First Lady Reads to Farrington Elementary Students to Help Break World Record

First Lady LePage and Farrington students take part in the Read for the Record ® Challenge

Augusta, Maine - Today, First Lady Ann LePage traveled to the Farrington Elementary School in Augusta to celebrate literacy and participate in this year’s Read for the Record® day.

Implemented through a partnership between Jumpstart and the Pearson Foundation, Read for the Record is an annual event where millions of Americans attempt to break the world record for reading the same book on the same day. In 2011, participants broke the record by reading to more than 2.1 million children around the world.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to take part in this great event,” said First Lady LePage. “Good reading skills are vital to a good education. This event is a wonderful way to celebrate literacy in our schools.”

This year, the book of choice is Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad, by David Soman and Jacky Davis. In honor of Read for the Record, the Pearson Foundation’s “We Give Books” initiative will donate 60 copies of the book to Farrington elementary students, plus one additional book for the First Lady to sign and donate to the school’s library.

Founded in 1993 in New Haven, CT, Jumpstart was created under the guidance of Yale professor Edward Ziegler by two of his students, Aaron Lieberman and Lauren Weintraub. It was designed as a program to serve preschool-aged kids in low income communities, teaching them language and literacy skills to help them succeed. Since then, Jumpstart has grown into a national organization, serving students across the country.

The Pearson Foundation is a non-profit organization which promotes literacy, learning, and great teaching by collaborating with businesses, nonprofits, and education experts to share good practice; foster innovation; and find workable solutions to the educational disadvantages facing young people and adults across the globe.

For more information on Jumpstart and Read for the Record, visit: http://www.jstart.org/campaigns/read-record

For more information on the Pearson Foundation, visit: http://www.pearsonfoundation.org