Prime Time Family Reading is a six-week reading, discussion, and storytelling program held at public libraries, schools, or community centers across Kentucky. A humanities scholar and a storyteller act as session leaders to conduct weekly storytelling and discussion sessions based on award-winning children's picture books. Participants are elementary age children and the significant adults in their lives. Prime Time is a powerful tool to stimulate communication between children and parents, teaching them how to model storytelling and discussion in the home.

Prime Time Family Reading is a registered trademark, is a project of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. National expansion is in cooperation with the American Library Association Public Programs Office and funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, dedicated to expanding American understanding of history and culture. This program is brought to Kentucky by Kentucky Humanities and community sponsors such as the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, the Wood and Marie Hannah Foundation, the PNC Foundation, and more.

What does Prime Time Family Reading do?

• Reinforces the role of family as a major social and economic unit
• Trains parents and children to bond together around the act of reading
• Teaches parents and children to read and discuss humanities topics such as fairness, greed, honor, and deceit
• Encourages low-literacy, low-income parents to enter or continue their own educational programs
• Helps parents and children learn how to select books and become active library users
• Facilitates community connection amongst families, libraries, schools, and other core social unit

Since 2004, Prime Time Family Reading has reached over 4,800 families and over 16,000 individual participants in 88 Kentucky counties.

Want to bring Prime Time Family Reading to your community? Read more below!

Each year, Kentucky Humanities accepts applications for Prime Time Family Reading from across Kentucky. Together with the Kentucky Department for Libraries and archives, Kentucky Humanities selects sites to host Prime Time Family Reading based on need, geography, and other factors.

Participating libraries will receive

• assistance engaging and paying a scholar and a storyteller
• training for a librarian/school/community center coordinator along with the scholar and storyteller (February 2026)
• training and access to online program management manuals
• set of books containing 20 copies of each book 
• travel assistance for participants (if needed)
• reimbursement for child care provider and translator (if needed)
• 11 books for each participating family
• assistance and support from Kentucky Humanities 

Participating libraries will be expected to

• provide adequate space for approximately 50 participants
• designate a staff member to be the site coordinator
• recruit approximately 20 families to participate in the program
• work with community partners to enroll families considered ‘at risk’ because of low literacy skills, low income, or low educational levels
• provide a simple meal before each discussion
• provide door prizes for participants
• designate a staff member to conduct a story hour program for younger siblings during the discussions
• create and present simple library commercials each week to inform participants about services offered by the library
• register all participating families for library cards
• complete registration forms for participants, evaluations of the program, and simple financial forms

If you want your library/school/community center to be considered to be a 2026 Prime Time site, please complete the form at the bottom of the page.

Libraries and schools that have previously sponsored Prime Time programs will be considered.