In 2011, YK Pao School worked with the Heifer Programme organising a ‘Read to Feed’ event to help communities in the Dabie mountain area of Anhui Province. Parents and friends sponsored children to read books, raising over 37,000 RMB. This year, YK Pao School is preparing to ‘Read to Feed’ once more as part of this year’s book week.

        Our school will be working with Haihui, the Chinese branch of Heifer International. Heifer International is an organisation that raises funds to provide impoverished communities with livestock and training in animal husbandry, helping them to become self-sufficient. Their motto is ‘give not a cup of milk, but a cow.’ They were founded in 1944 and now operate poverty alleviation projects in 126 countries, and have helped over 12 million families.

        From the 13th of February until the 9th of March, YKPS students will invite family and friends to sponsor them reading as many books as they can, with each sponsor deciding how much they will donate per book. The total amount raised will be announced in a ceremony at the end of Book Week (Friday 23rd of March), with prizes for the students and classes who have read the most and donated the most money.

        The money raised this year will help Heifer’s poverty alleviation project in Anhui’s Dabie Mountain. Students who have made outstanding contributions to ‘Read to Feed’ will visit Dabie Mountain in June to see the project. Last year, staff and students from our school visited a village that had already received donations from Heifer. The selected village this year may be one that is ready to pass on some of the offspring of their animals to help other communities in need.
Not only does ‘Read to Feed’ encourage children to read more, but it also increases their sense of social responsibility and awareness of those less fortunate than themselves, and is therefore a project that we as a school are proud to support.

Click here to download poster.