The Pearson Foundation Announces Spanish-Language Literacy Programs at Feria
del Libro: A Family Book Fair
Jumpstart's Read For the Record and Pearson Family Book Nights Promote
Importance of Reading to Young Children
LOS ANGELES, June 7 /PRNewswire/ -- At today's Feria del Libro: A Family
Book Fair, the Pearson Foundation announced its launch of Spanish language
versions of the popular literacy programs Jumpstart's Read for the Record and
the Pearson Family Book Nights.
Jumpstart's third Read for the Record event takes place on Oct. 2, 2008.
By encouraging hundreds of thousands of children and adults to read, Jumpstart
aims to break the world record for the number of people reading the same book
on the same day, and to make early education a national priority. This year,
children, parents, educators, and school and political leaders in communities
around the world will read the Penguin classic Corduroy to highlight the
importance of early literacy. Read for the Record events are already being
planned within the Los Angeles area, and the Pearson Foundation will provide
Spanish versions of Corduroy for each of them. As Founding Partner and
National Sponsor of Read for the Record, Pearson has raised more than $2
million to support Jumpstart's work in early childhood education.
Pearson Family Book Night brings families together in early childhood
centers to share in the joy of reading and learn first-hand about the
long-term importance that active, repeated family reading can have in their
child's personal and cognitive development. During the two-hour event,
children and their families share books and read together, and parents learn
simple reading techniques they can employ to help their children. Across Los
Angeles, Family Book Nights resume this Fall, and the Pearson Foundation will
offer special Spanish-speaking activities and supports for children and their
families in select locations.
"The Pearson Foundation has shown over the years how committed Pearson is
to fighting word poverty in California. Adding Spanish language support to
their literacy programs, especially those elements that schools use to reach
out to parents and care-givers, shows how well Pearson understands the need to
create an extended community for literacy that reaches across all cultural
divides," said Darline Robles, Superintendent, Los Angeles County Office of
Education.
A community-wide event hosted this year at Los Angeles City Hall, Feria
del Libro: A Family Book Fair makes quality, culturally relevant books
available to children of all ages and their families. The fair is the
culmination of the Million Word Challenge, a literacy campaign promoting a
culture of literacy at home and academic achievement at school.
"By increasing the Spanish-language support within our literacy programs,
we hope to make it possible for more parents and care-givers to help young
people develop key skills that lay the foundation for a lifetime of reading,"
said Mark Nieker, President of the Pearson Foundation. "Studies have proven
that one of best foundations is the ability to recognize, read, and add words
to a growing vocabulary. Providing increased Spanish language support for
Jumpstart's Read for the Record and Pearson Family Book Night programs will
help extend Pearson's commitment to addressing word poverty for all groups in
California and across the country."
For the second consecutive year, Pearson Education and the Pearson
Foundation are co-sponsors of the Feria del Libro. At Feria del Libro, the
Pearson Foundation is also donating popular children's books from the Penguin
Young Readers series and Longman English-Spanish dictionaries for students and
for adults.
The Pearson Foundation also sponsors and takes part in other initiatives
for California families, students, and teachers, including the Foundation's
own Digital Arts Alliance programs and the Pearson Teacher Fellowship. For
more information, visit www.pearsonfoundation.org.
About Pearson in California
Pearson, the world's leading education publisher, has been providing
education materials to California schools as far back as the 1880s. You may
know us individually as Scott Foresman, Prentice Hall, Longman, SuccessMaker,
NovaNet, AGS, PowerSchool, Pearson Benchmark, Learning Teams, Achievement
Solutions, and so many more -- names in the world of education that are
recognized and respected across the State and the globe. In fact, most
teachers in California have learned their profession by studying with
Pearson's Merrill or Allyn & Bacon textbooks, and many have benefited from our
professional development programs. Today, nearly a thousand Pearson people are
living and working in the state, providing educational materials that cover
the gamut from birth through professional learning, testing and assessment,
and teacher professional development, as well as the products that help
schools manage their student information systems. In addition to Education,
Pearson's other major businesses include The Financial Times Group and The
Penguin Group. For more information, go to: http://www.pearsonschool.com.
About the Pearson Foundation
The Pearson Foundation extends Pearson's commitment to education by
partnering with leading nonprofit, civic, and business organizations to
provide financial, organizational, and publishing assistance across the globe.
The Foundation aims to make a difference by sponsoring innovative educational
programs and extending its educational expertise to help in classrooms and in
local communities. More information on the Pearson Foundation can be found at
www.pearsonfoundation.org.
SOURCE Pearson Foundation
Adam Ray of the Pearson Foundation, +1-415-533-1005,
adam.ray@pearsonfoundation.com
