Welcome to The BookStart Fund
The mission of the BookStart Fund is to encourage parents to talk to and to read to their children from infancy on by giving them inviting new books, with encouragement from a trusted mentor. The BookStart mentors are the existing parent educating staff of nine social service agencies serving low-income families in Allen and Dekalb Counties.
The BookStart Fund gives partnering agencies a steady supply of new, appealing board books for children from birth through three years old. Staff members from the partner agencies present the books to the parent and children together on repeated visits, modeling fun, age-appropriate and effective book-sharing ideas.
Since we started in 2014, donors have entrusted us with over $200,000 to pursue this goal. So far we have purchased over 65,000 carefully-selected board books, all to be taken into homes where children and parents are enjoying them.
The Benefits of Reading to Children
If children have been read to every day by a parent (or foster or step or grand parent) starting way before kindergarten and even way before age three they have a much greater chance of being successful in school. When parents talk to and read to their children attentively and lovingly it enhances the children’s language and reading readiness skills. When parents use a variety of words, interact with their children verbally and enjoy pleasurable book-sharing routines, the children gradually develop the emergent literacy skills they will need.
We Need Your Help
Through our partners we are reaching well over 700 families and 1,000 children each year! Your donations ensure that The BookStart Fund can continue its mission to encourage regular reading by low-income parents to their young children.
