A donation of a new children’s book at a San Diego County library branch through Dec. 24 will go a long way to helping San Diego County’s youngest residents with their early childhood development.
All 33 branches are hosting a Holiday Book Drive to collect new children’s books for distribution to area families through Reach Out and Read San Diego.
“We have been partnering with Reach Out and Read San Diego for over 15 years, and this year we are hosting a holiday book drive,” said Susan Moore, deputy library director. “Reading is a crucial aspect of development, and we are honored to be able to partner with a group that provides free books to children in our community.”
Reach Out and Read San Diego encourages families to read aloud together as doctors provide a “Prescription for Reading” and a book to children up to age 5 as part of their regular well-child checkups during preschool years. The program currently serves 85,000 families a year.
The County Library has provided support to Reach Out and Read’s work at County Family Resource Centers and various community events.
“Research shows the strong, positive impact of this program. Reach Out and Read families read together more often, and their children enter kindergarten with larger vocabularies and stronger language skills,” said Moore.
“We want to invite the community to join us in collecting new books for children and become a part of a child’s positive growth and development.”
The San Diego County Library is a resource for children and families in San Diego that offers a number of free services, such as programs for families, story times, access to community resources and materials.
For more information about the Holiday Book Drive, please visit the www.sdcl.org.
