A different kind of bedtime story

For parents in the Dane County jail system, reading to their children can be an unobtainable luxury. A local program called Kids' Connection makes this nighttime ritual possible for parents separated from their children.    

Kids' Connection gives incarcerated parents the chance to record themselves reading a book to their children. The recording and book are then sent to their children, allowing them to hear and to read along with their parent’s voice.  

The goal of the program is to create a connection between the parent and the child through family literacy, despite physical barriers.

For both child and parent, the best way to improve reading skills is by practicing, according to University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Library and Information Studies Associate Director Michele Besant. 

“Inmates are very motivated by the opportunity to read to their kids,” Besant said. “One motivator for adult literacy is to give kids the skills that they didn’t have the opportunity to gain.”

By reading to their children, parents practice their own reading skills. This opportunity is important, as almost half of Wisconsin inmates read below the level of a high school freshman, according to the Wisconsin Reading Coalition.

In addition to encouraging reading skills, parents act as positive literacy role models for their children, according to Dane County Library Service Outreach Specialist Mary Driscoll.  

“Besides all the warm and fuzzies, it shows kids that books are a valuable gift,” Driscoll said.

No matter what book they choose to record, or how long they have been in jail, Driscoll said, inmates are always thankful for Kids’ Connection.

“There’s lots of tears that are involved,” Driscoll said. “People are really touched and moved that they get this opportunity. I think there’s some sort of epiphany that goes on for a lot of people.”

Most often, Driscoll sees the reactions of the parents rather than the children. But once, Driscoll got to see a child’s reaction to Kids’ Connection while she was working with another Dane County Library Service outreach program. 

“We were talking about mail,” she explained. “And kids don’t get mail like they used to, so I was expecting the kids to say they had gotten birthday cards from their grandma or something. But then, one girl raised her hand and was so excited when she said ‘I got a book my daddy read to me in jail!’” 

Without much interaction with children the program isn’t able to measure its impact, but Besant knows that this kind of parental encouragement works to improve literacy.  

A 2008 study found that reading aloud to young children supports a positive attitude toward reading and a positive relationship between the parent and child. It also improves the child’s literacy and language skills.

With no regular budget and a heavy reliance on community donations, volunteers and grants, the program continues to focus on providing families with access to this service.

“We’re not changing the world with this,” Besant said. “We have to believe that the people that use the services find value in them, and based on their feedback, we can be pretty confident about that.”