SAN ANTONIO — Northside ISD distributed 40,000 books over the weekend to students and staff at the district’s 48 Title 1 schools.

  • Giveaway is at Paul Taylor Field House
  • Happens Saturday 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
  • 6,000 attended last year

The books were handed out at the Paul Taylor Field House on 7001 Culebra Road on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The giveaway is made possible by a partnership between the nonprofit First Book and the Northside American Federation of Teachers.

"The more positive experiences that children have with books the more likely they are to continue reading," Wanda Longoria, President of the Northside American Federation of Teachers said.

Before Wanda became President of Northisde AFT she was a reading specialist for 36 years. 18 of those years were spent at Northside ISD. Now, she brought this book distribution back for another year.

"And then you see educators from the Title 1 campuses getting 20 books so that they can take those books back to classroom," said Longoria.

All of the books are appropriate for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade readers. Books were first come, first serve.

"Some kids at my school don't have books at home so this is a great opportunity for them," Loren Watson, 4th Grade Teacher at Colby Glass Elementary, said.

Organizers provided shuttles from each Title 1 campus for children and their parents or guardians.

Six-thousand people attended the event last year and all books were distributed. A list of Title 1 schools is on the NISD website.