For many of us, the annual Scholastic Book Fairs were a welcome mainstay of our elementary-school years, helping us discover some of our favorite books, and this tradition continues to foster a love for reading in today’s young students. Unfortunately, far too many find themselves unable to participate in these book fairs due to restrictive economic circumstances beyond their control, which not only eliminates precious opportunities to further develop reading skills but also reinforces feelings of exclusion. The school librarians and teachers who help coordinate these events describe some children declining to so much as fill out shopping wish lists or join their classmates in perusing the books being offered.
Therefore, I am raising money to sponsor a local elementary school’s spring Scholastic Book Fair in order to ensure that every student will be able to select at least one book that interests them and is theirs to keep, thus encouraging these young readers and aiding their pathways to success. Supporting this notion, a study published in Social Science Research in 2019 confirmed that “immersing children in book-oriented environments benefits their later educational achievement, attainment and occupational standing” and that “growing up with home libraries boosts … adult literacy, adult numeracy, and adult technological problem solving” (Sikora et al. 1). Many of the books available through these book fairs only cost five to ten dollars, so even a little money goes a long way.
I will initially focus on Weller Elementary in Springfield, Missouri, because it is the elementary school I attended and over 85% of its student body qualifies for free or reduced lunch, making it one of the more economically disadvantaged elementary schools in its district, but my goal is to one day expand this initiative to other schools in order to help students across the city. I am setting the fundraising target at a level that would pay for every Weller student to participate in their spring Scholastic Book Fair, but this is very scalable, and if I happen to exceed the target, any surplus funds will either be directed to another elementary school or carried over to the next campaign. Either way, every dollar raised will help put a book in a child’s hands.
Thank you for supporting this worthwhile endeavor!
Joel Coltharp
Instructor, English Department
Missouri State University