The Heyns Study

Among the findings of her research:

• The number of books read during the summer is consistently related to academic gains.
• Children in every income group who read six or more books over the summer gained more in reading achievement than children who did not.
• The use of the public library during the summer is more predictive of vocabulary gains than attending summer school is.
• The major factors determining whether a child read over that summer were: 1) whether the child used the public library; 2) the child's sex (girls read more than boys but also watched more TV); 3) socioeconomic status; and 4) the distance from home to a library.
• "More than any other public institution, including the schools, the public library contributed to the intellectual growth of children during the summer. Moreover, unlike summer school programs, the library was used by over half the sample and attracted children from diverse backgrounds." (p.77)

[Above summary from Making the Case for Library Services to Children and Teens, State Library of North Carolina.]