Equity Considerations for Running a Take-Home Book Program During a Pandemic
Foundry10 has supported many take-home book programs over the years, but never during a global pandemic. Here are some of the barriers to equity we encountered and addressed while running a take-home book program under quarantine.
By Ella Shahn, Riddhi Divanji, Janie O’Brien, and Allie Tung
When the COVID-19 virus outbreak closed schools in Washington state, foundry10 partnered with local educators in Edmonds to provide their students with books. Through take-home book programs, teachers use their knowledge of students’ individual interests and reading skills to select books for their students to enjoy at home.
Past research has found that take-home books programs that pair teacher support with books that are engaging and relevant to students can effectively prevent losses in summer reading levels (e.g. White et al. 2014, Kelly 2015). Some research suggests that students gain more from engaging with physical texts than from reading something on a screen.
Foundry10 has supported many take-home book programs over the years, but never during a global pandemic. Here, we combine direct feedback from teachers who participated and our own reflections from coordinating the program to share some of the barriers to equity we encountered and addressed while running a take-home book program under quarantine.
The Plan: Kids Take Home Books
As students transitioned to a virtual learning experience, foundry10 connected over Zoom with educators at a meeting for special education and Title I teachers to talk about the take-home book program.
From that event, several teachers expressed an interest in participating. A foundry10 research coordinator emailed interested teachers a digital form to fill out with fields requesting the name of the student, school name, nearest COVID-19 meal pick-up site, home language, and a personalized note. Each participating teacher was compensated for 3 curriculum hours and could pick up to 3 students to receive books.
“You respected me as a teacher and professional to know my students and choose wisely. This is much more respect and much less bureaucracy than teachers routinely encounter.” — Teacher
Foundry10 purchased over 350 teacher-selected books from Third Place Books and Edmonds Bookshop. Foundry10 staff, teachers, and volunteers from the Foundation for Edmonds School District passed out books to students at meal sites or delivered them to their homes. We provided 42 students and their families with 2–3 books, a personal note from their teacher, and a tip sheet on questions to ask while reading at home with children provided by the Edmonds School District. The tip sheet was translated into the home language of each student.
“Giving the children NEW books ESPECIALLY chosen for them, sends the message that they are important and valued in our community.” — Teacher
Popular books for young readers
- Elephant and Piggie Biggie series
- No, David!
- Pete the Cat series
Popular books for Middle Grade readers
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid series
- Fly Guy series
- Ruby and the Booker Boys series
- Yasmin series
“I heard positive feedback from all of my parents. Some sent me detailed messages about which books their child loved, or how one of the books I picked motivated them to try something new.” — Teacher
Equity Considerations for Take-Home Book Programs
Under normal circumstances, foundry10 would meet directly with teachers and literacy specialists on the ground to plan the take-home book program. But the communication and logistical barriers presented by the pandemic created unique challenges to creating the most direct value for kids through take-home books. As we consider running take-home books programs again, we’re reflecting on the following questions:
How do we get books to students who don’t have transportation access to meal sites?
How do we reach students who can’t communicate with teachers virtually?
How can we remove burdens from teachers while centering their expertise?
Due to COVID-19 related shipping delays, we picked up books in 3 separate orders, two from Third Place Books, and one from Edmonds Bookshop. It was difficult for some families to come pick up the books at the meal sites. As a result, teachers only selected families for participation who they knew would be able to pick up the books. This became an unfortunate barrier to access for many kids who might have benefited from the program.
“The reality is, asking families to come to the school to pick up books on 3 different occasions was challenging for most families. If we had been in school, I would have just sent the books home with the child. While the idea is to spread out the gift, I would prefer to give them all at once (or be in school and send home the books 3 different times with the child and not have to involve the family as much).” — Teacher
Communicating with families was also a challenge, especially those who had less access to technology at home and who might have been disconnected from distance learning. One teacher suggested finding more ways to get information about the opportunity out to caregivers. Next time, we would love to spend more time brainstorming with educators about how to reach more families.
“[Next time, I would recommend] finding more ways to ensure families receive the information provided about participating in the program. I am not sure the two families I attempted to reach read the emails I sent.” — Teacher
Due to COVID-related shipping delays, many of the book titles teachers requested weren’t available, so we asked for alternative titles for a similar reading level and subject material, when possible. Teachers spent a lot of time picking out books for their students on very short notice. We wished we’d been able to provide each of these personalized requests to students, but had to work within the constraints of the circumstances.
“Next time I would just take more time in finding books, I was a little rushed this time since it was the first time. Maybe some book list recommendations would be nice as we are looking.” — Teacher
Despite some of these challenges, we were inspired by the level of dedication and care teachers put into making this program a good experience for their students and families. Some teachers volunteered to hand out books at meal sites or deliver books directly to their students who weren’t able to come to meal sites. Teachers put great effort into picking out books that reflected their students’ unique interests, home languages, and reading levels.
In the future, we hope to provide resources to support teachers in selecting books featuring characters who reflected the diverse identities of their students. Here are a few resources for finding books that focus on social justice and/or feature characters of color:
- Elementary books featuring characters of color
- 1000 Black girl books resource guide
- Race and Social Justice Books for kids K-5
Several teachers reflected that the program allowed them to connect with students on a personal level during a time of remote learning. Teachers included thoughtful notes with each book to students affirming their cultures, asking about students’ families, and encouraging them to keep reading.
“I loved this way to connect and provide for my students while we were out of the classroom, especially since I had to [leave the area] to help support my elderly parents, I felt particularly separated from my students. This helped!” - Teacher
We learned so much from the process of running a take-home books program during school closures, and value the crucial feedback from teachers and district leaders that will help us address some of these equity considerations in the future. We are committed to continuing to find creative ways to support literacy and teacher-student relationships in the coming school year!
If you are an educator or an organization interested in learning more about our process or collaborating with us in the future, please contact the Interventions team at interventions@foundry10.org.
If you are a philanthropy interested in learning more about how to support a take-home book program read our take-home book philanthropy guide here and connect with us at info@foundry10.org.
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