Growing Readers Together: 1000 Books Before Kindergarten
Reading aloud is the best and most enjoyable way to prepare babies, toddlers, and preschoolers to learn to read on their own. It also encourages a lifelong love of books and reading, and strengthens the caregiver-child bond. For these reasons, Westmont Public Library is encouraging you to read at least 1000 books to your child before they enter kindergarten.
The Growing Readers Together challenge is designed to help by providing a way to track and celebrate your reading.
How it works
Read aloud to your infant, toddler, or preschooler. Log each book you read through the Beanstack website or app—or keep track with paper logs, which you can print below or pick up in Youth Services, along with instructions, coloring pages, and tip sheets.
Read at your own pace. For example, if you read three books a day for one year or one book a day for three years, you’ll reach 1000 books.
All books count! Books read with family, friends, or other caregivers count. Books read at storytime or preschool count, too. Reading the same book more than once counts.
Earn incentives to celebrate your reading. For every 100 books read, come in to take your picture with a special sign. In addition, at 100 books, come in for a sticker, and at 500 books, come in for a sticker and a small prize. Once you reach the goal of 1000 books, come in for a sticker and a prize book you can keep!
Sign up with Beanstack!
Printable reading logs & early literacy resources
Each reading log sheet has space to record 100 books. The designs are interchangeable, so choose whichever you prefer!
Sunflowers reading log | Flowers reading log | Seedlings reading log | Vines reading log | Water drops reading log
Early literacy tips
Reading Rockets has created tip sheets with ideas for making reading enjoyable and interactive, incorporating song and play, and creating time and space for reading at each stage of development:
Beanstack instructions
If you’ve already used Beanstack for a prior reading program, such as Summer Learning or Westmont Reads, you can use the same account for this challenge. If you’re new to Beanstack, all you need to sign up is an email address.
How to sign up: Desktop | Mobile
How to log reading: Desktop | Mobile
Please contact the Youth Services Department with questions at [email protected] or 630 869 6165.