Submitted by Jenny Gregg, Youth Services Librarian, Loma Colorado Main Library
1000 Books at Rio Rancho Public Libraries!
We all know that it’s never too soon to read to a child. Study after study confirms that the most important time of a child’s development is in the first three years. So, with a burgeoning population of families with young children, Rio Rancho Public Libraries always strives to impact the community and encourage early literacy.
This year, we implemented the 1000 Books Before Kindergarten* reading program. It’s elegantly straightforward—the goal is simply to read 1000 books before the child reaches Kindergarten. Parents keep a record of the books they read to their little ones (and yes, books can be counted more than once). Families bring in their logs for incentive prizes after every 100 books, with a special certificate and prize when they reach 1000. Libraries can make the program as elaborate or as simple as they choose, and the best part is that it can be tailored to each individual library. No matter how you do it, it’s a great way to get families excited about reading with their children.
Since we began in January, the program has been a huge success. The race is now on to see who gets to the 1000 books finish line first!
* https://1000booksbeforekindergarten.org/
