We are excited to announce Mobility Quotient as the title sponsor for Education Matters’ Loonies for Literacy!

Mobility Quotient has donated $25,000 in support of Calgary schools, students, and teachers who will benefit from this initiative. Loonies for Literacy launched April 23, 2022 on Canada Book Day.

Why Loonies for Literacy is so important to Mobility Quotient:

Literacy is the foundation for all learning. When children learn to read, it opens a whole new world of information, imagination, and communication. It’s essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Sadly, literacy is not equitable, and there are many factors that contribute to students falling behind their peers in literacy and reading comprehension. Those factors include learning differences, language barriers, and socioeconomic factors.

Loonies for Literacy aims to make literacy more equitable across Calgary. For every dollar raised by a school during the campaign, another dollar will be provided to a school in need through contributions from community partners. All funds raised through the initiative will go towards literacy programs.

“Loonies for Literacy supports a cause that is close to my heart,” says Nikhil Sonpal, CEO. “As a parent of two children, it was painful to learn there are students in our community who lack accessibility to books. My children are avid readers, and every child should be afforded the same accessibility to literacy.”

As a community, it is vital that we foster the interest and passion for literacy at a young age and build the foundation to be successful in adulthood.

“It is essential for individuals to possess excellent reading comprehension skills especially in our industry. Continuous learning is paramount to remain relevant in the tech sector and without basic comprehension skills, one cannot survive” says Sonpal. “Focusing on literacy at the grassroots level, in our elementary and secondary schools, is imperative in teaching the importance of learning through reading and comprehension. That’s what makes this initiative so important and why Mobility Quotient is supporting EducationMatters in their drive to create more literacy learning opportunities for all students.”

Mobility Quotient is a boutique digital agency based in Calgary, Alberta. Since their inception in 2009, the tech company has been dedicated to supporting organizations that contribute to the growth and empowerment of the Calgary community. Supporting education and arts in Calgary has been a large focus for Mobility Quotient’s charitable contributions. They’ve provided internships for aspiring developers and designers from nearby universities and colleges, sponsored productions of local up-and-coming talent through Alberta Theatre Projects, donated computer equipment to the Calgary Board of Education, provided financial assistance to music programs for students in Calgary schools, and assisted teachers with workshops surrounding Computational Thinking. Mobility Quotient aims to use the power of technology and community spirit to strengthen and give back to the place it calls home.

The post Literacy support is “close to the heart” for Mobility Quotient appeared first on EducationMatters.

Loonies for Literacy presented by Mobility Quotient is EducationMatters’ system-wide fundraising event to help schools purchase the resources their students need the most. For every dollar a school raises for its own initiative, a dollar will also go to a school in need through the generosity of community sponsors and contributions. You can donate online - either to the gift match portion or to a specific school - or via your mobile device using Text to Donate.

The initiative kicks off on World Book Day - April 23rd. The campaign will run through the month of May until June 3^rd.

The funds raised by Loonies for Literacy will be used towards literacy programs, like:

• - Books for school libraries
• - Library diversification
• - E-books or e-learning resources
• - Early learning resources, and so much more!

Learning to read opens a new world of information, imagination, and communication; literacy is essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Please join us in ensuring that no student falls behind.

Loonies for Literacy is proudly sponsored by:

The post Introducing… Loonies for Literacy!!! appeared first on EducationMatters.

Launching today, Tuesday April 5, supporters can text LITERACY to 30333 and donate $5 to Loonies for Literacy!

If you want to direct your $5 to a specific school, simply text LITERACY followed by your school shortcode (e.g. 'LITERACY 12MILE/LITERACY12MILE' would direct your donation to Twelve Mile Coulee School, 'LITERACY ABBEY/LITERACYABBEY' to Abbeydale, and so on). It's a simple, speedy way to support literacy needs for students across the Calgary Board of Education with the donation showing up on your next cell bill under the Mobile Giving Foundation.

Text to give not for you? You can donate online using your school's Loonies for Literacy page - if they're not showing up under the search reach out to your Principal to see when their page will be launched. Your school may also be accepting cash and cheque donations, reach out to your school office to check.

Supporting literacy needs has never been so easy - please give today and help students all over the city close the COVID learning gap.

The post Text to Donate for Loonies for Literacy! appeared first on EducationMatters.

Loonies for Literacy presented by Mobility Quotient is EducationMatters’ system-wide fundraising event to help schools purchase the resources their students need the most. For every dollar a school raises for its own initiative, a dollar will also go to a school in need through the generosity of community sponsors and contributions. You can donate online - either to the gift match portion or to a specific school - or via your mobile device using Text to Donate.

The initiative kicks off on Canada Book Day - April 23rd. The campaign will run through the month of May until June 30^th.

The funds raised by Loonies for Literacy will be used towards literacy programs, like:

• - Books for school libraries
• - Library diversification
• - E-books or e-learning resources
• - Early learning resources, and so much more!

Learning to read opens a new world of information, imagination, and communication; literacy is essential to developing self-esteem, an understanding of the world, and one’s place in it. Please join us in ensuring that no student falls behind.

Loonies for Literacy is proudly sponsored by:

The post Introducing… Loonies for Literacy!!! appeared first on EducationMatters.

“For the first time in many years I was excited to pick up a book. I always felt nervous to read in front of others before, but this time it was ok. It was better than ok. I felt good to talk about the book and share it in front of my friends.”

Grade 6 student, Sir John Franklin School.Educators at Sir John Franklin in Mayland Heights were faced with a challenge. As the north campus for the Calgary Board of Education’s Arts-Centered Learning program, the school accepts students in grades five to nine, from across the northwest and northeast quadrants of Calgary. After careful examination, school administration identified two primary gaps in their resources: the student reading levels and the reading materials available for them. With the support of EducationMatters, they were able to address these gaps.

In order to understand each child’s reading ability and develop plans to help each student, administration at the school needed a benchmark assessment tool to consistently and accurately determine reading comprehension levels. Funds through EducationMatters’ donors allowed them to purchase the Fountas & Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System, and provided the answers they were seeking.

The second gap which the school also sought to address was their lack of fiction and non-fiction books which they needed to represent the diverse perspectives and the history of Aboriginal communities in Canada. Staff used a portion of the overall grant to enhance and improve the school’s text based resources.

The project resulted in an increased interest in literacy throughout the school. Many students and staff commented on an improved love of reading, and an improved sense of literacy.

One Grade 7 teacher stated, “I love how this initiative has given my students a sense of confidence in reading.”

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This grant was made possible by generous donors who supported the Family Literacy Program Flow Thru Fund, the Mawer Investment Management Literacy Flow Thru Fund, and the Public Education Enhancement Flow Thru Fund.

The post Literacy in North Calgary – Sir John Franklin School appeared first on EducationMatters.