Reading Rockets offers a wealth of reading strategies, lessons, and activities designed to help young children learn how to read and read better. Our reading resources assist parents, teachers, and other educators in working with struggling readers who require additional help in reading fundamentals and comprehension skills development.
Community Programs
Family literacy programs, tutoring programs, and other community-based efforts can all have an impact on parenting and literacy skills. Read more about the qualities of successful programs and the steps community groups can take to help a child become a reader.
This section contains 20 articles.
Display: | Summaries | Titles only |
Where can your school, library, or community group find free or low-cost books for kids? There are a number of national organizations and programs that can help!
The U.K.'s National Literacy Trust offers ideas that schools and nonprofit organizations can implement to get fathers involved in their children's reading.
A Novel Idea: Joining City Reading Programs
This article describes how the school districts of Seattle, Chicago, and Los Angeles have linked up with community reading programs to encourage residents of entire cities to all read the same book at the same time. These literacy efforts, spearheaded by public libraries, are seen as good motivational tools for students. Some critics contend, however, that if the programs don't contain a strong link to schools' curriculum, educational goals can get lost amid community hype.
Home Visiting Program Helps Toddlers Fill Learning Gaps
The Parent-Child Home Program, a Manhasset, NY-based home visiting instigative for 2- and 3- year old children which has operated in Massachusetts and New York for years, is now proving so successful that it is expanding service to four other states. The PCHP focuses on children who are deemed to be at the greatest risk of failure in school – those with low-income parents who have limited education.
Head Start is a Federal program for preschool children from low-income families. The Head Start program is operated by local non-profit organizations in almost every county in the country.
Family literacy programs help parents improve both their parenting and literacy skills while providing young children with early childhood education. The parenting component often includes in-home visits and enrichment activities. Learn more in this overview of the components of family literacy programs.
Even Start: Building on Families' Existing Strengths
The best family literacy programs share certain curricular components, but are tailored to meet the needs of the diverse families they serve. This digest describes how Even Start has led to the development of many different family literacy programs.
Helping children become readers is a team effort. Learn about the roles families, caregivers, teachers, and whole communities play in helping children learn to read in this brief overview.
Non-Profits: A Pro-Literacy Tradition
From free books to home visits, non-profit organizations play an important role in promoting reading. Learn about some of the non-profits with a commitment to helping children become readers.
Steps Employers Can Take to Help Every Child Become a Reader
Not just educational institutions can play a role in preventing illiteracy. Find out what steps employers can take to help more children learn to read.
Steps Community Groups Can Take To Help Every Child Become a Reader
Not just educational institutions can play a role in preventing illiteracy. Find out what steps organizations can take to help more children learn to read.
How to Help Every Child Become a Reader
When communities work together, they can improve the reading achievement of their children. Learn what efforts need to be made with preschool and school-aged children in order to improve reading achievement in America.
How Community Groups Can Serve Children Who Most Need Help
Helping kids learn to read is a great goal for community groups. An important step for all groups is to not only define how to help, but also to identify the children in the community who could must benefit from what you do. This article provides tips for finding and serving these children.
A tutoring program that will best serve children's needs should be carefully developed with those needs in mind. Here are eight steps to developing a tutoring program, from setting goals to developing a curriculum.
When tutors work closely with teachers and are provided with intensive, ongoing training, they can make a difference in a child's reading success. Learn what researchers have found about the elements of tutoring programs that lead to increase reading achievement.
What Concerned Citizens Can Do to Help All Children Read
From becoming a tutor to helping at the local library, there are concrete steps concerned citizens can take to help more children learn to read. Learn about these and more steps community members can take towards this goal.
What Community Groups Can Do to Help All Children Read
From starting a volunteer reading program to getting families involved, there are concrete steps community groups can take to help more children learn to read. Learn about these and more steps religious, cultural, and community organizations can take towards this goal.
Schools as Community Learning Centers
When schools are community learning centers, their doors don't lock at 3:00 p.m. Learn facts about the importance of and need for extended day and summer programs in schools.
Creating Programs for Language Minority Families
For language minority families, learning English is a key component of family literacy programs. This article describes questions to consider when establishing a program for language minority families.
Urban areas have a high percentage of young single parents who can benefit from support from their neighborhood schools. This article describes a variety of approaches for serving these parents.
"I use Reading Rockets for professional growth and share with others in my role as a literacy support teacher."
~ Sharon S.
Kids Who Struggle |
Teaching Reading |
Books & Authors |
Articles from A-Z
Our Shows on PBS |
Podcasts & Video |
Webcasts |
Blogs about Reading |
Reading Research
Reading Store |
Free Reading Guides |
Reading Resources |
Today's Reading News
For Teachers |
For Other Professionals |
For Families
En español |
Newsletters |
Calendar
Home Page |
About Reading Rockets |
Contact Us |
Link to Reading Rockets
Privacy Policy |
Terms & Conditions |
Site Map
Reading Rockets is a national multimedia project that offers research-based and best-practice information on teaching kids to read and helping those who struggle. It is an educational service of public television station WETA in Washington, D.C.
Visit WETA's educational web sites:
© Copyright 2008. All rights reserved. Reading Rockets is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Reading Rockets® is a registered trademark of WETA.
Stay informed! Subscribe to our e-mail newsletters.