Motivation is the premise behind a program that has been bestowing free books to students at four Cape Girardeau elementary schools for the past 10 years.

Three times each year since 1988, the Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) Program has enabled students at Franklin, Jefferson, May Greene and Washington elementary schools to visit their school library with their class to each choose a book from some 100 titles for their very own. Each child's name is written in the inside cover to designate ownership of the book, an act principals said brings home the program's goal of motivating children to feel good about books.

"It's a wonderful situation for children to have books in their home," said Dr. Barbara Kohlfeld, principal at May Greene Elementary School. "Anytime we can get books in the hands of children, we know we're doing something great."

RIF is a national federal grant program which allocates money to schools to develop programs which encourage students to read. The Kiwanis Club has provided the local matching grant funds for the schools since the program's beginning. Recently, Sam's Club also became a local RIF sponsor.

About 1,220 Cape Girardeau students attending kindergarten through sixth grade benefit from the program, said Franklin principal and RIF coordinator Jim Watkins. The four schools were able to participate in the program because of the percentage of students meeting federal free and reduced lunch guidelines.

Watkins said there are almost as many different subjects included in the selection of books as there are student readers. The program requires a good variety so that students can find a topic that interests them, he said.

The most popular books for all the students include contemporary favorites like the "GooseBumps" and "Babysitter's Club" series. However, old favorites like the "Encyclopedia Brown" series are also popular, as are puzzle books, drawing or coloring books, and even joke books, said Watkins.

"We've got books at every level for the kids to choose from," he said. "Quite often, we'll have older kids who choose books below their reading level so they can read them to a younger brother or sister, and that gets the community involved."

Principal Gerald Landewee of Jefferson Elementary said parents and children are very receptive to the RIF program. The program is also beneficial because students are building personal libraries, which allows them to increase their learning potential, he said.

"The more access a child has to literacy material the better readers they become," he said. "If they have the books, they have experience in reading and they gain more knowledge that way."