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orty-seven first-graders from Merritt Elementary in Brandywine Community Schools are joining Super Bowl MVPs Peyton and Eli Manning and Scholastic Book Clubs to help donate 1 million books to disadvantaged children.

Students in Caley Coleman and Chelsea Farver’s class at Merritt Elementary School pledged this fall to read 100 books each as part of Scholastic Book Clubs’ “ClassroomsCare” program.

The philanthropy-based literacy campaign is designed to teach children about the joys and importance of reading and giving.

“Reading is fun and helping people is fun,” Tyler Adams, 7, said.

“Kids have big hearts, and nowhere is that more evident than when children help children through the ClassroomsCare program,” Judy Newman, president of Scholastic Book Clubs, said.
“Classes around the country are reading 100 books each. When they meet that goal, the Mannings, Scholastic and our charity partners will put one million books into the hands of the neediest children.

“The kids get to see firsthand that their efforts can make the world a better place,” she said.

To participate, classrooms join either “Team Peyton” or “Team Eli” and keep track of their progress using an oversize “ClassroomsCare” poster. A companion Web site lets classes share and compare their achievements with other participating classrooms around the nation. The Web site also provides activities, motivational videos featuring the Mannings, e-cards, a sweepstakes and details on “ClassroomsCare’s” charity partners.

At Merritt Elementary, each classroom signed up with a different team. The students have been keeping close track of which class has read the most books. After visiting Farver’s class, Nicholas Oaks reported back to his teacher, Coleman, that “Team Peyton” had read more than “Team Eli.”

“Scholastic Book Clubs’ “ClassroomsCare” lets both students and teachers demonstrate our spirit of service and sharing while also instilling a passion for reading,” Merritt principal Karen Weimer said.

Since its launch in 2001, Scholastic Book Clubs’ “ClassroomsCare” initiative has enriched the lives of more than 36 million children nationwide. More than 27 million students from more than one million classrooms have participated in “ClassroomsCare” activities, resulting in the donation of more than 9 million books to children.

In addition to the Scholastic program, the first-graders at Merritt Elementary demonstrated the spirit of giving by donating more than 100 food items to area families in need.