Scouts Emma Ortiz, left, and Rachel Nichols show books they read to children during the Open Book Project.
In 2025, Emma Ortiz and Rachel Nichols, from Girl Scout Troop 94230 in Pittsgrove, embarked on the difficult goal of reducing illiteracy in adults by addressing the root cause: Children not being taught to love reading. According to “Harvard Thinking,” a podcast produced by the Harvard Gazette, literacy rates in the USA have been falling for nearly a decade.
Not only does literacy affect readers’ futures, it affects their overall physical and mental health in adulthood. Some studies note that even though students may not understand reading material, they are promoted to a harder curriculum, with figures as high as 60 percent struggling with reading comprehension. This may cause students to potentially care less about their education and see reading as a chore rather than a fun pastime.
The Open Book Project was seeking to be part of the solution by making reading material more enjoyable. At the Cumberland County Library, two programs were hosted—one for children ages 4-8, the other for children ages 9-13. In each of these programs, specific books and corresponding activities relating to the reading material were chosen to keep participants engaged..
Though similar, the programs featured key differences. The younger program offered fun science experiments where the kids got to try their hand at different experiments. For example, in one session, the 4-8 program read Ada Twist Scientist and made lava lamps out of water and oil. The older program was adjusted slightly to offer more stimulating reading material, then was followed with a related but less intense activity.
Another example: In the 9-13 program, the children tasted different freeze-dried camping foods since it directly related to what was happening in the book. According to Jonah, a nine-year-old participant, “the freeze-dried food was cool.” He later stated, “It was cool being able to do what the guy in the book did.”
Using all these methods, the Open Book Project hopes to be part of the solution for the declining literacy rates by helping participants find a love of reading and creating a healthy mindset for the future. Now that the project has come to an end, project leaders Emma and Rachel hope to have inspired young minds and made a real, positive impact in the community.
