MINNEAPOLIS — Cheerios kicked off its sixth annual Spoonfuls of Stories program yesterday as part of National Children’s Book Week, which runs through Sunday. Five million children’s books have been placed inside boxes of the Cheerios cereal as part of the program. This year’s book offerings are published by Simon & Schuster and include “The New Girl and Me” by Jacqui Robbins for ages 4-7 and printed in English and Spanish; “Everybody Needs a Rock by Byrd Baylor” for ages 4-8; “Things That Are Most in the World” by Judi Barrett for ages 3-7; “Do YOU Have a Hat?” by Eileen Spinelli for ages 3-7; and “Jakers! Piggley’s Treasure Hunt” adapted by Catherine Lucas for ages 4-8. Cheerios will also work with First Book, a children’s literacy nonprofit, to donate a year’s worth of children’s books to 50 reading programs serving disadvantaged children across the country. “In disadvantaged communities, helping even a single child learn to read can help stop the cycle of poverty in that family for the next generation,” said Kyle Zimmer, president of First Book, in a statement. “Studies have shown that the only measure that correlates significantly with school reading scores is the number of books in the home — and yet, appallingly, in many low-income communities there is just one book for every 300 children.”

Cheerios Adds 5 Million Books to Cereal Boxes