Ready 4 Reading Reaches Parents through:

• Providing weekly family programs in English and Spanish at the Children’s Early Reading Center at McAlister Square.
• Distributing a monthly newsletter and curriculum materials based on the 6 essential pre-k readiness skills that lead to first grade success so that all readers and workshop facilitators emphasize these essential readiness skills.
• Placing posters and materials in waiting rooms such as DSS and WIC frequented by low-income pre-k families.
• Providing Ready 4 Reading Readers for children 4 and under in low income child care centers and Medicaid waiting rooms who offer parents reading readiness fliers.
• Providing circulating book bags, as part of the Raising A Reader Program, in child care centers for home reading
• Holding workshops with parents to model reading techniques and provide books for home libraries.
• Orienting child care providers on how to motivate parents to read books and share positive language with parents and children.
• Hosting community-wide awareness events such as Early Language Fun with the Cat in the Hat.

Our Curriculum is Based on 6 Reading Readiness Skills

Reading research documents these six skills as the pre-reading skills a 5 year old child needs for reading readiness. During the first three years, from birth, infants and toddlers must build up their vocabulary and language background through repeated interactive experiences with parents, siblings, and providers to be able to acquire a storehouse of them. Our acclaimed newsletter focuses on a different reading readiness skill each month.

• Narrative skills-being able to describe things and events and tell stories
• Print motivation-being interested in and enjoying books
• Vocabulary-knowing the names of things and ideas
• Phonological awareness-being able to hear and play with the smaller sounds in words
• Letter knowledge-knowing letters are different than each other, knowing their names and sounds and recognizing letters everywhere
• Print awareness-noticing print, knowing how to handle a book and knowing how to follow words on a page

Check our News for happenings in our programs!