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A collaboration between Book Harvest, a Durham-based youth literacy nonprofit, and the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) provided 76,000 books to 6,920 pre-K through fifth grade students this summer, according to a press release.
The program, Books on Break, gave students in 47 counties the opportunity to choose 10 brand-new books to build their home libraries during the summer break.
Book Harvest promotes youth literacy through several initiatives, stocking outdoor book boxes, maintaining reading materials in laundromats, and sending pre-K and elementary school students into summer break with books to keep.
“This partnership with NC DPI’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers shows how powerful book ownership can be — fueling motivation, strengthening family engagement, and helping children keep their literacy skills strong all summer long,” said Rachel Stine, senior director of Books on Break.
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According to a survey published by Book Harvest, 96% of site leads — the program’s implementers — and 93% of staff members responded that Books on Break could “easily fit with typical summer program practices.”
“Together, we reached thousands of children with books and created meaningful opportunities for families to support literacy at home,” said Susan Brigman, section chief of DPI’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers and Extended Learning and Integrated Student Supports in the Office of Federal Programs.
Book Harvest has provided more than 2.8 million books to families since 2011, with the aim of “ensuring that parents have the tools and power to ignite and strengthen their children’s literacy,” according to its website.
The nonprofit also announced earlier this month that the Library of Congress had recognized its Books from Birth program as one of 15 global Successful Practices Honorees in its Literacy Awards program, according to a press release.
Books from Birth sends newborns home from hospitals with a starter library. The program has been integrated into four hospital birthing floors, including three in North Carolina, where “nurses serve as trusted messengers introducing families to the power of reading.”
“This recognition shines a light on parents as a child’s first and best teacher, and on the power of building a home library from day one,” said Michelle Sioson Hyman, senior director of Books from Birth, in the press release.
Book Harvest also recently launched a new program to promote literacy among kindergarteners, according to a press release. The program helps kindergarten students in the nonprofit’s partner districts start a home library of their own with 10 new books.
The program is beginning with partnerships in Florence School District 3 and Jasper County School District in South Carolina.
“Together, we are helping hundreds of kindergarteners begin their school journey with arms full of books, robust home libraries, and the promise of reading joy ahead,” the press release said.
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