Sherman Elementary (Nampa) - Bucks for Books

This Donation will buy a book for Sherman Elementary in Nampa. Their Librarian says " The Sherman Elementary School Library has not been set up for students for the past several years. This summer, we worked to set up the library for the students. The goal was to create a space that encouraged reading and book browsing, a space the students wanted to come to and look at books and read in. The goal of creating a space has been achieved; however, we now face a different obstacle. The number of high-interest titles for the Sherman students is about 25-30 percent of the library's titles. The students ask about books that we do not have or books we only have one copy of. The majority of the titles in the Sherman collection are older and outdated, lower interest, or in poor condition from years of wear and tear on the few copies of a high-interest title we have. If we have newer and higher-interest titles in the Sherman Library then circulation and student's interest in reading would improve. Another obstacle are lack of available books at reading levels. About 5 students per grade in 3rd to 5th grade are reading at Jr. High or High School levels, we do not have these books available to challenge students. Since we are a title-1 school, many students in our school do not have access to books at home, so the school library is the primary resource for encouraging reading in these students. Our students want books, but they do not want to check out the same titles their parents were reading in elementary school."

In 2019, the Idaho Lottery learned 28 percent of Idaho elementary schools had a library budget of less than $100 per year for book procurement. In reality, it would take nearly $8,000 every year per school to maintain the library collection students need to succeed. With that in mind, the Idaho Lottery worked with the Idaho Commission for Libraries to start Bucks For Books. Literacy has been a focus of Idaho Governor Brad Little since he took office in 2019. Getting all Idaho students reading at grade level by the third grade is imperative as that is the point where students transition from learning-to-read to reading-to-learn. Having a well-stocked library and the ability for all students to take books home is crucial in getting all Idaho students where they need to be.