PBS KIDS Utah 2022 Year In Review

Melanie Pehrson-Noyce

• Published on February 17, 2023

The PBS Utah Education team is consistently humbled by the people we get to work with every day. Long standing programs like the Reading Marathon, the Writers & Illustrators Contest, Book Distribution and School Partnerships remind us how incredible Utah's parents, educators, and children are. Here are just a few of our favorite moments.

Education 2022

Writers and Illustrators Contest: Anyone Can Be a Hero

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We had nearly 250 submissions of stories from children throughout Utah surrounding the theme "Anyone Can be a Hero". It was delightful to read through such creative and meaningful stories of Utah's young authors. 21 winners (3 from each grade Kindergaren-6th Grade) were selected and are now featured on our website at www.pbsutah.org/writers.

Nature Cat Road Trip

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Nature cat came with PBS Utah to Hurricane, Utah to visit 3 elementary schools, where the education team gave out books, facilitated nature themed art projects, and even had a dance party! Then, we invited the community to have burgers and fries while watching Call of the Canyon on the front lawn of the Hurricane Recreation Center. We had a great time!

Reading Marathon Kickoff Party at the Salt Lake City Library Main Branch

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We were able to bring back the Reading Marathon Kickoff Party this year with an incredible event at the main branch of the Salt Lake City Library. Daniel Tiger, Katerina Cat, and Peg + Cat paid a visit. Community partners brought activities and learning opportunities. What a way to get excited about reading!

Reading Marathon in November 2022

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We had more readers than ever joining us for the reading marathon. Children read 20 minutes a day (600 for the month) through November in order to earn a 2023 Adventure Pass. Over 25,000 children read 19,904,890 minutes.

State-wide Mini Reading Marathons

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In an effort to reach rural and underserved communities, PBS Utah Education offered a certain number of institutions funds to host their own version of a reading marathon.

6 Week Series About Friendship and Belonging

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The Education team visited the Salt Lake City Jewish Community Center's after school program for 6 weeks, facilitating discussions and art projects inspired by the PBS KIDS Talk About Youtube series topics like friendship, racism, belonging, feelings, and so on. Ultimately, we had our guest art facilitator to pull together the children's art into a culminating project called a belonging bench. A place of gathering and acceptance within the program. It turned out beautifully. We loved getting to know these kids.

Distributed Nearly 30,000 Books

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With the support of our Ready to Learn funders, we have been able to distribute books to schools and teachers to be placed directly into students hands, entirely without charge. One creative book distribution method that we were able to contribute to is this book vending machine at Millcreek Elementary School.

Tabled Community Events

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We tried our best to get out and take PBS KIDS to educators, parents, and children, meeting them where they are. We distributed stickers, books, crafts, and more. It's one of our favorite things to be face to face with our Utah neighbors.

Looking Ahead

Your PBS KIDS Utah Education Team looks forward with optimism and excitement. We look forward to strengthening our connection and expanding our Utah neighborhood. We look forward to continuing to help children and families enjoy reading through the Reading Marathon in November, to seeing you out in the community enjoying your Adventure Passes, and to reading the creative stories submitted in the Writers & Illustrators contest. We look forward to making each child's day with visits from our favorite PBS KIDS characters, and distributing books to teachers and families. We will continue visiting community events throughout Utah, bringing PBS KIDS to YOU through programs, activities, and resources. Our greatest hope is that we can live up to the trust you have in us.
Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our bi-weekly parent newsletter. We will see you out there, neighbor!

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