Shasta Reads brings together thousands of kids each year in classrooms, libraries, community centers, and homes across Shasta County. This annual campaign highlights the importance of building early literacy and language skills for every child. The earlier children develop these skills, the more likely they are to succeed in school.
First 5 Shasta and Reach Higher Shasta work together to coordinate Shasta Reads, providing the book and other resources for over 150 readings at free public story times in classrooms, parks, and child care centers in the community.
Shasta Reads 2024 Results are in!!
- 202 sites (classrooms, preschools, family childcare, story times) – up from 156 in 2023.
- 3899 children – up from 3001 in 2023.
- 60 Celebrity Readers – up from 54 in 2023.
We can’t wait for Shasta Reads 2024 happening in October!
It only takes 20 minutes a day!
You are in the right place for helping your child build early language and literacy skills!
It only takes 20 minutes a day to change your child’s life. Reading to them or with them 20 minutes a day gives a number of benefits:
- Increases vocabulary
- Helps grow your child’s brain
- Prepares your child to be successful in school
- Strengthens the bond between you and your child
Not sure where to start? Pickup any children’s book and start reading. The 20 minutes does not have to be all at once. To use an old tagline – “Take 10 and do it again!” Reading changes lives and it can help your child explore, engage, and excel .
Our friends at the Shasta Public Library have several events for you and your family. Check out their calendar to see what is coming up next. They have locations in Redding, Anderson, and Burney. They also have a digital library of books on their website.
The Schreder Planetarium has wonderful events which are great for your child and your family. You can learn more here.
Little Free Libraries provide literacy opportunities for families and communities worldwide. Reach Higher Shasta, in partnership with First 5 Shasta, Shasta Public Libraries, and the City of Redding, is proud to present Shasta County’s Little Free Libraries. Books for all ages can be found in our Little Free Libraries throughout Shasta County. Anyone can borrow books, completely free of charge. To see the locations of our Little Free Libraries, visit our Little Free Libraries Map.
Interested in hosting a Little Free Library in your neighborhood?
- Visit Little Free Libraries for more information.
- Want to build your own Little Free Library? Download building plans here.
Why does this work matter?
Literacy is an important part of assuring that children have every opportunity as they grow. Research indicates that if a child is not at grade level reading by the 3rd grade, they will have a more difficult time attaining grade level standards later in life. With this in mind, the Community Literacy Committee agreed to develop a county-wide plan with the following objectives:
- To provide consistency across districts in the expectations for reading and pre-reading skills in grades K, 1, 2 and 3.
- To provide common assessments for Kindergarten and Grade 1 so that students, parents, teachers and the community understand the level of proficiency students should strive for to be considered “on grade level” at the end of each year (Kindergarten and Grade 1).
- To build a common language around the skills necessary for Grades 2 and 3 students to be considered “on grade level” in reading at the end of each year (Grade 2 and 3).
California Reading & Literacy Project
Since 2016, Reach Higher Shasta has sponsored the California Reading & Literacy Project (CRLP) in Shasta County. CRLP trains K-3 on the best instructional practices for literacy development and language skills. In the past 7 years, CRLP has trained over 300 teachers.
Training teachers through CRLP has been shown to improve student literacy outcomes. To see more data on the effectiveness of CRLP, view data here.