A Whale of a Time with Orca Reading

Funded Dec 14, 2015

"Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries."

Anne Herbert

You have helped our school strengthen the libraries for all students at MS 8! Hurray! Together, we are giving all students in our community the chance to build confidence and succeed. You have truly supported an important foundation for our students: the love of reading.

An interesting excerpt from a New York Times article from December 5, 2015, "Our (Bare) Shelves, Our Selves," puts the importance of reading into perspective:

"Perhaps the strongest case for a household full of print books came from a 2014 study published in the sociology journal Social Forces. Researchers measured the impact of the size of home libraries on the reading level of 15-year-old students across 42 nations, controlling for wealth, parents' education and occupations, gender and the country's gross national product.

After G.N.P., the quantity of books in one's home was the most important predictor of reading performance. The greatest effect was seen in libraries of about 100 books, which resulted in approximately 1.5 extra years of grade-level reading performance. (Diminishing returns kick in at about 500 books, which is the equivalent of about 2.2 extra years of education.)"

We are on our way to helping students find books that will develop their love of reading, which will help them read on grade-level and beyond. You have given us books to line our libraries, stories that may touch a student's soul. Thank you for your generosity and belief in reading. May we all know the pleasure that comes with a good book!”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Trombetti Soto