Free Books Provided During Event at Westwood Laundromat
On December 4, Westwood Laundromat in Rogers, Ark., gave out free children’s books to its customers, kicking off the northwest Arkansas “Wash Time is Talk Time”program. This initiative is part of the Laundry & Literacy Project, which was started in 2012 by Vicki Collet and Conra Gist, assistant professors of childhood education in the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas.
Laundry customers received three free children’s books each, including “Red Socks,” a story for young children that encourages parents and children to talk together while doing laundry. Colorful posters in both English and Spanish also urged adults to talk, sing and read with their children. In addition, adult books were available in the laundromat’s lending library.
Studies have found that children from lower-income households hear 30 million fewer words by age 4 than their middle-income peers. To help bridge this gap, the “Wash Time is Talk Time”initiative encourages adults to engage in conversations with their young children.
“Because families who use the laundromat spend about two and a half hours there during each visit, laundromats are a great place to spread the word to parents that simply talking with their children during the early years will help prepare them for school,” Collet explained.
She is studying the impact of the posters and literacy activities on families’ language interactions.
“We think these posters and books will make a positive difference,” she said.
In cooperation with northwest Arkansas laundry owners, Collet and Gist plan to hang “Wash Time is Talk Time”posters in 26 self-service laundries in the area. In addition, free book events are scheduled at several laundromats.
According to Collet, the laundromat, or the laundry room at home, provides many opportunities for parents and children to play with words and language together.
“If you think about it, there is so much happening while you do laundry and so many items and actions parents and caregivers can talk about with their children,” she said. “For example, parents can describe types of clothes, numbers of objects, colors, shapes on the washers and dryers, and letters of the alphabet that are around the laundromat. There are plenty of things to talk about at the laundromat, so encouraging rich conversations there builds in language and literacy learning without taking extra time during a parent’s busy day.”
“Wash Time is Talk Time”posters can be downloaded free at www.toosmall.org/laundromats.
“The posters are also a great way to brighten up the laundry room at home and turn it into a learning area,” Collet suggested. “Through the simple act of putting up posters, you can add fun and easy ways to support young children’s early brain and language development.”
The posters were created by the Clinton Foundation’s Too Small to Fail initiative, where Collet serves as a content and research advisor. Printing of posters for northwest Arkansas laundromats was funded by the University of Arkansas Women’s Giving Circle.
“The Giving Circle has been a generous supporter of our Laundry & Literacy project,” Collet noted. “Our work aligns well with their goals of accomplishing change and enriching lives.”
For more information about Laundry & Literacy or “Wash Time is Talk Time,” contact Collet at [email protected].
