DENVER -- Colorado readers have cast their votes and selected Marcie Colleen's Penguinaut as the 2019 One Book Colorado selection that will be distributed to 4-year-olds across the state.
Now, in its eighth year, One Book Colorado, a book for every four-year-old, continues to be a statewide collaboration between the Lt. Governor’s office, Serve Colorado, the Colorado State Library, the Colorado Department of Education, the Denver Preschool Program and new partners Denver7 and the Mile High United Way.
The privately-funded program began in 2012, modeled after the successful Preschool One Book, One Denver program. Both programs stem from the idea that providing young children with access to books promotes early literacy skills and helps families serve as their children’s first and most important teachers.
Research shows that 4-year-olds who have access to books and adults who read to them will be more likely to be ready to read when they start kindergarten. For low-income families, access to quality books and early literacy efforts are even more important, as research shows that children in low-income families tend to have fewer books in their homes and are exposed to 30 million fewer words before the age of four than their higher-income peers. One Book Colorado aims to help close this vocabulary gap by getting a book into the home of every four-year-old in Colorado and fostering a culture of reading. A child must first learn to read before he or she can read to learn.
One Book Colorado has distributed the following books:
- 2012: Maybe a Bear Ate It! by Robie Harris, illustrated by Michael Emberely
- 2013: Duck on a Bike by David Shannon
- 2014: Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard
- 2015: How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon? by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague
- 2016: Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae
- 2017: Mouse Mess by Linnea Riley
- 2018: Groovy Joe: Dance Party Countdown by Linnea Riley
- 2019: Penguinaut by Marcie Colleen
Marcie Colleen’s Visit:
o Tuesday, April 16 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. – Anythink Brighton Library
o Wednesday, April 17
- 9:15- 9:45 a.m. – Storytime event at Edgewater Library
- 10:30-11:00 a.m. –Storytime event at University Hills Library
- 11:00-11:30 a.m.– Interview at University Hills Library with Channel 7
- 2:15-3:15 p.m. – Storytime event at Belmar Library
- 5:30-7:00 p.m. – Drop Everything and Read at the Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus
o Thursday, April 18
- 9:15-10:15 a.m – Storytime event at Westminster Library
- 10:45-11:45 am –Event at Broomfield Library
- 2:00-3:00 p.m. – Reading at Swansea Elementary
Celebrity Readings:
o Monday, April 22 at 9:30 a.m. at the Denver Zoo ‘s Norgren Hall
o Sunday, April 28 at 2:30 p.m. at the Denver Art Museum’s Dia del Nino event
o Monday, April 29 at 10:30 a.m. at the Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus’ Dia de los Libros event
The privately-funded program began in 2012 as a collaboration between the Lieutenant Governor’s Office, Colorado Office of Early Literacy, Colorado State Library, the Denver Preschool Program, public and military libraries statewide, the private sector, and the nonprofit and foundation communities. It was known until this year as “One Book 4 Colorado,” and was modeled after the successful Preschool One Book, One Denver program. Both programs stem from the idea that providing young children with access to books promotes early literacy skills and helps families serve as their children’s first and most important teachers.
Research shows that 4-year-olds who have access to books and adults who read to them will be more likely to be ready to read when they start kindergarten. For low-income families, access to quality books and early literacy efforts are even more important, as research shows that children in low-income families tend to have fewer books in their homes and are exposed to 30 million fewer words before the age of four than their higher-income peers. One Book Colorado aims to help close this vocabulary gap by getting a book into the home of every four-year-old in Colorado and fostering a culture of reading. A child must first learn to read, before he or she can read to learn.
Partners include
Mile High United Way
Colorado Department of Education - Colorado State Library
Serve Colorado
Denver7
Denver Preschool Program
Sponsors include
Scripps Howard Foundation
Walmart
McDonalds
Anadarko Petroleum Corp.,
PNC Bank
Buell Foundation
Junior League