BoekStart
The Netherlands
December 26th 2023
Stichting Lezen
Nieuwe Prinsengracht 89 1018 VR Amsterdam The Netherlands
The objective of Stichting Lezen is to promote the pleasure in reading, both in Dutch and Friesian (Netherlands’ second official language). The foundation coordinates existing activities and encourages the development of new and innovative initiatives, methods and tools that are instrumental in reading promotion. This includes the promotion of scientific research in this specialist field.
Marijke Bos
Project leader
www.stichtinglezen.nl www.boekstart.nl (for parents) www.boekstartpro.nl (for professionals)
National reading promotion organization
20 of which 5 work on BoekStart on a daily basis.
BoekStart
The Netherlands
Unknown
Inspired by the British BookStart programme (Wade & Moore, 2000, 2003), the Dutch BookStart promotes early reading, storytelling and singing nursery rhymes to very young children. It also enables parents and children to experience the pleasure of reading books together. It gives young children a better start in primary school and strengthens the bond between parents and children. Working with libraries, health centres, day care centres, publishers and other partners, BoekStart (Dutch name) encourages parents across the Netherlands to start reading with their baby and toddler. Bookstart in the Netherlands consists of the bookgifting part for baby’s and a program for daycare centres. Quality in the implementation of BookStart in daycare is determined by six elements: • an attractive reading spot, created together with the library • a high quality collection of books for babies and toddlers (including ebooks) • increased expertise of staff through training • active parental involvement, resulting in more frequent storybook reading at home and familiarity with the opportunities offered by the library • reading aloud as a daily routine through the establishment of a Reading Plan which outlines the agency’s policy • cooperation with local partners in a reading promotion network (local municipality, healthcare, library and daycare centres). 80% of de library organizations work with BoekStart in daycares and 24% of the daycare centers.
Government funded
Covering the Netherlands 98% of the libraries participate
Non-profit
None
Consistent.
Parents receive a small suitcase containing two baby books (soft/ fabric and cardboard), information on reading aloud together and a membership of the public library.
Yes.
Library, Health clinic, Municipality.
Librarians.
No.
The programme is universal with special attention to reach targeted parents like low literate families.
67.500, 40% of the babies.
One package within the ages 3-18 months.
Yes, recently we have a special pack for blind children.
We have brochures in the following languages: English, Arabic, Turkish, Polish, Spanish, French and Mandarin.
Scientific research into the effects of the Dutch BookStart programme (Van den Berg & Bus, 2015) has shown that: • participating parents are more likely to start reading to their children at an early age, • children’s language skills improve if parents start reading to their babies before the age of eight months, • the effects of BookStart are even stronger in the longer term, • overactive babies benefit most from the programme, • participating parents visit the library more often and are more familiar with baby books. In June 2020 a meta-analysis on Bookgifting programs was published, to which the researcher Merel de Bondt, who is also researching the longer-term effects of the Dutch BookStart, contributed. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0034654320922140
