The Kanawha County Public Library is launching a new pilot program today to try to expose more children to the joy of reading at an earlier age.
The program, Project Open Worlds of Learning, is designed to make it easier for working parents and guardians to check out books from the library to read to children. The program launches today across the entire library system.
"We want to push early literacy for children," said Stuart Frazier, marketing coordinator with the library. "We know that children who learn to read early and get excited about reading become lifelong learners and readers."
To participate in the program, parents or guardians need only apply for a special OWL card. You must be 18 years old to apply for the card. A current library card is not needed to apply for an OWL card.
The OWL card allows people to check out a bag of 10 books. Librarians fill each bag with books appropriate for children up to 3 years old.
Once all of the books have been read, the person can return the books and check out a new bag.
"Because children can be very rough on the books, they can return the bag and we're not charging them for damage," Frazier said.
A 2014 report from the American Academy of Pediatrics says that when parents read aloud to young children every day, they can strengthen language skills, literacy development and parent-child relationships.
This can be important because the AAP reports that one of the most important indicators of later academic success is a child's reading proficiency in third grade.
The KCPL's program is based on a similar popular program in Indiana. Because Project OWL is a pilot program, the library will wait to see how popular the program is before deciding if the program will continue for good.
"We just want to make sure that families get a chance to read to their children, that children get books in their hands, that they enjoy it and they both read the books together," Frazier said.
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