The Junior League of Los Angeles (JLLA) hosted Thrive Through Literacy events with partner organizations throughout Los Angeles this April to engage young readers and promote literacy skills.

Many children in Los Angeles County are not reading at grade level. Lack of books in the home, parents who don’t model reading and language barriers are common challenges to improving literacy rates. To help overcome these challenges, JLLA’s first-year members provided books and activities to more than 350 children at events held at Boys and Girls Club of Venice, Children’s Institute, Inc., HOLA (Heart of Los Angeles), Hollygrove, Pacoima Branch Library and Westside Children’s Center on April 7th and 21st. JLLA volunteers had a blast creating a fun and informative atmosphere for parents and children to participate in literacy together.

Activity stations reflected the plot, characters and words used in a popular children’s book. JLLA members read to children ages 6-7 and each child went home with a new book. The kids also enjoyed crafts, physical activities and healthy snacks. The events and books were provided at no cost to participants as a result of funds raised by JLLA members during the LA Big 5K.

Click here to learn more about JLLA’s efforts to promote literacy.

–Rachael Rollins