Congratulations Hendrik Hutchinson, age 2, who just completed the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program at the Newton Public Library! Hendrik received a Dr. Seuss bag full of items to help him get ready for Kindergarten, and a book to keep. We asked him what his favorite book was, and his favorite is one that he received through the Dolly Parton Imagination Library: “The Home Builders” by Varsha Bajaj, a beautiful picture book about animals and their homes.
The 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten is an ongoing program at the Newton Public Library, designed to encourage daily reading at home. Research demonstrates that young children who are read to on a regular basis have an advantage when learning to read for themselves. Reading together builds closeness and early literacy skills, which are the foundations for school success. Reading 1,000 books isn’t as hard as it might sound. If you read only one bedtime story every night for three years, you will have read 1,095 books to your child.