Do you remember the books you read as a child that completely captivated your imagination? Whatever they were, those books played an important role in your cognitive development.

While we often think of reading as a form of escapism from our day-to-day lives, reading quality literature is shown to improve empathy and reading plays a vital role in early childhood development by exposing children to new concepts, cultures and words.

What’s the word gap? And how does it affect children?

As scientists, we know how important the first five years of a child’s life are for brain development. What you may not know about is how socioeconomic factors can impact this, specifically the “word gap” that exists between affluent and at-risk children.

Researchers have found that by the age of 3, children from lower income families have heard roughly 30 million fewer words than their more affluent classmates. This word gap ultimately works to the detriment of our society’s most vulnerable, as these children enter school cognitively behind their wealthier peers and are frequently behind the national literacy benchmarks as they enter kindergarten.

A continued commitment to our community

In keeping with Community’s mission to serve the region’s most vulnerable, we are pleased to announce the launch of our annual children’s book drive, Fill the Stocking with Books. We are collecting new or gently used books for newborns to age 12 from November 20 through December 22, 2017.

Find drop off bins at:

Community Regional Medical Center – Cafeteria
2823 Fresno St.
Fresno, CA 93721

Clovis Community Medical Center – Cafeteria
2755 Herndon Ave
Clovis, CA 93611

Fresno Heart & Surgical – Cafeteria
15 E. Audubon Dr.
Fresno, CA 93720

Deran Koligian Ambulatory Care Center – Children’s Health Center
290 N. Wayte Ln. Suite 1300
Fresno, CA 93701

We appreciate our colleagues at all of Community’s facilities coming together and the public helping us ensure all children in the greater Fresno area have the opportunity to discover new words and explore different worlds with a book this winter.

Please consider donating a book this year as we work to empower our local youth to learn, grow and succeed!

By Cecilia Romero Perez, RN, BSN
Manager Clinical Operations; for
Family Practice, Internal Med, Women’s,
Children’s, Eye, & Surgical Services clinics
Deran Koligian Ambulatory Care Center