Wylie Fourth-Graders Hosting Book Drive to Benefit Local Non-Profit

 

Fourth grade students in Jessica Elkin’s class at Wylie Elementary are hosting a book drive to benefit local non-profit organization Making Spirits Bright, which puts books into the hands of kids who could use them. This is the first of what Mrs. Elkin is calling “Sprinkle Seeds of Kindness” projects, and she hopes to offer more of these opportunities to her students throughout the year.

Mrs. Elkin envisioned this project as being student-run from beginning to end, and her students have been doing it all! As a class, they created a project task list and committees to complete those tasks. Some wrote and gave announcements to the school during morning announcements, while others made an informative slideshow detailing the project. Students with an interest in art created hallway posters and decorated collection boxes, while student writers composed letters to teachers informing them about the book drive. One committee met with Principal Katie See for her approval and permission for the project to move forward, and another group spoke with Wylie custodian Mr. Dave to secure boxes for the book donations.

“Each child got to choose their committee based on interests, and each group worked together wonderfully,” says Mrs. Elkin. “It really filled my heart to be a part of it!”

Their efforts have paid off, as her fourth-graders have already collected 2,269 books!

Community members can help by donating any gently used books (adult, teen, young adult, middle grade, picture books, etc.) to the table near the Wylie office. The organization is in desperate need of chapter books right now. If you are interested in donating new books that are in high demand, consider checking out this Amazon Wish List.

All books are accepted, even adult books: these are sold for money to run the company. They will even take books that are old, yellowing, or not of the best quality: Making Spirits Bright has a partnership with a company that recycles books into kitty litter and paper towels.  

Tomorrow, October 4th, is the last day to donate books, so be sure to drop them off at Wylie by the end of the school day! 

Click here for a short reel about the book drive: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DAq1t8lx5cD/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link.