Building Community One Book at a Time: How Prime Time Family Reading is Strengthening Delaware’s Families

December 5, 2025

by Rebecca Olsen, PhD, Senior Programs Officer

It’s Prime Time Family Reading night at the library. Families are gathered together, with copies of A Spoon for Every Bite by Joe Hayes open in their laps. 

“What do you think of how the family treated their neighbor?” asks an adult at the front of the room. “Would you do the same thing, in their shoes?” 

Small hands shoot into the air, eager to share their thoughts. 

Early literacy is crucial to a child’s development. But not every family has access to the resources they need for their children to build early literacy skills. 

Through Prime Time Family Reading, Delaware Humanities is proud to help close that gap.  

At Prime Time, families participate in a weekly session for six weeks. They share a meal, read and discuss two award-winning children’s books together, and take copies of those books home to build their home libraries and continue building healthy reading habits.  

We’ve seen how Prime Time programs increase children’s vocabularies and critical thinking skills. We’ve also seen how they help foster meaningful connections between family members, generations, and communities.  

Families who participate in Prime Time tell us how the program has changed their reading habits and improved their children’s engagement with books. One family, who always attended as a family unit—mom, dad, and several young children—wrote to us that the program “inspired us to read more with our children. It made us want to follow a daily routine of reading books.” Another parent, who told us that their daughter is dyslexic, expressed that the program “has helped so much”—that it “keeps her engaged as well as asking questions to ensure she is retaining what is read and what is read to her.” 

We also see families strengthen intergenerational connections. When the Bear Library hosted Prime Time in this past spring, Youth Services Librarian Elizabeth Mayer witnessed the program “build meaningful connections across generations” and spark “increased participation from family members who may not traditionally engage in literacy activities—especially fathers and older siblings.” And a grandmother who participated with her two grandchildren expressed her gratitude, writing “This was a great experience to share with my grandkids! Thank you!” 

I couldn’t say it any better than Elizabeth in Bear said at their program’s conclusion: “Prime Time Family Reading isn’t just a program—it’s a catalyst for change, helping build stronger families and more thoughtful communities.” 

We’re now in our third year as the state affiliate for Prime Time Family Reading, and so far, we’ve had the privilege of watching 340 Delawareans experience the program’s magic. Prime Time even won the Library of Congress Literacy Awards American Prize this year. Most importantly, here in Delaware, Prime Time has allowed Delaware Humanities to foster educational literacy programs to underserved families in the community by eliminating barriers which typically prevent them from attending library programs.  As we enter 2026, we’re hopeful that we’ll be able to expand the number of programs we can support throughout the state. We’re committed to eliminating those barriers to literacy for as many Delawareans as we can. 

Prime Time Family Reading is just one program supported by Delaware Humanities. With our Speakers presentations, original Exhibits, and more, we strive to connect Delawareans through our shared human experiences. This giving season, our programs will need your help to continue to grow in 2026. If you’re interested in making a gift to support programs like Prime Time, visit dehumanities.org/get-involved/donate/

Or to learn more about Prime Time Family Reading and how to get involved, click here.