100 Days of Reading Campaign Engaged Kids in Reading All Summer, Unlocked Critical Resources for America's Most Vulnerable Children

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (Sept. 8, 2021) – In celebration of International Literacy Day, Save the Children is proud to announce its annual summer reading campaign, 100 Days of Reading, engaged tens of thousands of children in reading and learning this summer, while also helping provide support and resources to 750,000 of rural America’s most vulnerable kids during this critical time.

Throughout the 100 days – which started on June 1 and ended today, International Literacy Day – Save the Children shared fun tips and activities on its Instagram (@savethechildren) and at SavetheChildren.org/READ to help ensure kids continued reading and staying active all summer long. In addition to offering activities, 100 Days of Reading is also helping to feed the minds and bellies of children growing up across rural America. Every link clicked or tapped by participants helped unlock donations of books, educational materials and healthy food for kids living in some of America’s most impoverished, rural communities. In total, there were more than 27 million social media impressions, along with 1.3 million video views of 100 Days of Reading content – which will help support Save the Children’s efforts working every day to ensure children are getting the early learning and educational support they need to be successful in school and life.

Additionally, 100 Days of Reading also hit the road for a multi-city bus tour that brought summer learning, fun activities and essential resources to help kids in need across America. The 100 Days of Reading Bus Tour, sponsored by SC Johnson, T.J. Maxx, and Nickelodeon rolled into the following cities: San Francisco; Los Angeles; New Orleans; Atlanta; Nashville; Williston, S.C., Charlotte and Stanley, N.C.; Bay City, Mich.; Racine, Wis.; Chicago and Boston. Along the way, the 100 Days of Reading Bus Tour gave away 20,000 backpacks to children who participated in the events. The tour was a summer-long celebration for more than 40,000 kids and family members thanks to Save the Children’s generous partners with additional support from Mattel, Kinder, Vooks, Once Upon a Farm, and The Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation.

“Save the Children is grateful to everyone who helped make this year’s 100 Days of Reading campaign a success, including our corporate partners and engaged followers on social media,” said Betsy Zorio, Vice President of U.S. Programs for Save the Children. “Thank you for supporting our efforts to give kids new, fun ways to engage in reading and learning this summer, while also helping make a significant impact on children who have been hit the hardest by the pandemic.”

100 Days of Reading was generously presented by T.J. Maxx, SC Johnson, Penguin Random House, Brightly, Mattel, Colgate-Palmolive Company, – as well as HarperCollins Children’s Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Vooks, Once Upon a Farm, Amazon, Noggin by Nick Jr., Nickelodeon’s Blue’s Clues & You!, The Toy Association, Teddy Grahams, American Girl, Kinder, Sunrays, Encantos, the Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation, Zulily, and media partners Discovery Inc., iHeartMedia and SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Storyline Online.

To learn more, visit SavetheChildren.org/READ.

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. Since our founding more than 100 years ago, we've been advocating for the rights of children worldwide. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming the future we share. Our results, financial statements and charity ratings reaffirm that Save the Children is a charity you can trust. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.