Parents can spark their child’s literacy by reading to them regularly

Published on December 27, 2021

Fort Worth parents and caregivers are encouraged to read at least 1,000 books to their child before the start of kindergarten.

The nonprofit 1000 Books Foundation’s mission is to promote reading to newborns, infants and toddlers, at the same time promoting bonding between parents and their children. In 2022, the Fort Worth Public Library is participating in the initiative for the first time.

Participants can use Beanstack, a free online tracking tool, to record their progress and earn digital badges along the way.

To get started, read a book – any book, including one you’ve read before – to your young child. Reading just one book to your child each day makes the books add up fast, from 365 the first year to 730 books the second and 1,095 books total by the third year. Using Beanstack can help you keep an accurate and easy-to-access log of how many books you have read over time, or you can create a paper journal to share with your children later.

The Fort Worth Public Library also has regular story times at library locations across the city, as well as Early Childhood Literacy resources. The library’s catalog is full of great books for children to select from.