Pictured: Barancik Foundations John Annis reads to 2nd grade students at Fruitville Elementary during EODs Bucket Fillers Reading Day event. Photo courtesy of EOD.

If you love to share the joy of reading with young people, Embracing Our Differences hopes you will volunteer for its “Bucket Fillers” reading initiative, which will take place at 80 elementary schools and early learning centers throughout Manatee and Sarasota counties on Tuesday, November 15. What is a Bucket Filler? Since her first book, “Have You Filled a Bucket Today? A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids,” was published in 2006, Carol McCloud, a nationally acclaimed author and Venice resident, has inspired millions of people of all ages to become daily “bucket fillers” through her books, seminars, and other publications. Her nine children’s books have sold three million copies worldwide and are used in schools around the world as their primary character development program. For the past five years, EOD has coordinated an annual Bucket Filler reading initiative—through a partnership with Sarasota County Schools, the School District of Manatee County, and the Early Learning Coalitions of Sarasota County and Manatee County. Ben Jewell-Plocher, EOD’s learning and engagement director, explains it this way. “The ‘Bucket Filler’ books use the concept of an invisible bucket to encourage positive behavior and warm hearts. Each book shows children how rewarding it is to express kindness, appreciation, and love to others.”

On November 15, EOD will coordinate hundreds of volunteers to read from “Bucket Filler” books to more than 8,200 students in pre-kindergarten through third grade classes in Sarasota County. If you’d like to volunteer to read on November 15, visit https://www.embracingourdifferences.org/bucket-fillers by October 1. For more information about Embracing Our Differences, call 941-404-5710, or visit www.embracingourdifferences.org.

Pictured: Barancik Foundations John Annis reads to 2nd grade students at Fruitville Elementary during EODs Bucket Fillers Reading Day event. Photo courtesy of EOD.