September 7, 2017

0-5 Express September 2017 Newsletter: Every Day Hero

Every Day Hero
Help us make a difference in our community.

Parents play the most powerful and influential role in their children’s lives. As their children’s first teacher, brain builder, technology navigator, advocate and coach, parents set the stage for success in the early years and early grades. Parents are the ones who can best ready children for school, establish good school attendance habits, and help to prevent summer learning loss. The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading recognizes that parents are the secret sauce!

Increasing the quantity and quality of conversations between young children and their parents is a key strategy of the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading’s (CGLR) work to boost brain development, early learning, school readiness, and ultimately the number of children reading proficiently by the end of third grade. In several CGLR communities, public awareness campaigns are exploring innovative ways to better involve parents and caregivers in closing the “30 Million Word Gap” – the wide gap, identified by researchers, in the number of words heard by low-income children vs. their wealthier peers that can lead to developmental delays predicting a steeper climb to literacy.

Working to promote early language development, the Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading is preparing to launch the Every Day Hero Text Messaging Campaign. The Campaign will deliver up to two text messages each week to parents.

Tips will be sorted by the following age groups:

0-1 Years Old — Infants

Sample Tip: Snuggle, grab a book & read together. Your baby will love the contact, hearing your voice & will absorb the words you say.

2-3 Years Old — Toddlers

Sample Tip: Grab a clean sponge & a bowl. Show your child how the sponge absorbs water & then squeeze it out. Describe it as you play.

4 Years Old — Pre-K

Sample Tip: Talk about what’s happening in every book instead of just reading it. Ask questions & share what you think of the story too.

5-8 Years Old – K-3rd Grade

Sample Tip: Sing songs, read rhyming books, and say silly tongue twisters together. Help kids become sensitive to the sounds in words.

Parents want what’s best for their kids, and SCGLR wants to be able to provide tools and encouragement to be an Every Day Hero!

Mind in the Making

A Learning Adventure Designed to Help You and Your Children Thrive

Mind in the Making’s (MITM) Seven Essential Skills Training Modules draw on brain development research to inform practices that lead to better outcomes for children through the promotion of essential skills. Each module provides participants the opportunity to reflect on their own experiences and practices, learn what researchers have discovered about how children learn best and discuss how to apply this research in their role as a parent, caregiver, or educator.

The Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading is committed to bringing this important resource to parents, grandparents, child-care professionals, early learning educators, and caregivers. If you are interested in individually participating in Mind in the Making workshops, or would like to have a series of workshops at your place of employment, church, or community organization, please contact the Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. For individuals looking to register for MITM during the month of September, click the link below for more information on Team Peral.

Mind in the Making Cohorts Currently Registering
1. MITM Flyer Team Pearl

Breakfast of Champions

The community is invited to attend the “Breakfast of Champions” 2017 Healthy Start Coalition Annual Meeting at the Laurel Oak Country Club. This FREE event will celebrate another year of accomplishments. While you’re there, be sure to check out the Suncoast Campaign For Grade-Level Reading information booth, where team members will be onsite to answer any questions you might have about Vroom and Mind In The Making.

Newsletter Signup

Do you have friends, family, colleagues or neighbors who you think would be interested in signing up for the monthly SCGLR Newsletter? If so, please share by using the sharing icons at the top of the newsletter. Research shows that proficiency in reading by the end of third grade enables students to shift from learning to read to reading to learn and to master the more complex subject matter they encounter in the fourth-grade curriculum. We look forward to sharing engaging news and updates with you. The Patterson Foundation respects your privacy and will not share or sell your contact information. To be added into the SCGLR or 0-5 Express newsletter distribution list, please click HERE. To be added into the Spanish 0-5 Express newsletter distribution list, please click HERE. Provide your first and last name in addition to your preferred email address.