PBH to Give Books to Youngsters In Effort to Improve Verbal Skills

The Phillips Brooks House Association will soon begin distributing paper-back books on a large scale to children in culturally depressed areas in Boston.

The program, which will be run entirely by student volunteers, will specialize on the fourth and fifth grade levels. Students plan to distribute about 10 books a year to each child, and then, where possible, to establish personal contact with the recipients.

Accordin1g to James M. Perrin '64, director of the PBH project, one of the main problems in these areas is that the children have no access to good literature; with an easy source of books in a pleasant condition, the children are much more likely to want to read them.

Books From Publishers

PBH plans to solicit various Boston and New York publishing houses for the books. A high-ranking Boston school official has already thrown his support behind the idea of administering the program through the schools, rather than various settlement houses and neighborhood centers.

At least one major publishing firm has already expressed interest in the project.

The idea for the project originated with Richard G. King, Director of the Office for Graduate and Career Plans. The plan has received enthusiastic support from the College Administration.

For the first year of the project, PBH will probably limit itself to 30 or 40 children "at the very most" in order to be able to assess accurately the worth of the program. Perrin is optimistic that the project's first year of success will enable rapid expansion in the future in order to reach more children.

Eventually the project may be able to cover many more youngsters with a well-worked out directed reading program. According to Perrin, the biggest problem is not in obtaining the books, but in selecting the ones which will have the most effect.

PProject Purpose

The purpose of the project, according to PBH officers, is to improve the verbal skills of the youngsters in these areas. "Several of the children we work with," pointed out a reform school volunteer, "are in trouble because they become frustrated over their lack of ability to communicate. This is one of the major factors in their striking out against society.

"By trying to increase their interest in books, we hope to increase their interest in improving verbal skills and hence in their ability to communicate and to relate to society in general.