1,000 Books Before Kindergarten

What Is It?

The concept is pretty straightforward, read a book (any book) with your newborn, infant, toddler, or preschool-aged child. The goal is to read 1,000 books before your little one starts kindergarten. One thousand books!? That seems like way too many, right? Not at all! If you think about it, if you read just 1 book a night, you will have read 365 books in a year. That’s 730 books in two years and 1,095 books in three years. Considering that most children start kindergarten at around 5 years old, you have more time than you think!

Benefits of Reading Aloud To Your Little One

• Reading aloud helps children build vocabulary and listening skills.
• Reading exposes children to new experiences, helps them understand the world around them, and empathize with others.
• Reading aloud models the importance of reading and shows children that reading is fun! 
• Reading with your little one brings you closer together and creates memorable bonding moments.

How To Participate:

1.) Visit the Stockbridge Library to receive a 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Welcome Folder. This folder contains reading logs to help you keep track of how many books you’ve read and other resources that will help you get started on your reading journey. 

2.) Track your progress. You or your little one can color one dot on the reading log for every book you have read together.

3.) Win prizes. Each time you and your little one read 100 books together, bring the completed reading log to the Stockbridge Library to collect your reading milestone prize. Children receive a sticker for every 100 books and a special additional prize at specific milestones.

• 100 Books: Sticker and a free board book
• 300 Books: Sticker and bubbles
• 500 Books: Sticker and a free picture book
• 700 Books: Sticker and a finger puppet
• 900 Books: Sticker a puzzle
• 1,000 Books: Ready for Kindergarten pencil box

4.) Read 1,000 books! At the 1,000 books milestone, your child will receive a certificate of completion, a Ready For Kindergarten pencil box which contains a pencil, an eraser, a bookmark, crayons, scissors and a glue stick.

Frequently Asked Questions:

• Who can participate in this program?
  • Any child not yet in kindergarten, beginning with newborns. It’s never too early to begin reading with your child!
• When can we start?
  • Anytime! This is a year-round program. Stop by the Stockbridge Library any time to pick up your Welcome Folder and to add your little one’s name to our Wall of Readers so they can track their reading journey!
• If I read the same book over and over again, does it still count?
  • Absolutely, every time you read a book to your child it counts. Rereading old favorites helps to strengthen connections in the brain and repetition helps connections stay put as your child continues to learn new things.
• Do books we hear at storytime count?
  • Yes! Check out the Stockbridge Library website for information on when you can attend a storytime at the library. Any book your child hears read to them counts!
• How long will the program take?
  • The program is self-paced, so the time frame will depend on how often you choose to read with your little one.