2005/08/10 Council Agenda Packet

Why we provide library outreach service to childcare centers Because early literacy development is the key to learning to read • "Literacy development begins in the very early stages of childhood, even though the activities of young children may not seem related to reading and writing. Early behaviors such as 'reading' from pictures and 'writing' with scribbles are examples of emergent literacy and are an important part of children's literacy development. With the support of parents, caregivers, early childhood educators, and teachers, as well as exposure to a literacy-rich environment, children successfully progress from emergent to conventional reading." North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, 2004 Because if children start school behind, they stay behind • "Thirty five percent of children in the United States enter public schools with such low levels of the skills and motivation that are needed as starting points in our current educational system that they are at substantial risk for early academic difficulties." Ready to Learn, A Mandate for the Nation, Carnegie Foundation report, 1991 • "The relationship between the skills with which children enter school and their later academic performance is strikingly stable. For instance, research has shown that there is nearly a 90% probability that a child will remain a poor reader at the end of the fourth grade if the child is a poor reader at the end of the first grade. Children who start school behind typically stay behind." PLA issues paper, 2003 Because we provide models and resources for sharing quality literature • "Childcare centers are ill-equipped to provide the kinds of activities and practices necessary for children to engage in reading and become literate despite calls to the contrary. Consequently, those children from low-income families who are most in need of access to print will not find a safety net in childcare centers." • Childcare centers serving low-income families (not including Head Start and ECEAP) are twice as likely to have a television as to have a library center. • Children are motivated to pick out books when there is an attractive variety presented. Although 5 to 8 books per child is the recommended minimum necessary for enough variety to support choice and motivation, 2/3 of the classrooms surveyed had less than 50 books, 28% of the centers had less than one book per child. • Nearly 50% of the centers bought less than 50 books per year; of the books in centers, 38% are donated. Childcare center directors report only 26% of their books in good condition, 49% in adequate condition, and 25% in poor condition. Access for all: closing the book gap for children in early education: Susan B. Neuman, et al. International Reading Association 2001