Who has access to books?

Around here at Reading Rockets we’re gathering together terrific summer reading and learning resources. One important topic within summer reading is access to books and print for children from lower-income households.

Researchers Neuman and Celano (opens in a new window) quantified the “differential access to print” across four different communities. The tables in the results section alone are worth looking at; I think you’ll be startled to see the differences in the number of reading resources within communities, the number and conditions of signs within neighborhoods, how many books were available within preschool classrooms, and more.

In their book Summer Reading (opens in a new window), Shin and Krashen summarize their research on summer access with these points:

• The crucial activity that occurs during the summer, the activity that causes the difference in growth in literacy, is recreational reading. Children from higher-income families read more over the summer.
• The reason middle-class children read more over the summer is that they have more access to books. They have more access to books at home, live closer to bookstores, and live closer to public libraries. Also, public libraries available to the children from high-income families are better. They have more books, more staff, and are open longer hours.
• Other research confirms that children read more when they have more access to books.

So, here’s the bottom line: Children of poverty need more access to reading material, especially during the summer.

Next week: What my elementary school is doing to give kids more access to books this summer.