Too often, books are found on shelves or stuffed in boxes, more decoration or clutter than enlightening reading instruments.

In other words, they aren't fulfilling their promise.

Both Central and Madison middle schools will soon offer an opportunity for used and misused books to be rediscovered. Both schools recently received Literacy First grants. As part of the Literacy First program, they will have Monitored Independent Reading Practices. That means students will spend at least 20 minutes a day reading. They will make notes about the material which they are reading and their respective teachers will meet with four or five students a day for more in-depth discussions.

The goal of the program is to help the youngsters develop a love and appreciation for reading which they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

“In order to successfully implement this program, we'll need at least 45 to 50 books per classroom,” says Julia Quinn, the literacy coach at Madison .

Thus, donations of books will be taken at both Madison and Central. The schools will hold book drives at their respective sites from Sept. 2-5. Books will be collected at Central each morning from 8-8:20 a.m. during the drive on the west side of the building off Cherokee Dr. Madison will make its book drive collections from 7:40-8 a.m. near the front entrance of the school.

At other times during the dates of the book drive, books can be dropped off at the main office of each school.

“We'll take books which are elementary level all the way up to post-high school level,” notes Quinn. “They just need to be of appropriate material and in relatively good condition.”

Magazines – especially current issues – will be eagerly accepted at both sites as well. Popular titles with the students include Sports Illustrated, Newsweek and Popular Science.

Students can donate books which they have already read to the drive. Once they get them to school, they can pass them along to their language arts teachers.

“At the middle school level, a lot of kids are teetering on the edge of either becoming lifelong readers or not being readers at all,” says Quinn.

“Our goal is to hook them on reading now. We want our students to be excited about reading and to know that it's cool to read.”

The Literacy First program is a research-based, systematic, systemic and comprehensive reform process that accelerates reading achievement of all students from pre-kindergarten through the 12 th grade. The program has long been embraced by elementary schools within the Bartlesville Public School District but has only recently begun to take hold at the secondary level.

Through the Literacy First grant, teachers at both Central and Madison are able to get extensive training to help them build the reading abilities of their students. Community members can help the cause by donating books or money to purchase them, or even by contacting the schools to learn about opportunities to become a reading tutor.

Quinn is hoping the donations pour in during the book drives at Central and Madison early next month.

“Research shows the more you increase the volume of reading for students, the better the chances are that they will become independent readers and lifelong readers,” says Quinn. “It helps them to improve their reading abilities.

Bartlesville Public Schools, David Austin, Community Relations Coordinator