Three-and-half-year-old Landon de Booy of Lakewood wondered: Did stegosaurus dinosaurs have baby teeth that fell out and later grew in as adult teeth?
It was one of the conversations Landon and his older brother Christian, 5, had with their mother Bente over breakfast this November.
And it was sparked because Landon had recently read a book about dinosaurs.
"Books ... always generate a good discussion," Bente de Booy said. "There's a lot of amazing things that can happen in a book."
Landon de Booy is participating in a new program of the Jefferson County Public Library called 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten. The program is being piloted at the Edgewater, Lakewood and Wheat Ridge locations. The goal is to have it at all the library locations before school starts in 2017.
"We tell parents it's never too early to start reading," said Robyn Lupa, the kids and families coordinator for the Jefferson County Public Library. "We know that reading out loud together is one of the most important activities that leads to language development."
1,000 Books Before Kindergarten encourages parents and caregivers to read with children, and will help prepare every child in Jefferson County to be ready to read before they enter kindergarten, said Rebecca Winning, the library's communications director.
The program launched in September, and as of mid-October, more than 170 library patrons had signed up, Winning added.
Families probably enjoy it because it's an easy program to participate in, Lupa said. The program is open to any family with children aged birth to 5 years. Participants register by providing the child's name and age, and they receive a tracking sheet from the library. Parents or children place a checkmark for every book read on the tracking sheet, and pick up a new sheet every time 100 books are read. Any library patron is welcome to participate, but the tracking sheets are only available at Edgewater, Lakewood and Wheat Ridge until the program is rolled out at all 10 library locations.
Children receive a milestone sticker every time 100 books are read, a book bag at 500 books and once they reach 1,000 books, they earn a new book to take home and keep.
"We want to encourage parents that they are their child's first and most important teacher," Lupa said. "Reading is a sharing experience. Celebrating the little milestones will make a difference in getting kids ready for school."
Anytime a child reads --; or is read to --; counts, Lupa said, including storytimes at the library. And the books don't have to be unique every time, she said. For example, a child may want to read his or her favorite book every night of the week, so each night that book is read, it earns a checkmark on the tracking sheet.
De Booy signed up for 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten because she thought it would be a neat way to track how many books are read, she said. Christian and Landon both enjoy reading --; they sometimes read up to five books a day --; but the tracking makes reading even more fun and exciting, de Booy said.
Reading fosters a child's love for learning, de Booy said.
De Booy referred to herself as a busy working parent, and said she understands time constraints some families have. But, she added, even reading together for five minutes or less is worthwhile and valuable.
"Kids love reading. For most kids, it's not a chore," de Booy said. "Reading (together) can be a special time."
from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.com/stories/Reading-by-the-thousands,238914
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