Reading is Critical to Children's Success in School and in Life

What Experts Say About Owning Books

The likelihood of being on track in literacy and numeracy “almost doubled if at least one
book was available in a student’s home,” according to a study published by Scholastic in
March, 2023.

Kids want to choose the books that they read:

93%

of kids say their favorite books are the ones they picked out themselves

2022 Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report

92%

of kids say they are more likely to finish a book they have picked out themselves

2022 Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report

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Making children’s books available to children is a cheap and feasible intervention that could change home dynamics to improve the future economic fortunes of children.”

Manu, A., Ewerling, F., Barros,
A. J. D., & Victora, C. G. (2019).
Journal of Global Health

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A book-oriented home environment provides students with a wide array of academic skills, including “vocabulary, information, comprehension skills, imagination, broad horizons of history and geography, familiarity with good writing, understanding of the importance of evidence in an argument, and many others.”

Evans, M. D. R., Kelley, J., Sikora, J., & Treiman, D. J. (2010).
Research in Social Stratification and Mobility

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Lifelong benefits of language and literacy: confidence and self-esteem, encourage independent learning, enhance cognitive ability, strengthen brain function, improve attention span and enrich communication skills.

Crayons, Pencils and Keyboards; Martin Pitt Partnership for Children; Nationwide Children’s Hospital; reported by Maryville University, 2022

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Introduce book ownership to 3rd graders in NYC.

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