Books Change the World and So Can You

When I was younger, I was in love with reading. This was particularly evident during my elementary school years. I remember there once being a contest at my school for who could read for the most hours in a few weeks, and I became completely obsessed with getting my hands on books during every minute of my free time. (I’m pretty sure I ended up coming in third for my grade, though, which still haunts me to this day.)

I don’t think reading would have been as important to me if not for my elementary school library. Wandering through those aisles and getting to pick from a plethora of fantasy and adventure books was something magical. I remember numerous days of heading to the library instead of recess because that’s what I wanted to spend my free time doing. I love being able to share books I had just read with my friends and get their suggestions too.

Unfortunately for many students today, they aren’t able to have these same conditions within their libraries. Book scarcity is an ever present problem and it pains me to imagine that children are missing out on being able to explore the magical world of books because there aren’t many options.

That’s why I’m interested in pursuing this project with Lauren for our English capstone class. I hope to be able to raise money, books, and awareness about book scarcity in elementary through high school classrooms. We hope to accomplish through holding a book drive on the Ursinus College campus for people to donate books and a GoFundMe where people can donate money that can then be turned into books. By the end of the project in December, we hope to donate the books to elementary and high schools nearby that need books, specifically looking at Philadelphia.

Another really important element of this project is making sure the books we receive are diverse and representative of all people. My mom is an ELL teacher at an elementary school, and she’s talked to me many times about the importance of making sure that students have access to inclusive books. Everyone should be able to see themselves in the books they read, and so I want to make sure the books we donate to elementary schools allow for this.

I hope this inspires you to donate to our cause and understand the importance of children having access to books in their schools!

~Amy