Posted by From the Dallas South News Wire
Excited Dallas-area moms are getting ready for AVANCE-Dallas Reading Week, March 8 to 12, 2010, when 600 area moms will read to 10,000 pre-K, kindergarten and first grade children in 34 Dallas, Mesquite and Irving ISD elementary schools.
AVANCE-Dallas moms use the training they have received at AVANCE-Dallas along with books and curriculum supplied through KERA’s Read with Me family literacy project to incorporate their own creativity and determination to instill a love for reading in young children.
The moms participate in AVANCE-Dallas Parent-Child Education Programs or Parent-Child Book Clubs to promote childhood literacy within their families and community. These programs train parents in the role of “first teachers” to help children develop the habit and love of reading through weekly interactive literacy activities and enhanced instruction. The AVANCE-Dallas goal is to help parents develop the habit of reading to their children at least five times per week.
“Studies show that parental engagement and support is the key factor in improving literacy skills and success in school,” said Lisa Oglesby-Rocha, Executive Director of AVANCE-Dallas. “The goal of this project is to build the confidence of our mothers and connect them with an opportunity to become more engaged with their local school – even before their child enters kindergarten. Volunteering to read to a classroom full of young children was a perfect chance to accomplish both goals and establish a connection between the parents and the school that will last throughout their child’s education.”
“I thought that it was a wonderful experience for our kids,” said Connie Hovseth, Principal at Gabe P. Allen Elementary School. “I was really surprised, because I’ve had readers come from different professions and they didn’t have this kind of enthusiasm. These moms had our kid’s attention the whole time. We’d like to have this become a regular part of our program.”
The AVANCE-Dallas program uses books and curriculum supplied through KERA’s Read with Me family literacy project and the Dallas Public Library’s Every Child Read to Read @ Dallas program. KERA’s Read with Me parent training curriculum uses a multimedia approach to help parents support their children as they acquire language skills in preparation for reading. KERA supports early literacy throughout North Texas by working with childcare providers, school districts, and community organizations like AVANCE-Dallas to distribute books to young children. KERA also provides early literacy workshops for parents and caregivers. Since 2000, KERA and AVANCE-Dallas have worked together to distribute over 15,000 books to low income families.
Danny Henley, Director of Education with KERA, said, “AVANCE-Dallas inspires mothers to take an influential part in their child’s education by helping them to embrace their role as their child’s first teacher. AVANCE moms have demonstrated tremendous leadership by sharing their excitement about reading with thousands more children in their local schools.”
In a recent evaluation conducted by the University of North Texas, Dr. Martha Peet looked at the impact of AVANCE-Dallas Parent/Child Book Clubs utilizing KERA’s Read with Me curriculum during an eight-week pilot project in the Vickery Meadows community in Dallas. At the beginning of the project, 42% of the mothers reported reading to their children three or more times per week. At the conclusion of the project, 95% of the mothers were reading to their children three or more times per week.
The following Dallas, Mesquite and Irving ISD schools will be participating in AVANCE-Dallas Reading Week:
West Dallas
Gabe P. Allen Elementary
Lorenzo de Zavala Elementary
Sidney Lanier Expressive Arts Vanguard
Oak Cliff
Arcadia Park Elementary
Felix Botello Elementary
James Bowie Elementary
Jimmie T. Brashear Elementary
Lelia Cowart Elementary
Anson Jones Elementary
George Peabody Elementary
Peeler Elementary
Stevens Park Elementary
Bachman Lake
Leonidas Gonzalez Cigarroa Elementary
David Burnet Elementary
F.P. Caillet Elementary
Stephen C. Foster Elementary
Julian T. Saldivar Elementary
Vickery Meadow
L.L. Hotchkiss Elementary
Jack Lowe, Sr. Elementary
East and Central Dallas
S.S. Conner Elementary
James Fannin Elementary
John F. Kennedy Elementary
Esperanza Hope Medrano Elementary
O.M. Roberts Elementary
Ignacio Zaragoza Elementary
Love Field
Obadiah Knight Elementary
Pleasant Grove
John Q. Adams Elementary
Annie Webb Blanton Elementary
Edward Titche Elementary
Urban Park Elementary
Mesquite
Floyd Elementary
John L. Hanby Elementary
Irving
Pierce Early Childhood Center
/