CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In North Carolina, less than half of all 1st through 3rd graders are reading at grade level. In South Carolina, it’s even less at just over 44%.
“A lot of it starts at home," North Carolina School Superintendent Mark Johnson. "You know our teachers are working hard every day but there’s so much parents and caretakers can be doing at home and part of that is making sure parents are reading 20 minutes a day."
Johnson is calling for more parent engagement, saying eventually students who can’t read won’t be able to learn.
“Because after 3rd grade that’s when we need students to switch from learning how to read to being able to read the material and learn.”
In an effort to put books into the hands of kids, whether at home or on the go, education officials in both states called in the pros.
Students can now read along with their favorite Carolina Panthers players, including Luke Kuechly, Chris Manhertz, Graham Gano, and Rashaan Gaulden.
It’s all part of the Carolina Panther’s 3rd and Goal Literacy Program, which started earlier this year.
Research shows that starting in kindergarten if a student reads for 20 minutes a day they will hear 1.8 million words per year. If they keep it up through 6th grade, they’ll likely score higher than 90% of their peers on tests.
“We want to make sure you learn to read well and have great reading habits and skills by the time you reach 3rd grade,” Luke Kuechly said before he starts to read a book in one of the videos.
The videos are free and are available online, making them accessible at any time.