Before the First Snowflake Falls: Award-winning Author Donates Books so Kids can Read

Charlottesville, VA October 16, 2007. The Reading Tub, Inc. is pleased to announce that it is the honored recipient of 100 copies of Cheri Hallwood's award winning book, Winter's First Snowflake (Forever Young Publishers, 2006). The books will be used to support a Reading Tub project that gives books to families to encourage reading and help kids develop literacy skills.

Cheri, Hallwood, award winning author of Winter's First Snowflake, has donated 100 copies of her book to The Reading Tub, Inc. to support literacy programs. The generosity of Forever Young Publishers will allow The Reading Tub, Inc. to continue its literacy work by providing quality books to children who need help with reading. "I believe reading open a child's mind to the world around them" says Ms. Hallwood. "Without an organization like The Reading Tub®, many children would never get the opportunity to master their reading skills."

Winter's First Snowflake is Ms. Hallwood's first children's picture book. It recently won the 2006 Mom's Choice Awards (MCA) in the Holiday Category. It tied as MCA's choice as the Most Outstanding Children's Book of the Year.

All of the donated books will be included in the organization's One Letter at a Time Project, an initiative that donates books to family services organizations. These groups then give the books to children who, due to socio-economic or cultural barriers, do not have new books all their own to read. The One Letter at a Time Project will pair a book and a practical, one-page Reading Guide that will be given to families free of charge.

Study after study has shown the direct link between early reading with a child and that child’s later success in school, and ultimately life. Still, not everyone has access to the materials they need to "practice" this skill. "While borrowing or purchasing a book may be very easy for some children to get, that isn't true for every home," continues Doherty. "Community studies and literacy statistics suggest that we still have communities who are unconnected from the resources many of us take for granted."

This is especially true in communities where English is not the native language. The Reading Tub, Inc. recognizes that literacy transcends culture, and has designed the One Letter at a Time initiative to build on reading skills in both English and Spanish. "Parental modeling is so important, so it is important to help parents feel comfortable reading with their children."

By offering a variety of books – particularly picture books – The Reading Tub, Inc. believes it can encourage family reading with materials that are suitable for homes so everyone can learn together.

"We aren’t born readers. We learn to read by doing it every day," says Doherty. "It really is no different than any other thing our kids like to do. To play basketball or piano or paint at a proficient level takes practice. But unlike sports and hobbies, everyone needs to learn to read."

While The Reading Tub, Inc. has been successful in garnering book donations, funding for the Reading Guide is still lacking. "The good news is, that because of the generous donations of the book industry, like Forever Young Publishers, The Reading Tub, Inc. will be ready to go once we get that reading guide done. We have also identified the literacy expert who will write it for us. Unfortunately, we still need donations to get that piece fully funded."

The Reading Tub, Inc. is a public charity dedicated to children's and family literacy. Its Website provides in-depth, content-driven profiles for children’s books so parents, grandparents, and teachers (including home-schooling families) have the information they need to select quality books for children and, ultimately, encourage children to expand their own horizons through reading. The Reading Tub® Website also features information about and links to other resources about literacy for parents and teachers who are working with children struggling with reading. One Letter at a Time is a direct service initiative that combines a gift book for each participating child AND critical, parent/guardian-friendly information which will give those caregivers critical information for interacting with and learning with their child, especially as it relates to emergent literacy.

To learn more about The Reading Tub, Inc. and the One Letter at a Time Project visit the Reading Tub® Web site.

Visit Forever Young Publishers (http://www.foreveryoung publishers.com) to learn more about Winter's First Snowflake, purchase the books, and meet Cheri Hallwood.

The Reading Tub, Inc.
3585 Glasgow Lane
Keswick, VA 22947-2748
Contact: Terry Doherty, President
(703) 402-5809

The Reading Tub, Inc. is a public charity dedicated to children's literacy and family reading. The portal to the company is The Reading Tub(r) Website, which offers reviews of children's books, information about reading with kids, and literacy statistics.

This release was published on openPR.