WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
The 2nd Annual Stand for Children Day Luncheon debuted the finished look of the Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County’s newest mobile classroom: the ELC Explorer! The Explorer is unique to the ELC’s fleet of buses in that it is equipped with a special tailgate that allows wheelchair access onto the bus.
Adorned with images of cartoon children exploring, reading, and playing along with some nature scenes and stacks of books, the bus captures the attention of anyone who sees it. The interior of the Explorer sports bookshelves that are made to be modular and easily accessible for all ages and abilities. The ceiling even has fun color-changing lights overhead. A flat-screen television inside will be used as a teacher visual aid to display visual schedules and educational lesson content.
Between December 2021 and January 2022, the ELC was awarded two grants to help create this new book distribution bus. One grant was from The Selby Foundation for $30,000, and the second was from PNC Bank for $6,000. The Selby Foundation grant contributed towards the exterior buildout and custom wrap. The PNC Bank grant assisted with the interior buildout and program materials.
While the Explorer will primarily be used as a book distribution bus, it is equipped to run other educational programs like Words on the Bus and ReadingPals. Additionally, with its smaller size, the Explorer can fit at some of the other child care centers to run the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) program when needed. The STEAM curriculum engages early learners in real projects within authentic environments and lays the academic groundwork for math and science.
The Explorer is a wonderful inclusive resource that will be used to further extend the ELC’s reach to the children of Manatee County.
