Education
By Kasey Baines Photos Rebekah Alyce Photography
W
hile most toddlers are anxiously awaiting the winter gloom to melt away and for the warm summer days to return, my son Parker savours an excuse to stay wrapped in a blanket and draw closer to reading his 5,000th book. Breaking all known records (with my help, of course), Parker is set to surpass his lofty goal by the end of the year. Parker is participating in the international 1,000 Books Before School Program campaign, which is being promoted by local, state and national libraries. After having read 1,000 books within the first few months, Parker and I decided to just keep reading and see how many times we could complete the challenge. And so here we are, looking forward to Parker’s third birthday approaching in November and hoping to complete the program for the 5th time around.
Some people have asked how many books one would have to read on any given day to meet such high reading numbers. The answer is surprisingly easy: a mere ten to fifteen short picture books a day, about a half hour of reading, is all that it takes. The State Library of Victoria states, “Sharing stories with babies and young children helps develop literacy skills that will prepare them for reading at school. The 1000 Books Before School program is a great way to track your child's reading progress as you work towards building these important skills.” It’s not surprising that Parker’s speech development has fast-tracked. Nor is it a surprise when I hear a new word come from his mouth after having just learned it from a book the evening before. But what is a surprise is how much joy we have found while participating in this reading activity together. Bed time is not a disaster of tears, kicking or screaming. It is the most calm and peaceful time of our day when we can cuddle up together as family, dim the lights and go on storybook adventures. After pouring over tens of thousands of picture book pages, I felt many of my own story plots start to bubble away in my head. Thanks to the recommendation of a Somerville Library staff member, I enrolled in picture book writing courses with the Australian Writers’ Centre and gained the foundation necessary for beginning a new chapter in life as a children’s picture book author and illustrator. It took over 300 hours of work to complete and publish my first picture book called Flowers For Mom, which is based on the theme of kindness. The book has landed in local and national libraries as well as many school and county libraries in California. The shock of becoming a finalist for the National Business Brilliance Awards (Writing Excellence)
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Peninsula Kids – Spring 2019