Tackling Literacy + Encouraging A Love of Reading in Oakland
“Our Little Town Libraries will have culturally appropriate stories that mirror students’ daily lives, encouraging them to explore their identities with curiosity and kindness, as well as others that provide windows to new perspectives and possibilities. We are always looking for innovative and creative ways to attack our issue pillars, and this engaging initiative aims to not only foster a culture of literacy but bring fun and vibrant experiences to yards and street corners, too.”
— Stephen and Ayesha Curry
Launched on March 30, 2022, , our newest literacy initiative will construct and maintain 150 new Little Town Libraries in under-resourced areas of Oakland, meeting kids and families where they are, and encouraging neighborhood book sharing to develop children’s passion for reading.
Working alongside devoted community partners, Eat. Learn. Play. will distribute more than 50,000 free books throughout the community as part of this program to ensure Oakland kids can read anywhere and everywhere. The new program will extend the reach of this valuable community tool to flatland communities such as East and West Oakland, Fruitvale, and Chinatown that have historically been under-resourced.
As a result of the pandemic, kids across the country have had to cope with distance learning and interrupted academics, disproportionately impacting Black and Latino/a kids and intensifying a large issue that is a focus for Eat. Learn. Play.’s LEARN pillar – literacy. Nationwide, only 1 in 3 kids are reading at grade level by the end of third grade. In Oakland, after more than two years of distance learning, only 15.4% of Black and 12.5% of Latino/a elementary school students are reading at grade level.
OUR WORK
Eat. Learn. Play.’s newest initiative is inspired by and in partnership with LittleFreeLibrary.org, a network of almost 150,000 Little Free Library’s across the globe. The Little Free Library movement is a book-sharing concept that supports communities in creating fun, tiny libraries in front yards of homes and businesses for families to share books and develop their children’s passion for reading. The initial four Little Town Libraries have been designed and built in partnership with the Good Tidings Foundation.
AMBASSADOR PROGRAM
The program will be managed alongside three Oakland-based non-profits and trusted Eat. Learn. Play. partners, the Oakland Literacy Coalition, the Black Cultural Zone, and the Oakland Public Library. Each organization will oversee 50 libraries, helping select, coordinate, and equip ambassadors for each library. Initial two-year grants will be committed to each organization, anticipating longer-term renewals.
The initial four Little Town Libraries have been designed and built in partnership with the Good Tidings Foundation, a Bay Area-based children’s charity that looks to equally support the growth of marginalized youth in Northern California by creating environments for athletics, artistic activities, education, and wonder.
The Little Town Libraries feature art by the Illuminaries, professional street art muralists and graphic artists who also designed our Eat. Learn. Play. Bus. This Bay Area-based collective created a fun and inviting design that is not only a celebration of Oakland, but welcomes Oakland kids and families to develop and share their love of reading.
Community Partners
Oakland Literacy Coalition, Black Cultural Zone, Oakland Public Library, Good Tidings Foundation, Little Free Library, and the Illuminaries