Sponsored by Prince William Public Libraries
By Katrina Wilson
Prince William Public Libraries has a 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program designed to encourage parents to read with their young children and receive perks as they do so.
The first thought to cross a parent’s mind might be, “That’s a lot of books before kindergarten.”
PWPL says that 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten could help establish children’s pre-reading skills for a reading foundation that leads to successful learning.
The Breakdown
Ashar Arshad smiles with a certificate upon completion of the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program
Though it may seem so, the task is not that daunting to complete by kindergarten. If a parent reads just one picture book each day with their child, by the end of the year, they would have read 365 books. In under three years, that is over 1,000 books read.
For those who want to knock out the 1,000 books in one year, read two to three books every day, and mission accomplished. Prince William Public Libraries has printable reading logs available to help parents keep track at pwcva.gov/library. They can also pick up a copy at any of its 12 branches throughout Prince William County and the City of Manassas to pick up a copy.
Parents and children start reading together. They color or check off an acorn for each book read. Here is another cool thing: If someone reads a book more than once, they can record it each time! If a child was read to at a library during story time, at daycare or by others – it counts!
When parents and children finish 100 books, bring the sheet to the library and have it stamped “completed.” From there, collect the next page. For each level, repeat steps one to three. Those utilizing the Beanstack Tracker app for the challenge can come into a library branch once they receive an online “badge.”
Signup
There are three ways to register for 1,000 Books to Read Before Kindergarten:
Sign up at any Prince William Public Library branch and pick up a printed reading log.
Secondly, they can register on a computer by clicking here.
The third option is to register using a mobile device: download and install the Beanstack Tracker app from Apple iTunes or Google Play. Upon completion of reading 1,000 books, children receive a book, certificate and their name placed on PWPL’s Wall of Fame.
Prince William Public Libraries has also created a booklist to help families get started. “101 Books to Read Before Kindergarten” include new titles and a few memorable books on the list, such as “Llama, Llama Red Pajama,” “The Little Engine That Could,” “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” and “Harold and the Purple Crayon.”
Katrina Wilson is a graduate of Francis Marion University. Writing is her passion and a few of her favorite childhood books were “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie,” “Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters” and “The Rainbow Fish.”
