Routes to ReadingIdaho Paves the Way with Access to Print

Read to Me Vision

Our vision is for all parents and caregivers to nurture their children’s early literacy skills,

and for all children to develop as independent readers and become lifelong learners.

Three-Pronged Approach

1)Outreach2)Public Information

3)Professional Development

Idaho received a National Leadership Grant to Advance

Early Literacy

National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

$250,000 over three yearsJ.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation provided

a cash match of $30,000In-kind support from Idaho Kids CountFunding and support from ICfL & Read to Me

What’s the Plan?

We hope to significantly increase the amount of reading done in Idaho homes and child care settings.

Target audience is low-income rural families with young children.

This project will support children’s early learning by greatly increasing convenient access to quality children’s books and providing information for parents and caregivers on how they can help develop their children’s early literacy skills.

The number of Idaho children who are not reading on grade level leads to a large number of students who do not complete high school or go on to college.

Only 33 percent of Idaho’s fourth graders scored proficient or higher on the National Assessment of Educational Progress; thirty-six percent scored at the basic level and 31 percent below basic.

Reading scores have important implications for later achievement. Basic readers are more than twice as likely as proficient readers to fail to graduate from high school. Below basic readers are almost six times as likely to fail to graduate.

Scores from the Idaho Reading Indicator show that 19

percent of children entering kindergarten in 2011 did not recognize three or more letters of the alphabet. Another 25 percent recognized fewer than 11.

The earlier we can help these children the better. Research shows that children who are not reading on grade level by the end of first grade only have a 1 in 8 chance of ever catching up without costly direct intervention.

Implement the new Books to Go Program

Statewide

By partnering with Head Start, preschools, childcare centers, and home-based childcare providers to place Books to Go at these locations, parents and caregivers will have convenient, continuous access to pre-packaged books.

By the end of the grant program, 250 sites statewide will have access to the program.

Implement a Statewide“Virtual Storytime”

through DayByDayID.org

Many families and child care providers are not able to attend library storytimes. DayByDayID.org will deliver storytimes using a parent-friendly website with daily activities designed to develop early literacy skills. It will include:• Electronic children’s books in English & Spanish• Fingerplays, Rhymes, Songs• Video clips modeling best practice…and other educational information.

Communication, Collaboration, and Coalition Building

• Increase awareness regarding the valuable role libraries play to ensure children begin school with a strong foundation of early literacy skills.

• ICfL is facilitating four meetings throughout Idaho to build local coalitions and ensure that the projects started with the grant are sustainable at the community level. Library staff and their community partners will collaboratively examine the results of grant projects, build on successes, and identify opportunities for improvement.

Register now: http://libraries.idaho.gov/communitycampaign

• Years 2 and 3 of the grant includes working with a media firm to develop a coordinated, consistent message in English and Spanish that libraries and partners can utilize.

Other Routes:

School Libraries: mini-grants, collaboration with public libraries, continuing ed opportunities

All other Read to Me programs that encourage families to read and use their libraries

Elementary School Library Survey

Idaho Public Elementary School Library Study: Children’s Access to Books, September, 2012

375 public elementary school libraries in Idaho

All of them were contacted for the survey

247 chose to respond for a 65.9% response rate

93.5% of respondents reported managing the library

Table 3: Number of Books Per Week Allowed for Checkout by Grade Level and Semester: Percentages of Respondents

NumberPre Fall (n=107)

Pre Spring

(n=104)

K Fall (n=243)

K Spring (n=245)

1st Fall (n=247)

1st Spring (n=246)

0 73.8 75.0 29.2 15.9 2.0 2.0

1 13.1 13.5 47.3 55.1 47.8 36.6

2 2.8 2.9 9.9 14.7 29.6 38.2

3-5 0 0 5.0 5.2 7.2 8.9

>5 .9 0 3.3 3.7 9.3 10.2

Don’t Know

9.3 8.7 5.3 5.3 4.0 4.1

Table 6: Book Budget Dollar Amount Ranges: Percentages and Cumulative Percentages of Response

Dollar Amount Percent of

RespondentsCumulative Percent

0-100 27.9 27.9

200-500 15.8 43.7

600-1000 18.6 62.3

1000-5000 30.0 92.3

Over 5000 .8 93.1

Don’t Know 6.9 100

Inkom Elementary Model: Checking Out Lots of Books Can Work!

Recommendations From Dr. Stewart

•Budgets for books need to increase, and substantially so;

•Once the number of high quality books for young children

increases in school libraries, then check-out practices need to

quickly change;

•These changed practices need to be codified in policy so as

personnel change and circumstances change policies will be in

place to guide these changes;

•Teachers need professional development showing them why

regularly using the library benefits their teaching and their

students’ literacy development; and

•Librarians need professional development showing them the

importance of young children regularly using the library to take

books home and showing them creative ways to reach out to

preschool and primary grade teachers who may not have the

time or support for extensive library use.

Free support materials & more

Website: http://libraries.idaho.gov/landing/read-to-me

Free support materials for anyone in the state

Léeme en españolLots of information on

websiteWorking with state and local

partners to spread the word

Questions? Concerns? Ideas?