Putnam Words On Wheels Bus Giving Out Free Books Across The County

The Putnam County Words On Wheels or WOW Bus has its next stop scheduled for Prescott Elementary and Middle School on Thursday.

Academic Social Interventionist Cindy Putman said anyone in the area can stop by and pickup free books for kids, even if they have not started school yet. Putman said many kids cannot believe they are getting to pick the books they want at no cost.

“We do know that a lot of families that are really working hard to put a roof over their children’s head and put food on the table and buy clothes and things,” Putman said. “For a lot of families books are luxuries.”

Putman said that due to support from community donations and First National Bank, kids are able to pick out multiple books to take home this summer. She said next week the Words on Wheels Bus will be at Parkview Elementary and parents can track the buses location on the Putnam County School System’s social media.

“We really want to encourage reading with our students and reading for pleasure, not just academic reading,” Putman said. “So they can really build that vocabulary and as a student, reading takes your into a whole different world. So you can be sitting in Cookeville, Tennessee and you can be reading about a character that’s in Paris, France.”

Putman said the July schedule has not been officially set, but she anticipates stops to continue through the summer. She said that people can continue to keep the bus stocked by making book donations to the Putnam County School’s Central Office.