Children growing up in book-deprived homes miss out on wonderful imaginary worlds where cats wear hats, llamas wear red pajamas and a curious little monkey has one adventure after another. Created with captivating words and colorful illustrations, youth books, from preschool through the elementary years, instill a lifelong love of reading that translates into early academic success and a greater chance for higher education.
According to the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, only 48 percent of families below the poverty level read to their preschoolers, leaving them with a deficiency that continues to grow as they advance in grade levels. Educators know that mastering reading skills early on is a key indicator, not only to future school success, but to success in life as well.
Assistance League is committed to boosting childhood literacy by putting more books into the hands of boys and girls. In the past four years, chapters across America collected and donated close to 400,000 children’s books to various schools and organizations as part of Make A Difference Day, a national day of doing good.
One of the oldest Assistance League literacy programs was started fifteen years ago by the Los Gatos–Saratoga chapter. Member volunteers read to kindergarten through third grade students once a month for thirty minutes, then leave the books for the children to take home. They also provide dictionaries for third graders.
Assistance League of Southern Utah has a new 3-month literacy program geared to help preschool students meet state academic standards, one book at a time. Members read books, agreed upon by the teacher, on a one-to-one basis. In order to get students excited about reading at an early age, books are chosen that both students and their parents can enjoy reading together.
Assistance League of Chicagoland West’s Early Reading program prepares preschool, kindergarten, and early elementary school students for future school success and fosters reading/language skills that benefit family members young and old. Member volunteers read to Head Start and early elementary students in the spring, then gift the children with a book to take home. In the fall, the chapter distributes backpacks loaded with books and other materials to schools that are tight on resources. Backpacks serve as a lending library that are checked out and taken home on a rotating basis.
Assistance League of Arcadia Assisteens® staff a reading program called Book Buddies in partnership with the Arcadia Public Library. Children sign up for one-on-one story time at the library with teen auxiliary members.
A common thread throughout these programs is that the books the children take home are often the only books they own. By providing take home books and reading aloud in schools, Assistance League is making a difference, one child at a time, one book at a time.
