1st Degree Spotlight of the Month: United Through Reading: Celebrating National Read Across America

There are so many wonderful events like Women’s History Month and National MS (Multiple Sclerosis) Education and Awareness Month® that are celebrated throughout March. There is one day we have chosen to highlight; it may not be quite as obvious, but is essential this year due to kids and their remote learning situation — Read Across America Day. This month we are highlighting our client, United Through Reading (UTR), and how they are helping children and families celebrate this important day and continue reading.

Read Across America Day inspires readers young and old to seek out books that are inclusive and empowering to the variety of voices across our nation. This helps children identify with new characters and subjects and grow their understanding of the complex world in which we live.

National Read Across America Day was established in 1998 by the National Education Association (NEA). Today the observance is the nation’s largest celebration of reading! NEA’s hope, with the support of partners like UTR, Reading Rockets and Little Free Book, is that by creating a year-round program focused on motivating kids to read, the world will become a place of inclusive and diverse readers.

How YOU can inspire reading in everyday life for those both young and old:

1. Go to the library. We are lucky to live in a nation that not only supports reading but gives us a place to obtain books and a space to read them in. Find your nearest local library and sign up for a library card today.

2. Pick a book theme every month. Inspire diversity in your monthly reading by selecting a genre to guide your book selection. Spend a month on dinosaurs or a month on the delightful works of Jane Austen – the possibilities are endless.

3. Set a designated reading time. It might even help you live longer! Studies show that 23% of people who read for 3.5 hours a week lived longer than those who did not.

United Through Reading is a proud sponsor of NEA’s Read Across America Day. UTR’s mission is to support service members and their families with the tools and resources to do something simple but so important: read a story together as a family. With the help of technology, donors and their virtual library, UTR connects military families who are separated, for deployment or military assignment, by providing bonding time via shared storytime.

1st Degree is lucky enough to work side by side with this great organization to help raise awareness of UTR’s mission and show the power of reading together as a family, no matter the distance. UTR has a wide array of resources for military families, including an App, which makes sharing a book quick and easy.

Need another reason to read? Reading has many benefits, but here are three that are especially helpful for young readers:

1. Reading helps increase a child’s vocabulary and listening/language skills.

2. Through every-day reading, children learn about things like history, culture, diversity and languages. A story helps learning ‘pop’ and be more exciting, while also creating a bridge to teach and discuss hard topics.

3. Reading inspires imagination and creativity. This helps develop interests, innovative ideas and fosters emotional health.

The team at 1st Degree is currently taking some time out of our busy March to read. Current favorites include “The Lost Girls of Paris” by Pam Jenoff and “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell.

Need some materials to keep you reading? Check out some of 1st Degree’s other articles: “Setting New Marketing Goals in 2021“ or “Six Ways to Make an Impact from Home.” You can also sign up for the Moore newsletter, or consider donating to help someone else read a story this March and beyond. Happy reading!