It Takes a Library It Takes a Library to Raise a Child:to Raise a Child:

It Takes a Library It Takes a Library to Raise a Child:to Raise a Child:

Your Role in the Your Role in the

Ohio Ready to Read InitiativeOhio Ready to Read Initiative

WHAT IS IT?

Ohio Ready to Read is a joint initiative of the Ohio Library Council and State Library of Ohio to reach at-risk families on the importance of early learning.

www.ohreadytoread.org

Why is it important?

Governor Strickland has made it a

statewide priority

- Mentioned a last legislative day, as well as the February

2007 issue of the Ohio Library Council ACESS magazine

- Funding, funding, funding

Our communities need it

• Over 1/3 of Ohio Kindergartners start school unprepared to learn• For 60%, reading is not an easily acquired skill• 90-95% of poor readers can reach average reading skills with

early intervention• If intervention is delayed until 9 years, 75% still have difficulty• Knowledge of alphabet letters at start of Kindergarten is a

strong predictor of reading ability in 10th grade• Low income moms read only 25 hours to children before K

compared to average of 1,200 hours (22% of Westerville students are economically disadvantaged according to ODE stats from 2007-2008)

• KRAL (Kindergarten Readiness Assessment in Literacy) scores – 16.56% in Westerville need intense instruction

Pre-K programs are not enough

• Babies are born learning, and what they learn is up to adults

• The brain is especially receptive to stimulation in the area of language acquisition during the first three years.

• Synapse development greatest between ages 0-6• Physiological impact of stress on learning shows need for

safe, happy learning environments• Children need daily involvement, storytime is not

enough -- we have to reach the adults• Library has less stigma than other social service

agencies, is free, and has easy access, better hours

Synaptic Density

The bottom line…• The success of this initiative may well impact state

funding as well as local levy campaign• Legislators are more reluctant to take money away

from programs that benefit families and children’s education

• We need to be seen as good stewards of tax dollars, making an investment in our community

• Every $1 spent on early education/intervention saves $7 in the future

• Need to be seen as vital part of families’ lives

Early Literacy Defined

• Early literacy DOES NOT mean teaching the child how to read.

• Early literacy is what children know about reading and writing BEFORE they can actually read and write.

• Like building a foundation…

The Six Early Literacy Skills

• Print Motivation• Print Awareness• Letter Knowledge• Vocabulary• Phonological Awareness• Narrative Skills

Print Motivation

• The child’s interest in and enjoyment of books

• Why? Children who enjoy books and being read to will have an interest in learning to read.

Print Awareness

• Noticing print, knowing how to handle a book, and how to follow the written word on a page

• Why? When children feel comfortable with books, they can focus on reading.

Letter Knowledge

• Learning to name letters, knowing they have sounds, and recognizing them everywhere

• Why? To learn to read, children must understand that words are made up of smaller parts and each letter has its own role to play.

Vocabulary

• Knowing the names of things• Why? Children need to know the

meanings of words to help them understand what they are reading.

• Helps when kids start reading – like a mental database.

Phonological Awareness

• The ability to hear and play with smaller sounds in words

• Why? Will help children sound out words when they begin to read.

Narrative Skills

• The ability to describe things and events and tell stories

• Why? Being able to talk about and explain what happens in a story helps a child understand that meaning of what he or she is reading. Good narrative skills lead to good comprehension.

How do we do it?

Programming (and Stuff)

• Storytimes with interactive presentation styles, modeling behavior, talking directly to parents, hands-on experiences

• Parent workshops• Born to Read program• Making picture book room into an “Early

Literacy Center”• Creating an E. L. component to the Kids page

Outside storytime…• Depends on what you’re willing to do…• Distribute brochures to parents and talk

to them about early literacy, even if only to direct them to youth staff for more info.

• Talk to kids – like real people. Ask what they’re doing today. Ask what their favorite book in storytime was.

Outside storytime…• As checking families out or helping in

other ways, try to make some connection to the book the child has – “Oh, there’s a dog on your book – I love dogs! I have a brown one just like that!”

• Point to title of book while discussing with child.

Outside storytime…• Stamp kids hands with a letter

stamp – day of the week, first letter of name, etc.

• Greet kids by name, ask kids names

• Skill of the month

Outside storytime…

• Tip sheet to give out with DVDs (sample from the Lorain Public Library System)

Now it’s your turn…