United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy, and The Boone Family Foundation have partnered to create Once Upon a Month, a program that provides young children age-appropriate, diverse books and parent literacy resources in both English and Spanish. For a child, reading is critical, without the necessary skills, starting and staying behind in school can be the inevitable result. Reading to children, starting at birth, helps equip them for academic success, giving them a greater chance of graduating from high school, attending college and earning more once they enter the workforce.