Building a safe, child-friendly space

In many communities, the school library is the only place designed around the needs of children. It is vital that the library facilitates effective learning, socialization skills and play. Although our libraries come in all shapes and sizes, they share a few common traits, including educational puzzles and games, child-sized furniture, colorful, print-rich decorations and shelves full of local-language books.

Putting the library in place is only the first step. Once it’s complete, we work with school administration to ensure that children have ample time during school to explore the new resource and train teachers to effectively utilize the library materials to support the curriculum.

Books for everyone

Room to Read libraries are stocked with a variety of locally-relevant books designed to capture the imagination of young readers. We classify storybooks, nonfiction texts and chapter books by reading level so that all readers can find materials at their level and continue to improve their budding literacy skills. As students' reading skills improve, they can move up the scale and find new books to challenge their minds and engage their curiosity.

Our results

Room to Read has established more than 15,000 great new school libraries in developing countries since the year 2000. We have stocked them with a variety of bright, colorful, locally-relevant materials to inspire and encourage young minds. Our in-country teams staffed by local nationals have provided them with three years of professional development, training, and mentorship to aid their success. Nearly five million children have benefitted from these