HISD Extends MyON Deal Giving Students Access to Free Books Online

In 2014, HISD partnered with myON, a service of Capstone Publishing which allows students to access hundreds of books online for free. The partnership was intended to support the Literacy by Three program, which stresses full literacy by the end of third grade, and the Read Houston Read program, which brings in grown-up volunteers to read with underserved elementary students.

Last week, HISD announced that the partnership with myON, originally set to expire at the end of this school year, would be extended through August 2015. This will enable it to be used for the Every Summer has a Story summer reading program again this year.

If myON continues to meet the needs of HISD’s literacy programs, it is possible that the contract will be extended further.

Services like myON are not the only way to read for free – we still have public libraries, after all – but with the growing prevalence of in-home computers, tablets, and smart phones, e-books are becoming an increasingly more effective way to bring reading opportunities to kids. MyON has the added benefit of offering “enhanced digital books,” with images and text boxes interspersed throughout. These features help to make books more accessible to students of all reading levels.

If you are an HISD parent and want to learn more about using myON at home with your child, check out the HISD myON Resource Page.