Michigan Barbershop Discounts Children Customers Who Read Books With Black Role Models Aloud During Appointments

A barbershop in Michigan has piqued the Internet's interest due to its gimmick involving children. The Fuller Cut barbershop in Ypsilanti, Michigan provides a $2 discount to kids who read aloud to their barbers during haircut appointments.

The 75 to 100 diverse books offered by The Fuller Cut barbershop all feature African-American role models ranging from athletes and astronauts to writers, Ryan Griffin told The Huffington Post. Griffin is the barber who introduced the discount program to the establishment.

The Fuller Cut's discount program isn't entirely a new concept. The practice was also seen all over the United States such as Dubuque, Iowa, Houston, Texas and Columbus, Ohio. The books offered by The Fuller Cut came from Griffin's home and now, older children want to give their old books to the barbershop so other kids can use it.

Griffin said that The Fuller Cut's program helps children lose their shyness when it comes to reading out loud in class. The concept serves as practice for them and builds their confidence.

The progress of the young participants in The Fuller Cut's program is tracked by the barbershop. For instance, if a child doesn't finish the book he/she is reading during a haircut appointment, he/she will have to continue where he/she left off during the next session.

For Griffin, this rule can determine whether a child's reading comprehension is improving. He also hopes that the program would have a long-term effect on the kids.

"If we can get kids to come back to the Fuller Cut as adults in college and they tell us, 'Because you guys had us read here, it made me want to be a writer or journalist,' that's really the end goal," Griffin explained, as quoted by the Huffington Post.

According to the 2013 British Cohort Study, children who frequently read books for pleasure and more than once a week had high examination results at school when they turn 16. Basically, reading for pleasure increases kids' chance of a bigger intellectual progress in spelling, vocabulary and mathematics.

Jim Trelease, an educator and author of the book "Read Aloud Handbook," said that books, magazines, newspapers and other reading materials expose children to a rich vocabulary and complete sentences, according to a separate report from the Huffington Post.

Aside from these, early readers also have increased self-esteem and better communication skills. Did you read plenty of books when you were a child? How did the practice benefit you? Tell us below.