March is National Reading Month, and the Toys for Tots Literacy Program continues its commitment to helping children “Unplug and March into Reading” by placing books into the hands of less fortunate children and encouraging families to unplug from their screens and electronic devices and enjoy a book together!
The Toys for Tots Literacy Program was established in 2008 as a year-round effort to offer our Nation’s most economically disadvantaged children the ability to compete academically and to succeed in life by providing them direct access to books and educational resources that enhance their ability to read and communicate effectively.
Since the Program’s inception, Toys for Tots has distributed over 53 million books to less fortunate children, and in 2022 alone delivered a record number of 6.3 million books to children in low-income communities and Title I funded schools.
“By getting books into the hands of less fortunate students, teachers, and families, we are helping children become their best selves,” says Lieutenant General Jim Laster, USMC (Retired), CEO of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. He continues, “our goal is to dramatically change the landscape for less fortunate children and provide books and educational resources to ensure their future success.”
Toys for Tots Literacy Program Goals and Objectives:
- Play an active role in the development of our Nation’s children by delivering hope that can assist these children into becoming responsible, productive, and patriotic citizens.
- Purchase educational books using one hundred percent on any donated dollar.
- Break the cycle of poverty by offering disadvantaged children direct access to children’s books and educational resources.
- Bring the joy of reading to children.
- Restore and build self-esteem and self-confidence.
- Encourage children and families to unplug from their devices and read together to explore the world of reading and enhance their children’s reading comprehension skills.
- Provide children with age-appropriate books to develop strong reading skills to ensure they perform better in school and have a healthier self-image and a stronger sense of well-being.
- Illuminate children’s imaginations with books that encourage creative thinking, problem solving, and exercise their minds that instill a love for reading.