Submitted by: Girl Scout Felicity, Troop 1475

Hi! My name is Felicity and I recently received my Girl Scout Silver Award. My project is based on the fact that 250 million children around the world can’t read and so many young children don’t have access to books or reading materials.

One day I was at a Girl Scout event and I had met a young girl who looked to be about seven or eight. Now, at that age, many children are reading chapter books, but this girl could not read at all. When I learned this, I made a vow to myself to try my best to help children who aren’t able to read or have trouble reading. That is why my silver award project focuses on literacy.

For my project I refurbished an old bookshelf that had been discarded. I cut it down to a size more suitable for kids and reconstructed it to be more sturdy. Then I sanded and secured the shelving and painted it with a vibrant red color.I also collected donations of books to put on the shelves. I made arrangements to put it where children frequented–a pediatric dental office in my community. On the bookshelf, I placed a sign that asks people to donate their gently used books to the shelves so others can enjoy. This will ensure that my project lives on.

One skill that I developed while working on my project is confidence in speaking to someone about what I need. That will be very important when I am doing my Girl Scout Gold Award and when I am an adult living life on my own. Other good skills I developed were leadership and the importance of organization in a project. I will have to be really organized for any project that I will end up leading in life.

In doing my project, I feel I lived the Girl Scout law because I was courageous, helpful, caring and I made the world a better place. Children end up sitting in the waiting room just watching TV for twenty minutes to an hour until their appointment. By putting my project in the dentist office, the children have the choice to choose a nice book from the shelf instead of watching TV. The children will be able to practice their reading or have their parents read to them. Statistics say that the more children read or are read to, the better lifelong readers they become. I am hoping that my project is successful at getting children to opt for books instead of TV even if it is for just 5 minutes.

Every effort to help others read is important so spread the word!