In 2 Books Program Update...

Juliana, my ePal and I just finished our 4th book! We read The Adventures of Brer Rabbit and Friends, a classic story to me because I remember reading it when I was a little girl. Brer Rabbit is a trickster who succeeds through his wits rather than through strength. Did you know that this story is told in African, African-American, and Native American cultures? The Native American tribes of the eastern seaboard of the United States have a tradition of incorporating the Rabbit as a trickster in their myths and legends. From reading this book with Juliana, I realized that Brer Rabbit played a lot of tricks but sometimes he could be a good friend, too. There was such a great lesson we both learned from this tale!

I will be excited to begin my fifth, but unfortunately final, book with Juliana!

I also received a message from ePals recently:

Dear LaQuisha,

Thanks for being an In2Books pen pal. Your commitment to building students' reading comprehension and writing skills is appreciated and very important. Overall, more than 10,000 letters have been exchanged this year between pen pals and students in 125 classrooms nationwide. Our teachers consistently report how much their students are enjoying the program and how meaningful it is to them.We're learning a lot from you and from our teachers during this, our first all-digital year.

You and your teacher are a team. You're both committed to nurturing students' reading and writing skills and have their best interests at heart. As you might expect, a variety of issues complicate In2Books activities in classrooms and especially classrooms in under-served communities - standardized testing, access to computer labs, etc.

There's no better gift you can give a student than sharing your love of reading. Thanks again for being part of the In2Books community.

Cordially,

The In2Books Team at ePals

Peta-Gay, you will be receiving another book donation soon!