First, we’re having a GREAT time with the One School-One Book program…. Getting “thank you” notes from parents already about how it’s “forcing” some family reading time that they seemed to have lost over the years.
— Paul Marinko - Principal at St. Paul's Lutheran School - Fort Wayne, IN
Since last spring, our entire school has excitedly embraced the One School, One Book Program. We will soon begin our spring selection: A Cricket in Times Square -- the third book we've adopted since the spring of 2010!

We are so thrilled with the positive impact this program has had on our students, families, and staff
— Laurie LaRue - First Grade Teacher at Edgewood School - Bristol, CT
I think the OSOB program is brilliant. My seven year-old attends Orleans Elementary in Massachusetts and they (we) are reading Masterpiece. Since the grades levels range from one to five at this school, finding a book to suit all is difficult. My daughter can follow the big picture somewhat but we have to reinforce what we’ve read because it’s a lot to take in for her.
— Glenn Krzeminski - Parent of student at Orleans Elementary - Orleans, MA
The One District, One Book program promoted by Read To Them...is a powerful way to systemically address and promote a culture of literacy throughout the entire school system.

My school actually adopted a hamster and even used it as “pet therapy” for many of the behaviorally challenged children in our school.
— Kenny Moles of West Virginia

Charlotte’s Web

Also Available in Spanish

by E.B. White (1952)

Read to Them is proud to finally offer E.B. White’s all-time classic Charlotte’s Web as a highly recommended One School, One Book selection.

For years, we have tried to stay away from recommending the most classic and well-known titles – fearing that they were too well known. No longer. An entire community reading a book – from kindergarteners to 5th graders, from parents to administrators, from teachers to bus drivers – should all draw upon the very best of children’s literature.

We have also discovered that older siblings love to re-read – or re-listen to – the very best books. So in that tradition, Read to Them offers Charlotte’s Web to first-time and fifth-time readers all.

Return to Farmer Zuckerman’s barn. See the world of the farmyard with Fern’s sympathy – with Templeton’s resourceful cynicism – and with Charlotte’s high-minded, noble, gentle, pride and resourcefulness. Revel not only in Charlotte’s sly effort to save Wilbur the pig. Revel, too, in the simple majesty of E.B. White’s matchless prose:

“The barn was very large. It was very old. It smelled of hay and it smelled of manure. It smelled of the perspiration of tired horses and the wonderful sweet breath of patient cows. It often had a sort of peaceful smell – as though nothing bad could happen every again in the world. It smelled of grain and harness dressing and axle grease and of rubber boots and of new rope. And whenever the cat was given a fish-head to eat, the barn would smell of fish. But mostly it smelled of hay, for there was always hay in the great loft up overhead. And there was always hay being pitched down to the cows and the horses and the sheep.”

Re-visit Charlotte’s Web with patience and love and remember what it is to share language and detail, sentiment and sympathy and poetry – through a children’s novel in prose. Invite another generation of children to share and learn and remember the salient significance of “Some Pig” and “Terrific” and “Radiant” and “Humble.” (They, of course, will share Charlotte’s Web with their own children – that’s how we cultivate a ‘culture of literacy.’)

Read to Them also recommends interested families explore E.B. White’s other children’s novels – Stuart Little and The Trumpet of the Swan – together.

There are five supplementary resources for E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web:

a sample letter home to parents
a 4-week reading schedule
a 122 question trivia bank
suggested assembly ideas
suggested activities

As a participating member of One School, One Book you may have access to all of these documents. Here are some samples: