RICHMOND — The popular 1980s show “Reading Rainbow” was rebooted in October, and at a time when children across the nation struggle with reading.

The show returned earlier this month for free on YouTube, with Mychal Threets as the new host. Threets is called a viral library influencer because of social media posts showcasing his love of books.

The show was initially created to fill the instructional gap for children during summer breaks but ended in 2006, according to IMDB.

Reading scores drop nationally

Reading scores last year dropped two points for both fourth and eighth graders, compared to 2022. This dip accentuates the decline that occurred between 2019 to 2022, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP.

Less than a third of fourth and eighth grade st

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