July Charity of the Month
The WTOP Charity of the Month is All Ages Read Together
All Ages Read Together (AART) provides free preschool to children in need at 12 locations across Northern Virginia. AART is for children who fall in the gap between those who qualify for publicly funded programs, such as Head Start, and those whose families can afford private preschool. Volunteers of all ages support the teachers in the classroom.
Did you know?
- 1 in 5 children in Northern Virginia starts kindergarten without the benefit of preschool.
- A third of children who enter kindergarten in Virginia may not be “fully ready for school” lacking social, literacy, or math skills.
- Children who do not attend preschool are an average of 20 months behind children who attend preschool.
- Publicly funded preschool programs are full and have wait lists.
- In many cases, low income working families are ineligible for publicly funded programs because their incomes are slightly over income limits for these programs.
- AART fills the gap by providing free preschool to children who otherwise would have gone unserved.
Impact
Preschool gives exposure to themes and experiences children may not have at home. AART classes provide a nurturing experience to build students’ confidence to set them on a path to lifelong learning. Every week a book goes home with each child to continue building literacy skills and a love of reading.
Each year:
- An average of 180 students are served;
- 6,000 hours of volunteer time are donated; and
- 4,440 books are put into the hands of our students.
AART is a 501(c)(3) and your contributions are tax deductible.
Please help us bring this valuable program to more children in our region.
If you would like to donate your time or resources, please go to our website:
www.allagesreadtogether.org or contact us at (540) 277-3135.
$25– Books for a class for one week
$50– Puzzles, games, and art supplies for one ten-week session
$100– Books for a class for one month
$350– Class instruction for one week
$500– Books or supplies for a class for one year
$1,500– Sponsor a student for one year
$5000 – Sponsor a class for one ten-week session
