Children's Literacy Kits
Why lit kits?
We invite your organization to partner with United Way of Southwest Virginia in the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading by packing and distributing literacy kits (lit kits) to schools near you.
Host a United Way of Southwest Virginia lit kit project at your workplace or in your community!
Literacy kits (lit kits) not only deepen the reading experience for the child and who they are reading with, but they also are a great way to bring volunteers together around the importance of reading on grade level by the end of third grade.
Working on a lit kit project is a wonderful opportunity to generate and celebrate the power of volunteerism among employees, focusing on increasing access to print material for local children. Volunteers can feel good about writing inspirational notes to children, motivating them to keep reading, critical to their being ready to learn.
Learning to read is the most important predictor of a child’s future success. Yet, many kids miss this important milestone.
- 61% of low-income families have no age-appropriate books in their homes. (Source)
- Reading proficiency by third grade is the most important predictor of high school graduation and career success. Yet every year, more than 80 percent of low-income children miss this crucial milestone. (Source)
- Research shows that children from low-income families lose as much as three months of reading comprehension skills over the summer. (Source)
What does the process look like?
Once you fill out the form to let us know you want to be counted in, we’ll walk you through the process. We’ll connect you with a classroom in your community that needs lit kits, and we’ll guide you through the purchasing process for the Lit Kit items that are listed at the links below (the cost is minimal– around $100-$200 for lit kits for a classroom of 12).
Each lit kit consists of 12 paperback books, lowercase magnetic letters or farm friends cut-outs, emoji reward stickers, Way To Go! You Shine! Recognition Awards, and 2-gallon bags for individual packaging of kits for each child. Shipping fees are included in the kit price.
Your order will be sent by bulk delivery; when received, your company/organization volunteers can create individual Lit Kits by separating items into bags for each child, adding company-provided labels, and writing an encouraging note on a company-provided note card to each kit.
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Pre-K Lit Kit
A told B, and B told C, I’ll meet you at the top of the coconut tree. In this lively alphabet rhyme, all the letters of the alphabet race each other up the coconut tree. Will there be enough room? Oh, no – Chicka Chicka Boom! Boom! A rhythmic alphabet chant that rolls along on waves of fun. A rainbow of bright, bold, cheerful colors makes the merry parade of letters unforgettable.
Purchase information:
You can click below to purchase everything you need to create the lit kits from Becker’s School Supplies (shipped directly to you). We recommend that you add company-provided labels and note cards to add to each kit.
Please note that you will likely need to purchase items about 4-6 weeks before the school delivery date. This will be explained in more detail when you sign up.
Mrs. Wishy-Washy’s Farm Kindergarten Lit Kit
Uh-oh. Mrs. Wishy-Washy is at it again. Rubbing and scrubbing all the animals on the farm. But this time they aren’t standing for it. Duck, Cow, and Pig are leaving mean old Mrs. Wishy-Washy for good! They run away to the big city. But they get lost, wander into a restaurant, and even stumble into a hardware store and get covered in paint! Where is Mrs. Wishy-Washy when they need her? Maybe her farm isn’t so bad after all.
Purchase Information:
You can click below to purchase everything you need to create the lit kits from Becker’s School Supplies (shipped directly to you).
We recommend that you add company-provided labels and note cards to each kit.
Please note that you will likely need to purchase items about 4-6 weeks before the school delivery date. This will be explained in more detail when you sign up.
