Books still do it

For years librarians and teachers have been preaching about the important role books play in a child's academic success. Now a supporting voice comes from an unexpected place, David Brooks, New York Times columnist writes about the way giving a child twelve books to take home for the summer increases their scores on reading tests and seems to eliminate the "summer slump" in reading. Possessing these books seems to help, reading them certainly does. At the same time, Brooks points out, having a home computer and Internet access appears to depress children's academic success. This second report seems a lot less believable than the first, so let's stick with the tried-and-true finding that reading over the summer is one of the best ways of keeping children on track for learning. The old familiar summer reading program may keep librarians busy and cause some grumbling, but from all indications, it is worth all the work we put into it. Children owe a lot to the traditional summer reading programs--let's not slacken in our efforts to get books to children all summer long.