Child Care Resource Center of San Bernardino Promotes Literacy

The Book, Toy and Resource Library of the Child Care Resource center (CCRC) in San Bernardino invited parents and child care providers to bring their children to the Read for the Record workshop on October third. Read for the Record is an annual workshop presented by the Jumpstart program where adults and children from across the country participate in reading a selected title. The mission behind the workshop is to celebrate literacy and promote early childhood education. Author Loren Long’s best-selling book entitled “Otis” was chosen for this year’s Read for the Record workshop. The story follows a tractor and his growing friendship with a calf. Throughout the book there are three recurring themes: friendship, loyalty, and trust. Throughout the day CCRC of San Bernardino held four readings by different staff members including Regional Director James Moses. “Our goal is to encourage children’s love for reading,” said Moses, “and also trying to help parents understand why it’s important to read to their children.” After reading the story, the Book, Toy and Resource Library at CCRC provided several arts and craft activities for the children. Resource and Referral Specialist Traci Brody provided parents with a reading guide for those who pledged to participate but were unable to attend the event. The guide included vocabulary words to ensure children would fully comprehend the story. Furthermore, the guide included various models and techniques for parents and child care providers to relate the story to the child’s life and prompt comprehension questions. Child Development Specialist Ana Garcia explains why these reading workshops are important. “A lot of times we take books for granted,” said Garcia. “We don’t implement a lot of literacy into our daily lives with our kids at home.” Aside from the participating in the Read for the Record event, the Book, Toy and Resource Library at CCRC in San Bernardino is open to the public and lends toys and books to parents or providers in need.