United Way of Central Eastern California’s (UWKC) Day of Action is a celebration of volunteerism and advocacy around the areas of education, financial stability, and health. UWKC strives to strengthen our community’s capacity to support its most vulnerable families. This year, we’re asking people to support Kern’s newest readers and helping new parents take on the role of being their child’s first teacher by getting new books into homes, connecting them with their local library, and providing them with the tools they need to foster in their children a life-long love of reading. Each year, we distribute over 5,000 new books to children through our Book of the Month Club, New Parent Toolkits, Home Libraries, Born Learning Trail field trips, and the Raising a Reader program special events.
“We hope to instill a love for books in children,” said Rachel Hoetker, UWKC’s Early Childhood Development Program Manager. She continued, “Taking the time to share a book with a child, and bonding with them, is a great investment in that child’s success.”
Research shows us that a love for reading begins in the home. That special bond starts at birth – and even before! Making it a vital time for parents to access tools that support early learning, since we know by age three, the brain is already 80% developed. We know that an early love of books in the home leads to greater academic success down the road.
A big thanks to our program partners, CalCPA, who helped read during the day and raised money for Early Childhood Literacy at night. Their participation made the entire day a big success!
