PRIME TIME Introduces Spark Box

Community organizations are invited to help spark a love of reading, fire up imaginations, and bring books into the homes of families in their communities by signing up to distribute Spark Boxes provided by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities’ PRIME TIME Family Reading Program.

Made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Entergy Charitable Foundation, the Beaird Family Foundation, and the Boh Bros Centennial Fund, Spark Boxes are based on LEH’s 30-year intergenerational reading and discussion program, PRIME TIME Family Reading.

Each Spark Box contains books to build families’ home libraries, additional learning supplies, and a Grown-Up Guide for caregivers that provides support for discussion and activities for at-home implementation of PRIME TIME’s humanities-centered methodology.

Organizations wishing to distribute Spark Boxes are invited to apply at www.primetimefamily.org/sparkbox/. The deadline to submit an application is June 30. Decisions will be announced in mid-July, with distribution sites receiving Spark Boxes by the end of that month.

Formerly known as PRIME TIME First Aid Kits, Spark Boxes were originally developed in response to the historic flooding in Baton Rouge in 2016 as a way to share the PRIME TIME Family Reading program when meeting in person was not possible. The COVID-19 pandemic, and the fact that 40 percent of Louisiana students still lack reliable access to the Internet, have further reaffirmed the importance of children having access to books at home and how discussing the humanities themes found in those books can help during times of crisis.

Once distribution sites are identified, families can visit www.primetimefamily.org to find a local organization and contact information to sign up for a Spark Box. The LEH will distribute 300 boxes to program sites statewide at no cost to programs and families.