KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – Now that the school year is underway, it can be hard to get your child back on track with reading and focusing on assignments.
That’s why Turn the Page KC is determined to build up all local families with more access to books and reading lessons to help children succeed. The organization is our 3-Degree Guarantee non-profit for the month of September.
Coming up through Elementary School, Miriam Galan’s oldest son wasn’t a fan of reading, and she didn’t always know how to help him.
“When we try to read, he tried to read but his comprehension was low,” Galan recalled. “He didn’t want to do it and said it’s boring.”
Now, after two years with Turn the Page KC, her son has found a love for reading. Galan has also joined as a leader with the Read 360 program.
“He wants to be an actor, and you know can read the prompter and does these activities at school”, Galan said. “That helps a lot because he can read more faster.”
To make that progress, Turn the Page KC puts families like Galan’s in what they call a ‘collective impact’ approach. Building parents a network with organizations, schools, and group leaders to promote reading anytime and anywhere.
Kansas City charity offers free access to books and ways to get kids better at reading(Alex Love)
“When you bring parents together and you connect them to the resources, you see kids grow”, Katina Gill, Director of Collective Impact Initiative, explained. “Because when parents feel supported, they’re able to do more.”
The second approach in Turn the Page KC’s mission is known as ‘Inclusive resources’. It’s intention is to “Providing free access to books that serve as ‘windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors,’ so that children spend more time reading, recognize reading as beneficial, and make strong intellectual and emotional connections to what they read.” Sometimes it can inspire the parents too. Like going back to school for themselves after seeing their children read more.
“We’ve had parents go back to school and get their GED’s”, Gill told KCTV. “Things have changed. One is actually in college now; she will graduate from Penn Valley next year.”
Since its founding in 2011, Turn the Page KC has launched other initiatives to get families learning and reading together such as, ECE Literacy, Out of School Time, Being Me KC, Family Reading KC.
Coming out of the 2024 school year, The Nation’s Report Card using the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results found 42% of Missouri 4th Graders and 35% of 8th graders still perform below basic levels in reading. Rates were similar in Kansas, where 40% of 4th graders and 35% of 8th graders read below the NAEP basic level.
This month, KCTV5 will help Turn the Page KC reach more of those students with the 3-degree charity donation sending up to $1500 their way.
“Come in handy to help grow our councils, to help develop more, to help get more books out into parents hands,” Gill said. “Or provide family fieldtrips free.”
If you would like to donate to Turn the Page KC for their cause, click here. The charity can also be reached at (816) 423-2596 or emailing hello@turnthepagekc.org if you’d like to get involved.
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