1,000 Books Before Kindergarten

How It Works

Read 1,000 books together with your baby, toddler, or preschooler to earn prizes. Keep track of what you've read online or in your free workbook.

What are the prizes?

• Sign up = workbook & pencil
• Every 100 books read = sticker
• 500 books read = free book
• 1,000 books read = free book, backpack, graduation certificate & invitation to annual graduation ceremony  

How long will this take?

Planning to read 1,000 books can feel daunting - but just think of the achievement you and your child will feel when you’ve finished.

• 1 book a day = 1,000 books in 3 years
• 2 books a day = 1,000 books in 1.5 years
• 3 books a day = 1,000 books in 1 year
• 5 books a day = 1,000 books in 6 months

FAQs

What’s the best way to turn my child into a reader?

Read together every day! Read, write, sing, talk, and play. These activities build language skills that lead to healthy development, kindergarten readiness, and a love of reading.

• Ages 0-1: Babies love the comfort of being with their grown-ups while exploring the world around them. Your baby’s brain can develop at astronomical rates in the first year of life. From birth, your baby can start to learn about reading, like how to sound out words and what direction to hold a book.
• Ages 1-2: Older babies love to move! Walking babies are curious about everything, constantly experimenting and testing out the world around them. They understand more words than they can say, sometimes making communication frustrating.
• Ages 2-3: Toddlers develop confidence and like to assert their independence. “No!” may be your toddler’s favorite word. Try not to get too frustrated – your toddler is busy learning how to make sense of the world.
• Ages 3-5: Preschoolers love their independence! Your child may want to spend time with other kids and adults as they learn how to develop new relationships. Expect to answer many questions - about anything and everything! - as your child’s curiosity grows.

What if someone else reads to my child?

Count all reading! Books read by caregivers, siblings, grandparents, friends, teachers, librarians, and more all count. Watch a storytime and count those books, too.

What if we read the same book more than once?

Every time you read a book, count it in your reading log! Repetition is wonderful for reading development. Your child will notice new details during each reread. If you read Pete the Cat ten times in one day, that counts as ten books read!

Where can I find book recommendations?

Browse these recommended book lists. Looking for something picked just for you? Call us at 614-882-7277 ext. 5 or email us at kids@westervillelibrary.org.

We finished! Can we keep reading?

Of course! While you can only receive prizes once, we encourage you to keep going. Stop by the library anytime for book recommendations.