There’s a new kid on the print media block. Direct from the FREE 4 ALL stable, it is the baby brother of the popular high school newspaper FREE 4 ALL, and its sibling for senior primary school kids, FREE 4 ALL Early Edition.

The new publication, named My First FREE 4 ALL, is an interactive tabloid for six-year-olds; the first issue to be launched to 185 schools in the main metros in June. Every child in Grade 0 at participating schools will receive their own copy to take home.

My First FREE 4 ALL is in line with the thinking of the National Minister of Education, Naledi Pandor – “Grade 0 is the golden year — the year that defines whether the child will be functionally literate”.

It is the year when the child learns to read, so he can later read to learn — together with the emphasis on learning to read at a younger age is the trend to build brand recognition and especially brand loyalty at an earlier age.

This new publication will give advertisers the opportunity to talk directly to Grade 0 boys and girls, but more importantly to their nurturers — parents and teachers.

Seu Comber, a graduate language teacher, says that only high-interest material encourages a child to read. That’s why every page in all FREE 4 ALL publications is designed to help foster a love for reading and writing, thus helping to combat illiteracy. Most pages are sponsored by companies ranging from nutritional foods to educational toys.

The pages in My First FREE 4 ALL are simply colourful, interactive worksheets that the child can work through either at school under the care of a class teacher, at home alone, or together with their mothers and fathers.

Says Seu Comber, ‘Each page is linked to the advertiser’s brand, sometimes subtly so. The main thing is the kids get to interact with the material on the page, and thus the brand. For example, colour pens might be advertised in the form of a drawing competition, and there are a variety of interactive advertisements for SPAR products.

It's a win-win-win situation: the child is having fun; is learning to read; and at the same time is being exposed to advertisers’ brands. And, now, in the My First edition for Grade 0 kids, there will be a ‘buy’ message across the bottom of the page for moms and dads.

In another new development that speaks volumes regarding the popularity of FREE 4 ALL, the Minister of Education in KwaZulu-Natal, Ina Cronje, recently promoted the reading of the newspaper when addressing the KZN parliament.

This will possibly increase the already substantial print runs by a further 750 000. Both Mondi, and the printers of FREE 4 ALL, The Natal Witness Printing and Publishing Company, have agreed to supply paper and printing at discounted prices.

‘Since 1996, our newspapers have been designed as a national literacy campaign,’ said FREE 4 ALL's Publishing Editor, Barry Comber, ‘so as an expansion of our social responsibility we will simply hand over our newspapers on CD every month to the Department of Education so they can have the extra newspapers printed and delivered direct to an additional 2 000 primary schools of their choice.’

‘Our business is to publish three tailor-made editions of FREE 4 ALL every month for three specific age groups — our total print run for all three is ±450 000,’ explained Barry Comber. ‘Any numbers above 450 000 is not part of our core business. When the Education Department’s extended print run kicks in, there will be no increase in our ad rates. We are supporting a literacy programme, and the fact that advertisers will benefit is seen as a bonus — for them, not for us!’

Because the FREE 4 ALL publishers know the teen and pre-teen market so well they offer advertisers the unique service of tailor-making their advertisements. The FREE 4 ALL design team come up with interactive ideas, and then working together with the client, produce advertisements from concept to end product — at no charge! This means that the ‘must-read user-friendliness’ of the newspapers are maintained as there are very few corporate ads in their publications.

FREE 4 ALL has huge reach. 300 000 copies are distributed monthly to more than 350 high schools in all LSM areas in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, and the Western and Eastern Cape. Each child at participating schools gets a copy, but readership is estimated at well over a million.

And 125 000 copies of the Early Edition are distributed monthly to another 350 senior primary schools in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the Western Cape. Readership is estimated to be in excess of half a million. It is South Africa’s only national publication dedicated to tweens, and it generates an exceptionally high written response from its readers — tangible proof that the paper is well read and enjoyed.

Together with the latest publication, My First FREE 4 ALL, there is a combined total of ±450 000 copies — the only advertising medium that can reach kids during school hours! And because it is handed to them by a teacher at school, the kids know that it is endorsed by a nurturer and the school.

The FREE 4 ALL publications are unique in another sense: they are not curriculum-based, nor do they cover hard school news. Unlike mobizines and, say, MXit, readers are able to enjoy the tactile and personalised care and concern the publications offer — but above all, they enjoy the spontaneous read.

The Kloof-based FREE 4 ALL literacy stable, launched in 1996, is run by the Comber family, which besides Barry and Seugnette, includes son Justin and daughter Gemma, plus a dedicated staff of ten.

For more information, contact 031-763 3916 or email Seu at [email protected].