The Children’s Museum of Atlanta to host Let’s Read. Let’s Move. Event

      

The Children’s Museum of Atlanta to host

Let’s Read. Let’s Move. Event

The Children’s Museum of Atlanta will host event addressing literacy and childhood obesity

ATLANTA, May 28, 2013 – In partnership with the Mayor’s office, Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students, First Book, Jumpstart for Young Children, and the Corporation for National and Community Service, The Children’s Museum of Atlanta will host a Let’s Read, Let’s Move event on June 1, 2013 to kick off the Mayor’s Summer Reading Club.

This event is also part of the First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama’s summer initiative to create opportunities for Americans to use service as a tool to promote physical activity, healthy eating, and to prevent losing academic ground during the summer.

Let’s Read. Let’s Move. will offer several opportunities for guests to participate in kid-friendly movement activities as well as exciting book readings. Guest appearances will include Mayor Kasim Reed as he reads the brand new book Amari’s Adventure. Miss Gail and her Crazy Cartoon Band will perform a dancing, singing, moving, and jumpin’ show for the children. Local Chef Damaul Mitchell will demonstrate healthy cooking ideas for children and their caregivers. The festivities will continue with a reading of The Monster Who Ate My Peas by Imaginator Jerry G. White, a reading of Don’t Go Out in Your Underwear by children’s author and storyteller Babs Bell Hajdusiewicz, and a fun, interactive lesson in gardening and healthy foods from Truly Living Well. Children attending the event will receive a free, age appropriate book (while supplies last).

This unique event is a remarkable example of strong collaboration among partners at the federal, national, state, and local levels to leverage resources that promote and celebrate literacy and movement for all children. This significant event increases public awareness of the importance of reading and exercising while showing kids that reading and healthful living is fun.

Museum hours: Monday through Friday 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Admission is $12.75 plus tax for ages 1 – 100; children under 1 receive free admission. The Children’s Museum is located in the Lucky Marietta District at 275 Centennial Olympic Park Drive NW.

The Children's Museum of Atlanta

The Children's Museum of Atlanta is a smart place to play and a non-profit organization offering a family-friendly space filled with interactive, educational exhibits and programming for children ages eight and under. The Museum’s mission is to spark imagination and inspire discovery and learning for all children through the power of play. The Museum’s four permanent learning zones consist of bright, creative, hands-on exhibits that are designed to give children an opportunity to learn through play. The Children’s Museum of Atlanta also offers parties, memberships, field trips, summer camp, and private events. 

For more information or to support The Children's Museum of Atlanta, visit their website at www.childrensmuseumatlanta.org or call 404.659.KIDS [5437]. 

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About The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club

The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club is a new program for all children ages birth to eight and their families that will take place in locations throughout the city of Atlanta this summer.  The Mayor’s Summer Reading Club partners are working with targeted programs to distribute copies of the books at no cost to children, and we will urge schools and early education programs to introduce the story to children. Then the fun begins! Throughout the summer, libraries, summer programs, museums, farmers’ markets, and other institutions in Atlanta will hold “club reads” to model research based methods of reading books with children and will host enrichment events based upon the stories.  The books will come to life as children enjoy arts and crafts activities, drama exercises, and other hands on activities designed to make the language in the stories meaningful to children.

Learn more at: http://www.geears.org/resources/mayors-reading-club 

About Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students

The Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students (GEEARS) was established in 2010 to help business, civic and government leaders maximize the economic return on the state’s investments in early care and learning. Guided by a growing body of research documenting the high-dollar return on investment associated with early learning and care, GEEARS is working to position Georgia as a national leader in ensuring that all children enter kindergarten prepared to succeed and on a path to read to learn by third grade. GEEARS is an independent successor group to the United Way’s Early Education Commission chaired by Dennis Lockhart, the Head of the Federal Reserve of Atlanta and Beverly Tatum, the President of Spelman College. 

Learn more at www.geears.org

About the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS)

CNCS is a federal agency that helps more than 5 million Americans improve the lives of their fellow citizens through service. Working hand in hand with local partners, CNCS taps the ingenuity and can-do spirit of the American people to tackle some of the most pressing challenges facing our nation.  CNCS staff and volunteers work and invest in thousands of nonprofit and faith-based groups that are making a difference across the country. CNCS includes AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund, the George H.W. Bush Volunteer Generation Fund, and more. 

About First Book

First Book has distributed more than 90 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families throughout the United States and Canada.  By making new, high-quality books available on an ongoing basis, First Book is transforming the lives of children in need and elevating the quality of education. For more information, please visit them online or follow their latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

First Book Contact: Brian Minter of First Book, 202-639-0115, bminter@firstbook.org

About Jumpstart

Jumpstart is a national early education organization working toward the day every child in America enters school prepared to succeed. Jumpstart delivers a research-based and cost-effective program by training college students and community volunteers to serve preschool-age children in low-income neighborhoods. Through a proven curriculum, these children develop the language and literacy skills they need to be ready for school, setting them on a path for lifelong success. Jumpstart is also a proud member of the AmeriCorps national service network. Learn more at www.jstart.org.