1000 Books Before Kindergarten encourages families and caregivers to read 1000 books with their young children before they enter kindergarten.
Studies have shown that families who start reading aloud to their children at birth help strengthen language skills and build vocabulary–two important tools when children begin learning to read in kindergarten.
The concept is simple, and the rewards are priceless. Read a book (any book) to your newborn, infant, and/or toddler. The goal is to have read 1000 books (yes you can repeat books) before your precious one starts kindergarten. Does it sound hard? Not really if you think about it. If you read just 1 book a night, you will have read about 365 books in a year. That is 730 books in two years and 1,095 books in three years. If you consider that most children start kindergarten at around 5 years of age, you have more time than you think! Need book recommendations? Check out the list of program recommended reads here.
The key is perseverance. Make it exciting.. and this is where your Webster Parish Libraries comes in. When your child reaches the 100 book milestones (100 books, 200 books, 300 books, etc.) stop by one of your local libraries to check-in with us! We will have a reward waiting for your young reader!
1000 Books Before Kindergarten
Keeping a record of what you have read is simple - we provide you with a log to record your books read, or you can log your books using Beanstack, your WPL read tracking platform! Also, if you are able to, make sure to keep a record of “any” book that is being read to your child. This includes teachers, siblings, and especially librarians - books read at story time count! Ready to get started? Check out the steps below to start off on your fun-filled journey of reading 1000 books before Kindergarten!
How does it work?
REGISTER.
Register at any of your Webster Parish Library branches and take home a reading log, or sign-up online through Beanstack. If you already have a Beanstack account, simply add a new reader to your account and join the '1000 Books before Kindergarten' challenge! You can download the
Beanstack Tracker App for easy tracking on your mobile device.
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READ.
Every time you read a book with your child, mark it on your provided reading log or add it in Beanstack. You will earn Beanstack badges when you hit reading milestones. If you are not using Beanstack, bring your reading log with you next time you visit one of your local library branches so one of our library staff members can log your reads for you!
Can we really read that many books before kindergarten?
Yes! If you read one book a day you can complete the program within three years.
Can other people read to my child besides me?
Stories read by parents, grandparents, siblings, etc. all count. You can also count books read at story times.
But my child wants to read the same book over and over!
The good news is that repetition is important to learning and you can count that book multiple times.
Frequently Asked Questions
'Wee Read' Program
Your Webster Ready Start Network and your Webster Parish Libraries are working together to promote literacy across Webster Parish by developing a love for reading amongst children early on. The Webster Ready Start - Wee Read Program is a parental engagement initiative of the Webster Ready Start Network to provide books and other literacy materials to families through partnerships with local organizations, such as your Webster Parish Libraries and Minden Medical Center.
Because the benefits of reading to a child begin at birth, parents of newborns at Minden Medical Center will be provided with Born to Read bags. These literacy totes for newborns include information about 1000 Books Before Kindergarten as well as snack containers, outlet covers, hand sanitizer, a soft baby book, and information about community resources for parents. 1000 Books Before Kindergarten participants receive rewards for reaching reading milestones and completion of the program.
For questions or inquiries concerning the Wee Read Program, visit https://websterreadystart.com/ or call 318-377-3099. For questions or inquiries concerning 1000 Books Before Kindergarten, call your Webster Parish Libraries at 318-371-3080.