The Born to Read Program is an ongoing program that offers a tote bag to each new mother who gives birth at Munroe Regional Medical Center.

New parents receive two books to start a home library for the new baby, a library card application, information on the importance of reading to your baby every day, and information about community resources.

Call 671-8551 for more information about the Born to Read Program,
storytimes for young children, for branch locations, and telephone numbers.

A public service of the Marion County Board of County Commissioners, October 2007.

Born to Read is more than just reading books to babies! 
Research has proven that the following things happen when you
read to your child every day:
 

♥ Builds Self-Esteem: When a parent devotes a special time each day to read to the child, it sends the message “you have my undivided attention and you are special.”

♥ Facilitates Bonding Process: When reading to a baby or young child, there is holding, rocking, playing, etc. – all very positive things in a child’s development.

♥ Shares Culture: We pass on our culture by singing and telling stories to the next generation. When reading to a child, the dialogue that develops in questions, etc., allows us to share all that we experienced.

♥ Ensures Success in School: It has been proven over and over that children who have been read to from infancy on, fifteen minutes a day, will succeed in school. They will enter the educational system with a sustainable attention span, able to address a task, and with a wealth of background knowledge that they have gained from reading.

♥ Develops Language Awareness: Studies reveal that babies absorb far more than just a story; they perceive which side is up, the back of the book from the front, big letters at the beginning of a sentence, that we read from left to right, etc.

Read to your baby for just fifteen minutes a day – and look what you get in return. All of the five things mentioned above, plus the wonderful feeling of doing the right thing for your child, and tremendous enjoyment in the whole process.