The following is a news release from the City of Lubbock:

Lubbock Public Library is excited to announce the first celebration for the 1000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge! Five families have already completed the reading challenge, issued in September of 2017, and another twenty are on their way to completing the challenge before August.

For parents who have completed the challenge with their children, the first celebration is at the Mahon Library on August 9, 2018.

It is not too late to sign up for the Challenge! Parents can pick up a tracking log at any library location, or download one from our website www.lubbocklibrary.com.  For each tracking log completed, the child will receive a prize. At the completion of the program, each child will receive a book and a ticket to an upcoming celebration, honoring their accomplishment.

Last year, Lubbock Public Library joined hundreds of libraries across the country in providing parents with an organized program to help promote early literacy. Studies have shown vocabulary gaps that take hold before age 4 are very difficult to overcome. Children who are read to at an early age have a huge advantage over their counterparts who do not receive early literacy education. “Preparing your child for Kindergarten is an often overlooked necessity. Parents tend to think learning starts at school, which isn’t the case at all. We are hoping to reinforce the parents’ role as their child’s first and best teacher while also ensuring children enter kindergarten ready to read,” said Melissa Barber, Patterson Branch Manager.

“We want this to be fun! Instead of writing down book titles, parents (or the child) are asked to color in different shapes for each book read aloud,” said Melissa Barber. “There are also activities and reading tips on the back of the tracking logs.”

One of the key steps to learning is repetition. As such, book titles can be read and recorded on the tracking log multiple times. “We don’t want parents to think that they have to read 1000 different books to complete this challenge. If your child has a favorite book they want read over and over, each reading of that book will count,” said Melissa Barber.

“This isn’t limited to just parents! Older siblings or other caregivers can be readers and all of the books read aloud at our story times count as well.”

Story times are available at all four Lubbock Public Library locations. Dates/times vary by location. Contact your preferred library location for the current schedule.

The 1000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge is funded by the Friends of the Lubbock Library.

(News release from the City of Lubbock)