VENTURA — On May 3 at 10 a.m., more than 55 celebrity readers will be reading to young children at the Ventura County Police Department to kick off the fourth annual Take 5 and Read to Kids campaign, a partnership between the Ventura County Star and First 5 Ventura County to raise awareness about the importance of early childhood literacy.
Take 5 encourages parents and caregivers to talk, read, and sing with young children ages 0-5 to support their early language and literacy development. Studies have proven that when you talk, read and sing to children from birth on, you promote and support early language and literacy development. 90% of a child’s brain is developed by age 5, and children are affected by experiences from early on, even before birth.
Event Details
- Who: Parents and caregivers with young children ages 0-5
- What: Take 5 and Read to Kids! Celebrity Reader Story Time
- When: May 3, 2019, 10 a.m.
- Where: Ventura County Police Department 1425 Dowell Drive, Ventura, CA 93003
About First 5 Ventura County: Research shows that a child’s brain develops most dramatically in the first five years and what parents and caregivers do during these years to support their child’s growth will have a significant impact throughout life. Based on this research, First 5 Ventura was created by voters in 1998 to invest Ventura County’s allocation of funds from California’s voter-approved Proposition 10 tax 50 cents-per-pack tax on tobacco. F5VC invests these revenues in programs and services for children prenatal -5 that support children’s health, early learning, and strong families, including our nationally recognized Neighborhoods for Learning (NfLs).
First 5 Ventura knows that improving the life trajectory of our youngest children will not be the product of Prop 10 funds alone, which now average $160 per child under the age of 5 in each county. Changing systems and policies to prioritize children at the earliest moments in their lives is what’s required to help all children have the best start possible in life.