Building Early Literacy, One Book at a Time.
Now in our third year with the program, we maintain several goals: to encourage a love of reading, to improve early literacy skills in reading and language acquisition, and to build confidence. Simply put, learning the basics of language at an early age is absolutely critical for healthy social development. In fact, early language proficiency is perhaps the most important factor for success in school and life. Research has proven that one of the most effective ways to help children develop language proficiency is to read with them, one-on-one, consistently. Our volunteers work with just one or two students once each week for 30 weeks. Some volunteers even return for a second year to continue working with the same students.
Our Read With Kids program launched in 2022-23 at Ford Early Learning Center in Ypsilanti, Michigan. That year, we brought over 30 volunteers to Ford each week, pairing each volunteer with two young children to share a love of reading during the first 30 minutes of the school day. We met weekly with over 50 children from four kindergarten classrooms, in a cafeteria alive with the excitement of reading great books, playing literacy-related games, strengthening early literacy skills, and making new friends. The program was immediately endorsed by teachers and administrators. We expanded for the 2023-24 school year to include Perry Early Learning Center. During the current 2024-25 school year, we will place over 100 volunteers at Ford and Perry. We hope to work with over 100 children this year, often one-on-one.
Many of the kids who participate in the Read With Kids program have very few opportunities to share a love of books with adults. Teachers do wonderful things with their students in school, but few have the time or opportunity to focus on just one or two children at a time for 30 minutes of uninterrupted reading. Many parents also find this difficult, particularly if they have few books in the home, other children to care for, or intense job responsibilities outside the home just to make ends meet. The Read With Kids experience can be the catalyst to inspire and motivate young children while helping them develop critical early reading skills.
Our Read With Kids program is now one of the largest of its kind in Michigan. It has grown because the need is profound, our approach is designed and facilitated by education experts with vast experience, and our volunteer recruitment, training, and support are unmatched. Our mission is to help give young children the best possible start in language acquisition. The importance of this cannot be overstated. With our partners at Children’s Literacy Network, we are determined to improve outcomes for under-resourced children in our community and are honored to be a valued partner of the Ypsilanti School District.