All Posts By

Michael Dolores

Bringing New Stories to “Book Deserts”

By General One Comment

When Book Drive for Kids learned that over 60% of Dallas and Tarrant county children live in “child care deserts”, we knew we had to help.

What is a “child care desert?” It is particular zip codes and/or counties where there are not enough seats at high-quality child care centers for the number of children of working parents. Parents are forced to make the difficult decision of not working outside the home or utilizing an inferior child care situation. This results in children ill-prepared for kindergarten and/or families suffering economic hardship because a parent can’t work or get further training. Here is where Child Care Group comes alongside these families by providing subsidized child care and mentoring in creating rich learning environments in the home.

Since 2020, Book Drive for Kids has partnered with Child Care Group by providing books to their families and child care centers. The cost of quality children’s books is expensive. Replacing lost or damaged books increases operating costs at a child care center and takes valuable funds away from other costs, like teacher wages.

We appreciate the families of Primrose Schools in Denton county who regularly donate pre-school books, both new and gently-used, for us to share with other preschool children, like those at Child Care Group, Lillie L Jackson Early Childhood Center in Lewisville, and the Ann Widdle Preschool and Gonzalez Preschool in Denton.

With your financial support, we can continue to support these families and child care centers with additional books to bolster learning for our most vulnerable assets – the young children of North Texas.

#BookDriveforKids
#ReadingRocks
#LiteracyMatters
#BetterTogether
#GiveABookChangeALife

Reading: critical to a child’s success

By General No Comments

What is one of the greatest predictors of kindergarten success?

It’s not family wealth or education. It’s not the child’s zip code or race.

Any other guesses?

If you guessed, the number of books read to a child, you’re right!  Daily conversation is a plus, too. Some of my favorite memories are snuggling on the couch with my young children and a stack of books. We learned about faraway lands, laughed at funny characters, and dreamed about visiting exotic places and meeting new people. Books have this sort of magic that bring new words, pictures, and experiences into a child’s life. They provide “hooks” where future knowledge attaches and grows.

Unfortunately, thousands of children in North Texas live in “book deserts”. They are missing out  on making these great memories and enjoying sparks of curiosity. When Nicol and I heard this, we knew we had to do something about it. We could see the impact easy access to books had given our own children and believe every child should experience the joy of reading at home with books they love.

This is why Book Drive for Kids exists: to gift books to children who want and need books at home. Because of generous donors like you, Book Drive for Kids provided over 30,000 books to children who would not have them.

Smiles, hugs, and excitement greet each volunteer at our free book fairs. Happy teachers express appreciation over and over. Book Drive for Kids free book fairs help to build a bridge from school to home that encourages reading for fun. With your help, the sky’s the limit to how many kids we can spread the love of reading and bring hope into their lives with a book and the expression of love that comes with it.

Give a Book. Change a Life.

Donate or volunteer today.

#BookDriveforKids
#ReadingRocks
#LiteracyMatters
#BetterTogether
#GiveABookChangeALife