One Book 4 Colorado is a statewide effort to provide every four-year-old
in Colorado with the same book, helping to instill a love of reading in
Colorado youngsters.
Books will be distributed to children across the state at local public
library events and at Reach Out and Read clinics and local doctors’
offices between May 6-20, 2013. Books will be available in both English
and Spanish, and will be accessible to children with special needs.
One Book 4 Colorado is the result of collaboration between Lt. Gov. Joe
Garcia’s office, Serve Colorado, Reach Out and Read Colorado, Colorado State Library, Denver
Preschool Program, public libraries, the private sector, and the foundation community. It is modeled after
the successful Preschool One Book, One Denver program originated by the Denver Preschool Program.
Both programs are premised on the idea that providing young children with access to quality books
promotes early literacy and helps families serve as their children’s first and most important teachers.
To ensure school readiness, it is critical that four-year-olds have frequent and routine access to books and
that they be read to consistently. The vocabulary level of preschoolers is predictive of their third grade
reading proficiency. For low-income families, access to quality books and early literacy efforts are doubly
important as research shows that low-income children have few to no books in their homes and are
exposed to 30 million fewer words before the age of four than their higher-income peers. As just one part
of Colorado Reads – The Early Literacy Initiative, One Book 4 Colorado aims to close this vocabulary gap
by getting a book into the home of every four-year-old in Colorado and fostering a culture of reading.
Office of Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia
Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia’s early literacy focus stems from his efforts to ensure every Colorado child is reading on
grade level by the end of third grade. During his tenure in office, his goal is to draw public attention to the
critical importance of early learning and to launch numerous efforts that will put Colorado’s children on a path to
reading success. One Book 4 Colorado is part of Colorado Reads: The Early Literacy Initiative, the state’s plan
to help ensure every child in Colorado learns to read. The plan and more information about the Lt. Governor’s
initiatives can be found at www.colorado.gov/ltgovernor.
About Serve Colorado
Serve Colorado – Governor’s Commission on Community Service strives to build a culture of citizenship,
service, and responsibility in Colorado. Serve Colorado works under the leadership of a board of 15
Commissioners to distribute and administer Colorado’s allocation of AmeriCorps*State funding from the
Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). The current program portfolio consists of 18
programs working to meet a variety of immediate and local needs throughout Colorado communities, including
environmental stewardship, educational achievement, academic tutoring, youth mentoring, healthy futures,
economic opportunity, and more! Additionally, Serve Colorado promotes volunteerism and service as a means to
strengthen Colorado communities through days of service, special initiatives, and community partnerships.
About Reach Out and Read Colorado
Reach Out and Read Colorado is an evidence-based nonprofit organization that promotes early literacy and
school readiness in pediatric exam rooms nationwide by giving new books to children and advice to parents
about the importance of reading aloud. Reach Out and Read Colorado builds on the unique relationship between
parents and medical providers to develop critical early reading skills in children, beginning at 6 months of age.
The more than 84,000 children served annually by Reach Out and Read Colorado read together more often, and
their children enter kindergarten better prepared to succeed, with larger vocabularies, stronger language skills,
and a six-month developmental edge over their peers.
About Colorado State Library
The Colorado State Library, a division of the Colorado Department of Education, provides leadership and
expertise in developing library-related policies, activities, and services for school, public, academic, and special
libraries. Through an advisory board, Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy, and public libraries, the State
Library promotes early literacy to parents, children, and child care providers throughout Colorado.
About Denver Preschool Program
The Denver Preschool Program, approved by Denver voters in 2006, is a ground-breaking tax-funded initiative
designed to increase Denver children’s access to high-quality preschool. Now celebrating its fifth year, the
Program has provided over $40 million in tuition support to help more than 25,000 Denver families send their
child to the quality preschool of their choice, and independent evaluation results confirm that the vast majority of
these children have left preschool prepared for kindergarten.