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What’s on · All reads · No. 011
Money· 14 Nov 2026 · 3 min read

Old textbooks: pass them on, or pick up next year's for free

Share-A-Textbook takes donations at eight FairPrice Xtra stores and in Yishun from 14 to 28 November. Families can collect for free on 4 and 5 December.

Impasto painting of a parent and two children at a wooden dining table in an HDB flat, tying a stack of old textbooks with string beside a tote bag of books, the estate visible through the window

There's a stack of P3 books on our shelf that nobody will open again. Clean, barely written in, and some other child could be using them in January. That's the whole idea behind Share-A-Textbook, which takes donations from Saturday 14 November.

Where to drop them off

  • FairPrice Xtra Ang Mo Kio Hub
  • FairPrice Xtra Changi Business Park
  • FairPrice Xtra Hougang 1
  • FairPrice Xtra JEM
  • FairPrice Xtra Jurong Point
  • FairPrice Xtra NEX
  • FairPrice Xtra Parkway Parade
  • FairPrice Xtra VivoCity
  • Tzu Chi Humanistic Youth Centre, 30A Yishun Central 1

What they will and won't take

Textbooks in good condition that follow the current MOE syllabus, plus assessment books and other revision material. They can't take books from an old syllabus, damaged or heavily scribbled books, or used exercise books.

Honestly, flip through each one before it goes in the bag. If you wouldn't hand it to your own child on the first day of school, leave it out.

If you'd like to collect

Collection is in the Great Hall at Tzu Chi Humanistic Youth Centre, 30A Yishun Central 1, a short walk from Yishun MRT. It runs 9am to 7pm on Friday 4 and Saturday 5 December, with last admission at 6pm. It's walk-in with queue numbers given out on site, and the organisers ask that you take only what you need. Books nobody collects go for recycling.

The drive serves students referred by schools and community groups as well as members of the public, so you don't need a referral to walk in. More than 7 million textbooks have gone to nearly 300,000 students since it started in 1982.

  1. Sort by level this weekend

    One bag per level makes it quicker for the volunteers, who sort everything between 28 November and 3 December.

  2. Check against next year's booklist

    If your younger child's school has sent its 2027 booklist, see what you already have before you give it away.

  3. Drop off by Saturday 28 November

    Any of the nine points above.

What we don't know

  • Which titles will be on the tables in December. It depends entirely on what people donate, so it's worth going early on the Friday.
On The Little HoursYear-end money: one payout, two vouchers expiringWhat lands before 31 December.Take a look →On The Little HoursGuides: Primary schoolStage by stage, from P1 onwards.Take a look →
Where we checked
NTUC: Give your old textbooks another chapter: Share-A-Textbook returns (12 Nov 2026) · The Straits Times: Public can donate pre-loved textbooks from Nov 14-28 as FairPrice kicks off annual drive (12 Nov 2026)
Checked 14 Nov 2026. General guidance, not medical advice. Let us know if something’s out of date.