Testimonials
Testimonials
Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Board of Directors
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Reading Ready Pittsburgh
supporting families to foster a love of reading
Reading Ready Pittsburgh believes in the power of family book sharing
to ensure all children are ready to thrive in kindergarten.
By increasing access to books and encouraging significant family engagement,
we work to guarantee that all families have the tools and resources they need
to support their children.
All children deserve full book shelves.
1,000 children enrolled in Raising a Reader between 41 sites
Over 32,000 books redistributed
Over 1,500 brand new
books gifted
450+ parents receive parenting facts and tips via text messages each month
13 free libraries built
6,500+ children in the Mon Valley and City of Pittsburgh receive a new book each month
Ranada's Story
Ranada was introduced to the importance of early reading through our "Raising a Reader" program. Listen as she shares her insights about the impacts it has made on her family.
OUR RECENT NEWS
An Afternoon of Puppetry
This past Saturday, April 20, 2024, Reading Ready Pittsburgh hosted two puppet shows for children at our free bookstore, B is for Books. We are not exaggerating when we say it was INCREDIBLE!! Thank you to the insanely talented Emily Schubert and Abby Palen for coming and performing to 60+ children and their families. Everyone big and small walked away with lots of smiles, tons of free books, and the cutest finger puppets. Hope to see some new and returning faces next time!
B is for Books
Family Open House
February 17th was a big day over here at B is for Books, Reading Ready Pittsburgh's free bookstore for children. About 100 children came to our open house with their families and walked away with three free books! There were snacks, crafts, stories, and just a great amount of revelry and smiles on all the faces. If you haven't had a chance to come visit us, please do soon! Click here for more information about the bookstore.
A Free Bookstore
for Children!
Reading Ready Pittsburgh will be opening a free bookstore for children on February 1st at 222 East 8th Avenue in Homestead, PA. Its name is B is for Books. This project has been long in the making, and we are just so excited to share the news with you here! Please visit the bookstore's page under the "What We Do" tab at the top of this website. There you will find our policies, hours, and events happening at the store. See you soon and see you there!
Another Little
Giveaway Library!
Thanks to our friend Nikki out in the East Pittsburgh area, Reading Ready Pittsburgh was able to build and install our thirteenth Little Giveaway Library on December 20, 2023. If you're ever in the area be sure to stop by 700 Grandview Avenue and grab a couple books for your kids! And a big thanks as well to our little library extraordinaire Jim Bain.
A brand new
Little Giveaway Library!
On November 4th, Reading Ready Pittsburgh installed its twelfth Little Giveaway Library to date. This one is located in front of the Clairton Family Center at 734 Miller Avenue in Clairton, PA. We're just as excited as the staff, kids, and families are! A big, big thank you to everyone who helped make this happen and especially Jim Bain who has been building and installing these libraries for a while now.
September Library Day 2023
Reading Ready Pittsburgh and the Carnegie Library of Homestead co-hosted the Septemeber Library Day on September 16, 2023. There was so much to do! Apple tasting, a scavenger hunt, free book giveaways, storytime, games, crafts, and a ton more. We love it when our community's parents and kids come out to celebrate books with us, especially on a day with such fine weather! Stay tuned for more fun future events like Saturdays!
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library in the City of Pittsburgh
As of August 3, 2023 Reading Ready Pittsburgh has partnered with the City of Pittsburgh to bring back the Dolly Parton Imagination Library for all City of Pittsburgh children between the ages of zero and five. Sign up today!
Read more about it here.
Mon View Paint Day 2023
On June 3, 2023 the crew of Reading Ready Pittsburgh, a number of volunteers, and some Mon View community residents all came together to paint a variety of games and add some color around the playground in the community development. We were able to add a foursquare court, hop scotch, jumping logs, alphabet letters, and more. There were also crafts, kite flying, and book giveaways!
Blue Bag Events 2023
During the month of May, eighteen of our Raising a Reader classrooms celebrated their success of completing the red bag rotation at Blue Bag Bashes! Working with the Braddock, Homestead, and Swissvale libraries, we continued to build the classroom/library connection by holding storytimes and discussing all of the wonderful things children can do at libraries! Each child received their own "Blue Library Bag" filled with information about their local library and how to get a library card. The bag can be used when they carry books to and from the library!
Braddock Literacy Day 2023
Despite having to utilize our rain date, Braddock Literacy Day was a great success. Plenty of family and children came through and received free books and toys and heard stories from local community helpers such as firefighters, early learning teachers, barbershop and salon owners, and more.
To top it off, a declaration was made by the county that, going forward in Allegheny County, May 20 would be known as Braddock Literacy Day in partnership with Reading Ready Pittsburgh.
We are excited to keep this event going, and we hope to see you there next year!
