Reading is fundamental.
Decades of research has confirmed the correlation between childhood poverty, lack of access to reading resources, lower reading proficiency and the resulting struggle to complete high school.
The primary focus of the "If You Give a Child a Book…" Campaign is serving the most under-resourced children in our community.
Each year, FOX 13 and the Scripps Howard Fund with help from Cyprus Credit Union partner with local schools to reach under-served children living in poverty, with a special focus on the critical kindergarten through third grade years.
Research shows in economically-disadvantaged areas, there is one age-appropriate book for every 300 children, as compared to an average of 13 books in the homes of their more affluent peers.
Early setback sets the stage for future challenges.
While many of the statistics paint a bleak picture, there is hope.
If a child grows up in a home with 100 books, they have a 90% probability of completing 9th grade, compared to 30% in bookless homes.
The goal is to ensure that every partner Title 1 school receives 10 books per student each year since that has been identified as the baseline number of books needed to help children learn to read.
The program has distributed over 1,000,000 books and generated over 90 million reading minutes since its inception.
Thanks to the Scripps Howard Fund, Cyprus Credit Union, Scholastic, and community donations over 2,000 books were put in the hands of Utah kids earlier this year through this annual “If You Give a Child a Book…” initiative.
If you would like to learn more or give today visit, fox13now.com/giveabook
