Mayor's Summer Reading Club: Partner Application & Agreement - Summer 2023 |
Introduction & Applicant Information
The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club (MSRC) is a program for children ages birth to five and their families. This program takes place in locations throughout the city during the summer. In Spring of 2023, GEEARS will announce book choices for children birth to 2 years old and for children ages 3 to 5 years old. GEEARS convenes the MSRC, and partners with targeted direct service organizations to distribute copies of the selected books align with related educational programming - all at no cost to children. The Mayor's Summer Reading Club is not simply a book give away! Your organization must engage both children and parents to be a candidate for partnership.
Throughout the summer, libraries, summer programs, museums, farmers’ markets, and other institutions in Atlanta will hold “book club reads” to model research-based methods of reading books with children and will host enrichment events based upon the stories. The books will come to life as children enjoy arts and crafts activities, drama exercises, and other hands-on activities designed to make the language in the stories meaningful to children. The goal is to get children and their families to interact with the MSRC books multiple times throughout the summer.
GEEARS' goals for the MSRC are:
-- to engage the community in encouraging our youngest children to read and learn during the summer,
-- to encourage families to instill literacy as a core value in the home, and
-- to increase family awareness of the importance of reading with children every day.
-- to engage the community in encouraging our youngest children to read and learn during the summer,
-- to encourage families to instill literacy as a core value in the home, and
-- to increase family awareness of the importance of reading with children every day.
How do partners participate? Partners agree to do at least one “read” during the summer and host at least one activity related to the books selected. These events are intended to be low cost and easy for the sponsoring organizations, however the Mayor's Summer Reading Club is not intended to be a book give away.
Partners agree to:
- serve children and families in the birth to five age range with MSRC programming,
- provide GEEARS information about their event to include on our MSRC summer event calendar,
- assist in publicizing the book club,
- encourage parents/guardians to attend events,
- ensure each child participating in programming receives a MSRC book,
- participate in a storyteller training for those in their organizations who will be executing the programming and readings,
- complete a short survey after their event(s) so that we can keep track of attendance and other information for MSRC funders.
- serve children and families in the birth to five age range with MSRC programming,
- provide GEEARS information about their event to include on our MSRC summer event calendar,
- assist in publicizing the book club,
- encourage parents/guardians to attend events,
- ensure each child participating in programming receives a MSRC book,
- participate in a storyteller training for those in their organizations who will be executing the programming and readings,
- complete a short survey after their event(s) so that we can keep track of attendance and other information for MSRC funders.
****DEADLINE FOR SUMMER 2023 PARTNERSHIP APPLICATIONS IS FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2023****
Partner Storyteller Training will be held FRIDAY, MAY 10, 2023.
MSRC 2023 Kick-off Celebration will be at the Central Library on Saturday, May 12th, as part of the Children's Book Festival. More information to come.