Free reading help for parents of kids 8 and under from Reading Partners Sac

Originally published on News 93.1 KFBK by Kitty O’Neal

Nonprofit Launches Critical Student Support Including Literacy Tips and Activities Via Text

Families and caregivers across the nation are invited to sign up today by texting the word READ to 274448 or by signing up online. The sign-up process takes less than a minute.  Free.

Reading Partners, an early literacy nonprofit dedicated to mobilizing community volunteers to tutor students in under-resourced schools, today announces its partnership with Bright by Text to provide content-rich, literacy focused text messages to parents and caregivers to help support young students. The family texting program was quickly expanded in response to widespread COVID-19 school closures and is now a free resource for all students and families across the country (texting and data rates may apply), whether they are part of the Reading Partners program or not.

The Bright By Text program, available in both English and Spanish, was strategically chosen by Reading Partners due to its text messaging capability as the digital divide in America persists in economically disadvantaged American households. The platform will send two messages a week providing literacy tips, facts, and activities to parents and caregivers of five- to eight-year-olds, with content created from Reading Partners best practices and evidence-based program. In addition to the two Reading Partners messages, parents will receive information from Bright by Text about STEM, caregiver resilience, and more.

In addition to the Bright By Text partnership, Reading Partners Sacramento is deploying a number of other resources to support students who are out of school due to the COVID-19 public health emergency:

• Family Literacy Resources– Reading Partners has created a range of detailed, easy-to-use literacy strategies for families in English and Spanish.
• Live Virtual Read Alouds– Reading Partners teams will use online spaces, like Zoom, to facilitate live read alouds available to both Reading Partners and non-Reading Partners students.
• Anytime Read Aloud Videos– Reading Partners AmeriCorps members will record virtual read aloud videos featuring high-quality diverse texts. Reading Partners families and students will be able to access virtual read aloud links at any time.

Reading Partners seeks to secure necessary funding to keep the organization whole and responsive to the changing needs of the students and communities it serves. The best way to create quality academic opportunities for students during this challenging time is to make a contribution directly on Reading Partners’ website. Those interested in making a major contribution, are encouraged to contact donate@readingpartners.org. Each gift will help ensure critical literacy resources reach students, whether in their classrooms or homes.