The Busload of Books Tour is a year-long literacy project by author/illustrator, husband/wife children’s book creators Matthew Swanson and Robbi Behr. Swanson and Behr and their four school-aged kids and dog are visiting one Title I (high need) elementary school in every US state, doing free presentations on creative empowerment, and handing out a free, hardcover book to every student and teacher in these schools (25,000 total).
Monday morning, Swanson and Behr joined Mary in studio to share further information about their mission. They explain there are 47,000 Title I schools in the United States; their tour aims to build awareness of the additional challenges faced by educators serving high-need communities. They are taking their mission one step further! They are partnering with St. Louis-based Build-A-Bear Foundation to distribute an additional 125,000 free books through the First Book Marketplace.
The tour is set to stop by Central Elementary in Ferguson, Missouri, on Tuesday, March 14th.
Robbi and Matthew also share that they are the products of Title I schools. Their kids attend Title I schools. For them, this is personal. Six months into the tour, they have visited 41 schools, traveled 20,000 miles, and used more than 600 bathrooms. Follow along their journey on social media @ robbi.and.matthew. Learn more at www.busloadofbooks.com.