Metter Elementary School

🍔📚 Books and Burgers Family Literacy Night! 🎉
Join us on Monday, March 30 from 5:00–6:30 PM at the K8 complex for a fun and meaningful evening with your family!
Enjoy:
✨ Dinner( Hamburgers)
✨ Quality family time
✨ Shopping at the Book Fair
💙 All proceeds from the Book Fair will directly support The Basics movement in our community. The Basics gives families the tools and community support to build those meaningful conversations that lead to school readiness. This movement helps lay the foundation early, and as children grow, we can continue encouraging families to stay engaged and support learning at home.

“How can I make sure that my child reaches their potential?” is a question that most parents ask themselves when they first hold their newborn baby. Candler County’s Literacy Council wants to help parents get their children off to the best possible start through the Ferst Foundation’s Ferst Readers program.

Ferst Readers, whose motto is “A child’s path to a brighter future is paved with books,” is a program that provides one book per month from birth through age five to every child who has been registered into the program. The Candler County Literacy Council has restarted The Ferst Readers program that was previously offered to children in the area about 14 or 15 years ago.

“Jill Powell brought Ferst Readers to Candler County then,” explains Miranda Thigpen, Media Specialist for children attending Pre-K through eighth grades in Metter. She remembers this because her oldest child was registered with Ferst Readers when she was a baby. “Now, my daughter is a teenager!” she exclaims.

Although Thigpen is the schools’ Media Specialist and has contact with parents of young children through school-related events and activities, she insists that the Candler County Literacy Council is not a part of the school system. However, many of the people involved with the Literacy Council are school personnel. This makes it possible for Council members to make a connection between early childhood literacy and school since the two are so closely related.

In order for a child to be enrolled in the Ferst Readers program, Thigpen says, the only requirement is that the child be between birth and five years of age, and they must be a resident of Candler County.

“There are no income restrictions or other requirements,” she insists. Upon registering a child, that child will receive one book per month by mail until their fifth birthday. At that point, the child will probably already be enrolled in Pre-K or kindergarten where they will have regular access to books through the school library and the classroom.

Thigpen explains the process for registering a child. There is a form that must be completed and returned to the Candler County Literacy Council. That’s it! Currently, Candler County children cannot be registered online.

“The forms are available at the school, at various literacy events that are held throughout the community, and at the L.C. Anderson Memorial Library,” explains Thigpen.

Completed forms can be returned by mail or by dropping them off at the school or at the public library. Children can be registered before birth, at birth, or at any time prior to their fifth birthday. “If a child is registered before or at birth, they will have a personal library of 60 books by the time they turn five!” she states.

“Once a child is registered, they will receive a book in the mail every month,” she reiterates. However, along with the book, there will be a guide for how the parents can best utilize the book to help their child get the most of their gift from the Ferst Foundation. Both the books and parents’ guides are provided in English and Spanish, making it easy for all parents to help their child’s literacy to grow.

Since the Ferst Readers Program was restarted two years ago, as many as 179 books have been mailed to children in Candler County during a month. As of July 2025, there are 169 children enrolled in the Ferst Readers program in Candler County.

One might wonder how so many books can be given, free of charge, to so many children. “The books are provided by donations to the Ferst Foundation,” explains Thigpen.

Donations can be made online at the Ferst Foundation’s website or by making an in person donation through the Candler County Literacy Council.

Read more at https://www.metter.org/page/swirl

The Candler County Board of Education is accepting bids for a 2008 Bluebird Vision Mini Bus equipped with a wheelchair lift. The bus is in good running condition, however, minor engine repairs are needed. Both the A/C and heat are fully functional, and the bus has good tires. The interior is also in good condition. The current mileage is 146,559. To submit bids, please email Denise Strickland at dstrickland@metter.org no later than Monday, December 8, 2025.

 Board Book Drive – Help Grow Young Readers! 
The Candler County SWIRL Literacy Council is asking for your help in collecting new board books to give to the younger siblings (ages 0–5) of Metter Elementary School students!

Drop off new Board Books (for babies and toddlers):

When: December 1–17

Drop-off Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Where: Candler County Board of Education Office, 210 S. College St., Metter

We’re looking for board books specifically designed for babies and toddlers — those sturdy books with thick pages that can handle lots of love and little hands.

Your donation will help promote early literacy and inspire a lifelong love of reading in our community’s youngest learners.