The Santa Barbara Education Foundation (SBEF) raised $49,000 for the Open Books Project at its annual Love of Literacy Luncheon, Sept. 28 at the Santa Barbara Woman’s Club. The event was attended by 200-plus supporters.
This Open Books initiative aims to provide 2,500 students in the Santa Barbara Unified School District, from transitional kindergarten (TK) through third-grade, with books they can take home to read with their families.
The event was hosted by Santa Barbara Poet Laureate Melinda Palacio, and featured a keynote speech by write Thomas Sanchez.
Sanchez, whose novels have garnered international recognition, shared his own literacy journey, reminiscing about how his mother had worked multiple jobs to help provide books in their home.
“I sat on my mother’s lap while she read those books, and I turned the pages with great excitement,” Sanchez said.
He described the writing process for his forthcoming novel for young adults “Oceano Horse From The Sea.”
“Her steady voice continued to guide me into a glorious world of imagination,” Sanchez said.
Hilda Maldonado, superintendent of Santa Barbara Unified, provided an update on the most recent efforts in staff development with the rollout of the newly adopted Wit & Wisdom and CKLA Caminos reading curricula.
She also highlighted significant gains in reading, noting that scores for reading last year for Latino students, who make up 72% of the district’s student body, jumped from 27% to 56% for students in the third-grade who are meeting and exceeding standards.
However, it was the students who were the stars of the event. Maldonado invited Julieta Torres-Oseguera, a second-grade student from McKinley Elementary School’s Dual Language Immersion, up to the stage to talk about her reading journey.
“Reading in English and Spanish allows me to read with my family,” Julieta said. “I’m excited for my upcoming trip to Mexico, where I get to read my new books with my grandpa.”
To demonstrate her reading skills to the room full of adults Julieta read her statement again, this time in Spanish.
Adams Elementary School teacher Anne Darga introduced fourth-grade student Evan Reed, who had struggled with reading during the challenging learning conditions due to the pandemic. See Evan’s presentation below:
“It was also hard to do my schoolwork because most of the activities had instructions that were written,” Evan said. “I could read some of them, but when there were hard words, I would stop and do something else.”
Through support from Darga and other teachers at Adams, Evan not only caught up to his peers in reading but developed a love for learning and reading.
“The best part about being a reader is that you can read challenging books that are interesting. Percy Jackson is my favorite, and I read all five books last summer,” he said.
With the Open Books Project, the Santa Barbara Education Foundation aspires to create a culture of reading that extends beyond the classroom, nurturing a lifelong love for books and learning.
SBEF plans to send 2,500 new books home to every TK-third-grade student and their family by the end of 2023.
SBEF thanks the following Love of Literacy Luncheon sponsors:
Pillar Sponsor: Sage Publishing; Ambassador Sponsors: Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo, First 5 Santa Barbara County, Tisha Ford, Jersey Mike’s, and John Ogilvie; Champion Sponsors: Arroyo Seco Construction, Cottage Health, KBZ Architects, Lazy Acres, Montecito Journal, Santa Barbara City College Foundation, and UCLA Health, with additional support provided by Chaucer’s Books and Scott and Sons Electric.
Santa Barbara Education Foundation promotes private support of Santa Barbara’s public education system, serving some 12,500 students in 19 schools. For more on the Open Books Project, visit www.santabarbaraeducation.org.
Evan Reed’s Speech About Learning to Love Reading
Hi. My name is Evan and I am 9 years old. I am a 4th grader at Adams.
I started learning to read when I was in kindergarten. All I remember is being disappointed when I was only at level B and everyone else was at a higher level. And then COVID hit.
It was really hard to do my schoolwork at home. I liked being at home because I could take breaks more often and move my body. I did not like being at home because I felt frustrated and that I should be relaxing if I was at home.
I did not like to read because the books at my reading level were so boring, like “The cat sat on the mat.”
When it was time to go back to school I was not happy. I had to wear a mask, and I had to sit at a desk and not move around.
I was sad that I couldn’t read the big interesting books that other kids were reading because they were long and had hard words.
It was also hard to do my school work because most of the activities had instructions that were written. I could read some of them, but when there were hard words I would stop and do something else.
I did not like school, and in the mornings I would sit down and say “no.”
One day I didn’t want to get out of the car, and Ms. Fresch came and sat with me until I was ready to get out of the car.
My teacher, Mrs. Somerton, worked with me after school to help me catch up, and my other teacher, Mrs. Swanson, helped me read my work.
When I started working with Mrs. Darga I started liking school more. It was fun to learn words in a fun way. She made me feel happy and want to go to school more.
I read flashcards and learned hard words with silent “e”s and silent “gh”s. There was a game where you would try to read a word, then shoot a basketball and she would keep score. I was always happy to see her around school because she was so positive and encouraging.
Now I think that reading is fun. I don’t mind going to school.
I can read faster, and am starting to like big books because I can read them faster, and I know most of the words without trying to sound them out.
I like to read at night, or early in the morning when the sun hasn’t come up yet. It is something I can do when it is very hot and I can’t do anything, or when I’m bored.
The best part about being a reader is that you can read challenging books that are interesting. Percy Jackson is my favorite, and I read all 5 books last summer!