COSTA MESA
Whittier, Pomona and Wilson elementary schools last week received a gift of 1,600 children’s books donated by Newport-Balboa, Newport-Irvine and Newport Beach Sunrise Rotary clubs.
The books are a part of “Reading by 9” a literacy program with a goal of having 95% of third-graders reading at grade level. The program also aims to add 1 million new books to libraries for kindergarten through third grade.
This is the second year the Rotary clubs have participated in the program, which is sponsored by the Los Angeles Times.
Students particularly needed books in English because many speak it as a second language. Schools loan many books, stacked in colorful plastic crates, to families to encourage reading. Families can keep the books for as long as they need, said Sarah Markel, a teacher at Whittier.
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