- The Salt Lake City School District is redistributing books from closed schools to its students.
- The district is aiming to improve literacy and keep children reading over the summer.
- The collection spans a range of subjects and reading levels, from early childhood titles to books about dinosaurs, dragons and Navajo history.
SALT LAKE CITY — Hundreds of library books from several closed Salt Lake City schools are being redistributed to students as part of an effort to keep children reading over the summer and improve literacy rates.
The Salt Lake City School District is giving away books from campuses that recently shut their doors, including Riley Elementary, one of four schools closed in the district. While students went to new campuses, many of the schools' library collections remained unused — until now.
"People always think, well, can you just take the books immediately over to the library?" said Dr. Tiffany Hall, teaching and learning executive director for the district. "A school library really can't be an archive. It really needs to be a living body. We've got to have enough space on the shelves that kids can see the books. So our librarians will order books, and then as books kind of fall out of fashion, we put them out. And when we read them out, we'd like to share them with our families."
After sitting untouched for months, the books are being sorted, cleaned and packed by volunteers, who hope to give them a second life in students' homes.
The effort was spearheaded by a teacher at Meadowlark Elementary School. Students in pre-K to first grade will get three to four books each. Older students will receive two to three books.
"What we want to do with those books is get them into the hands of our students who may not have as many books at home in their own personal libraries," Hall said.
The collection spans a range of subjects and reading levels, from early childhood titles to books about dinosaurs, dragons and Navajo history.
Volunteers worked to organize the books by age group and prepare them for distribution, packing them into bags for students. For some, including Fidelity Investments volunteer Antonio Cuenca, the experience was nostalgic.
"These covers are bringing a rush of memories," he said.
Cuenca, a parent, said he is already encouraging his 4-year-old son to enjoy reading, even before he fully understands the words.
"Goes up to mom, and he's like, 'OK, we're reading this one today,'" Cuenca said. "He doesn't even know the words, but sometimes he'll pretend, and he'll be like, 'Oh, this one says ...' and he'll just come up with a random gibberish story, which is probably the best part of the night."
Cuenca wants his son to use his imagination.
"He'll see me on my computer, he'll see (me) on my phone," Cuenca said. "I'm trying to show him that I'm really using it more as a resource or a utility, so that when I'm looking for more creative pursuits or something to make my mind actually use the imagination, a lot of that comes from books, and he's noticing that."
District leaders said access to books during the summer months is critical.
"We've known for a long time that over the summer, (students) lose several points of proficiency because they don't practice," Hall said.
She encourages every family to read with or to their child, in any language.
"Children who see their parents read, read more themselves, and so we want to see parents and families reading together, because that practice is one of the things that's going to help our readers become more fluent and more proficient," Hall said.
The need is especially acute for students who lack books at home, she added.
"It's always something we worry about, that kids go home and don't have access to books," Hall said.
Teachers plan to hand out the books during the last week of school, giving students the chance to trade titles with classmates before summer break begins.
