BOISE, Idaho — Students at William H. Taft Elementary School are heading into summer break with new books in hand thanks to the annual “If You Give a Child a Book” campaign.
This week, students at the northwest Boise school and its preschool program were able to select and take home five free books each during a Scholastic Book Fair hosted on campus. In total, more than 1,500 books are being distributed to help students build personal libraries at home.
WATCH: Boise students receive more than 1,500 free books through literacy campaign
The campaign is a partnership between Scholastic, the Scripps Howard Fund, and Scripps television stations, including Idaho News 6.
Organizers say the goal is to improve childhood literacy by putting books directly into the hands of children who may have limited access to reading materials outside the classroom.
“You can still keep learning when you keep reading books,” third grader Harvest said while shopping at the book fair.
Harvest told Idaho News 6 Neighborhood Reporter Allie Triepke that her favorite series is the Magic Tree House books because of the adventures and problem-solving within the stories.
Organizers say allowing students to choose books that interest them helps make reading more enjoyable and can improve reading comprehension and literacy skills.
Third grader Evie said she chose books that inspire her own creativity and storytelling.
“I wanted to read this because [the school's podcast] read this, and I thought it would be so much fun to have the book that they read,” Evie said while holding a hardcover copy of Buffalo Fluffalo. “You can see it’s pretty cute from the outside.”
Taft librarian Jessica Howell said events like the free book fair can make a lasting impact on students, especially after many children experienced setbacks in reading progress during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“You get to actually come, take books home, build your home library, and have those over the summer,” Howell said. “It’s just huge.”
Howell said she has seen students steadily improve their literacy skills in recent years as reading engagement has increased. She added that building reading habits early is especially important for young learners and students who are new to the country.
“Building those blocks so that they can just keep building those skills and keep reading and keep learning because that’s what it takes — practice, practice, practice,” Howell said.
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