Booksred T. Worm™

What an amazing year it has been since BOOKSRED T. WORM was formally introduced last year.  The greatest reward for me personally and professionally was to hear from parents, grandparents and, in some cases, the children themselves sharing their feelings about Booksred.  The comments that got to me the most:

1.  Mom calling to tell me her boys 7 & 9 at that time hated to read, said they didn't like to read and preferred to watch TV.  Then each received Booksred T. Worm - from that moment on the competition started.  Remember - Booksred 'grows' with each book you read.  The boys were so into seeing whose 'worm' would be the longest, they totally lost sight of the fact that they had to read a book to make that happen.

2.  A call from a Dad in the mid-west that his 5 year old daughter refused to go to bed at her usual time until she read a book.  She wanted to read 3 books a day to make Booksred grow and circle her room.  Dad told me her room was really large.  She accomplished what she wanted to do in less than 60 days.  She is looking to get another Booksred.

3.  An Aunt who got Booksred as a birthday present for her 12 year old niece - who announced to everyone that she was going to read 100 books before this year ends.  Auntie purchased an additional 60 'body parts' to capture book information to call her bluff.  The end of this year is upon us and I can't wait to hear if she did it.  With that kind of determination and Booksred T. Worm helping, my bet is definitely on her.

4.  A maintenance worker at an elementary school who 'stumbled' across Booksred mentioned on the website of a friend of mine.  He ordered for a specific class focused on working with children with learning issues.  Booksred was a huge hit and I received a call from the school's administrator for more.

This is why Booksred T. Worm was created in the first place - to encourage reading, to show that reading can be loads of fun and, with each book read, he grows longer and longer, etc. Plus he is hanging on your wall for all to see what was accomplished.

5.  In February Booksred and I made our TV debut during the local news on WRAL.  Now - who would dare say BTW is just a bunch of circles.  When I created him I ferverently hoped others would see in him what I wanted them to see.  I am thrilled to say they have.  Thanx all for your support.

I’d like to share with you my commitment to help change children’s attitudes about reading through BOOKSRED T. WORM, a product I created for the purpose of getting young people to read and loving it!

I am a 69 year old grandmother, a retired corporate executive and former teacher.  For the past few years, with every story I came across detailing the issue of illiteracy and children not wanting to read or who thought reading a book was boring, my determination to work to change that thinking grew.  Growing up during the 40’s and 50’s, I could not have imagined that the issue of illiteracy would be as prevalent in the 21st Century as it was then.  The coming of the 21st Century held so much promise.  So instead of just getting angry, I got busy.

Nine years ago, I came up with a simple craft project to capture information about the books my granddaughter, then 2 years old, was reading on her own.  I never wanted her to lose the excitement of reading.  I wanted her to grow up hearing about being able to read a book by herself and telling me that I didn’t have to read bedtime stories to her because now she could read to me.  I wanted her to look at the huge pile of circles hinged together to form a worm and hear me remind her of the titles of all the books she read and what her handwriting looked like at that time.  When she told me she was going to read to me at bedtime, like most grandmothers, I played along not believing she meant it.  But I was so wrong and from that time on, she read to me.  What started out nine years ago as a craft project of paper circles shaped like a worm to capture book information, has now become circles cut from quality hard wood, but with the same purpose – read more books and your worm will grow so long it will circle your room. 

BOOKSRED T. WORM was designed to encourage and reward reading.  Through the years, I’ve watched children get excited about the latest cartoon action figure, but nowhere did I see the same excitement generated for books and reading.   Created as a wall hanging, my wish is to see young readers anxious to spread BOOKSRED T. WORM completely around their room – because the more they read – the longer he grows.  Reading, and loving it, will earn additional circles that make it possible to keep their ‘worm’ growing and growing and growing, etc.

I truly appreciate your taking time to visit the BOOKSRED T. WORM web site.  I welcome your comments and thank you for the opportunity to share with you my dream of assisting parents and educators widen the path to the joy and reward of reading.   No longer just a dream, BOOKSRED T. WORM is a reality for all.    Carole