact, SEF says that books accounted for nearly 25% of all grant funds requested in 2013.

School librarians, teachers, and literacy specialists all need books. With implementation of a Reader’s Workshop model of teaching reading, students are looking for books that are “just right” for their reading level, and still engaging and interesting. The Salem Education Foundation felt it would be nearly impossible for any teacher, school or system to buy all the books necessary without outside help, especially with the onset of increasingly rigorous state-required curriculums and assessments.

"Librarians, specialists and classroom teachers have been sending us lists of the books their students need to read. We’ve entered over 800 of those titles in our Amazon wish list so far and expect to have over 1,000 titles listed when all is said and done." says Alexa Ogno, head of the Grants committee and board secretary of the Salem Education Foundation.

When SEF asked schools to submit their requests, some schools requested multiple copies of a single title, for discussion purposes, and some titles were requested by more than one school. In order to promote equitable distribution of resources, books will be shipped to the SEF office and distributed from there to individual schools.

Books requested range from “The Kissing Hand” to “The Fault in Our Stars” to books about art, music, science, history, and anything else students will be learning in school or out. Books can be purchased for teachers for as little as $2.50 for an early reader up to $250 for a set of science books.

The list of requested books can be found on Amazon at Feed the Need to Read or by searching for Salem Education Foundation under “Find a Wish List”. If someone would rather purchase the books locally, they have the option of printing out the list and use the “Buying this gift elsewhere?” option.