Korean Turtle enters U.S. race to help boost literacy
By John C. Stickler
Images of the Games 13 and 14 ballot as it will appear on March 9
To celebrate one year of reading together, students at Los Angeles' Sunrise Elementary School pose with their adult volunteers, all members of a local law firm. Read to a Child has presented each one with a copy of “Maya and the Turtle.” Due to a shortage of personnel, the school library is open only one day a month. / Courtesy of Read to a Child
In spring 2014, students enrolled in international schools across South Korea voted for their favorite English children's books in an annual reading competition run by school librarians. The winner in the upper elementary category was an old Korean fairy tale, “Maya and the Turtle,” published by Tuttle in 2012. Their votes awarded Maya the annual Morning Calm Medal, among four titles for different grade levels.
This month, Maya and her reptilian pet are in another competition, a "March Madness" book tournament to help at-risk children learn to read. A U.S. non-profit literacy agency, Read to a Child, has selected 32 books, new and old, popular classics and up-and-coming titles, and pitted them against each other in a Book Bracket Challenge, just like the U.S. college basketball tournament.
“Maya and the Turtle,” being still quite new, is seeded in eighth place, facing no.1 seed “Tina Cocolina: Queen of the Cupcakes,” an older book about cupcakes. To keep Boke-toongi in the race to the championship, the turtle needs votes on March 9 between noon and 4:45 p.m. (EST). To view the bracket and support the Korean turtle just visit facebook.com/readtoachild.org and write “Maya and the Turtle” in the comment box during the five-hour window. The winners will be announced on that page at 5 p.m. and posted on the bracket sheet.
The good news is that if “Maya and the Turtle” receives more votes than the cupcake book, readers may vote for it again in the second round, the "Sweet Sixteen,” and all the way to the top!
Read to a Child (
) is a national nonprofit literacy and mentoring organization that inspires caring adults to read aloud one hour per week to at-risk children to create better opportunities for their future. Last year, the first annual Book Bracket Challenge raised over $100,000 for their innovative program.
Research proves that reading aloud to children is the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading and, thus, likelihood for success in school and life. Read to a Child currently partners with more than 100 corporations and institutions across the U.S. which provide 1,500 volunteers who read aloud to more than 1,100 at-risk students in Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles and Miami, as well as urban centers in Connecticut.
Chances are, if you’re a child in the U.S. and a strong reader, an adult spent time reading with you. Research also says you’re most likely from a higher-income family. Kids from lower-income families are not always so lucky. As a result, they suffer not just in school, but later in life.