American Legend Dolly Parton expands her Imagination Library to Kansas

Dolly Parton, an American icon and country music legend, expanded her imagination library yesterday in an appearance in Overland Park, Kansas. Now, anyone under five years old can sign up at?https://imaginationlibrary.com/, where more than 200 million books have been distributed to children eager to read.

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Reading is a big part of every child’s journey, and it was a big part of mine as well. With my own son I enjoyed sharing books and stories, allowing him to utilize his imagination in ways that would make him better prepared for school and life.

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Repeated studies show that imaginative play and early childhood reading of imaginative work can significantly influence the way children grow up and interact with the world. Early interactive reading is also a big way that parents can help identify issues and work to build an early support system for children with autism, dyslexia, and other cognitive disabilities. Aware of these concerns, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library offers young children with disabilities opportunities that are difficult to obtain in many areas of our country, shipping books in Braille, audio formats, and large print for the blind and vision impaired since 2011.

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In this way, early education and early reading are one of the keys to building a successful future generation.

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We idolize and make heroes out of those who too often later disappoint us. We get let down when sports heroes, artists, business leaders or celebrities let us down. When it comes to Dolly Parton, however, the country music legend has rarely given us. Instead, the singer has often shocked the world with her level of support, her kindness, and her caring for the world. Her commitments to scholarships and awards for teachers and students in her home county and eventually nationally reflect her commitment to opportunity for students. Her efforts to save birds, butterflies, and species native to Tennessee are part of what makes her own community special. During COVID, Dolly Parton invested early money in helping Vanderbilt University by investing $1 Million dollars toward vaccine research.

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By bringing this program to Kansas, all communities benefit. Children benefit. Literacy benefits. The United States has been in the middle of a technological revolution, and as the need for more skilled workers increases providing children early advantages matters. Even trade skills now require technological skills that were not part of the expectations in the past. Giving children an early start? Dolly Parton is doing her part to help all of us get a head start on the future.