In 2007, Thrive by Five Washington began putting effective early learning research into action. We developed a grantmaking strategy to increase the quality of early learning through three initiatives: Nurturing Families, Culture of Literacy and School Connections, all of which are based on the latest research done in Washington State and across the country.

Nurturing Families -  Studies show that young children learn best when the significant adults in their lives are interested in and engaged with them. Yet, while most parents understand the significance of a child’s development from ages three to five, they are less clear about development from birth to age three.

Nurturing Families helps parents understand how brain development and social-emotional growth affect their children’s later success. It teaches parents to strengthen the bonds with their children as a way to prepare them for the future. The result is families in which children can realize their full potential during and after the critical early years.

Culture of Literacy - For this first step in our Culture of Literacy is essential because success in K-12 education depends on the ability to understand and acquire language. But literacy starts much earlier than alphabet recognition in kindergarten. It is a direct outgrowth of the parent-child interaction, especially the time the parent spends engaging the child in conversation. Our Culture of Literacy initiative helps parents prepare their children to effectively express themselves verbally and in writing.

In collaboration with the Department of Early Learning, we awarded more than $1 million in Reading Readiness grants in 2007. We made these grants to organizations that serve children from low-income or rural areas, whose parents speak a language other than English or who are at risk of starting kindergarten unprepared. These grants serve thousands of children and families. The outcomes of this program will be rigorously evaluated to identify effective practices for early learning literacy.

2007 READING READINESS GRANT RECIPIENTS:

• Tukwila Children’s Foundation offers themed evening sessions for parents in pre-reading, pre-math and social-emotional skills to help them prepare their child for kindergarten. The Foundation is working to translate its text and provide outreach to at-risk families. ($118,979)
  
  
• Educational Service District 101 serves Ferry, Stevens and Pend Oreille counties, including the Kalispell Indian Reservation, by offering family-based literacy programs to 110 children ages 3 to 5 and their families and teachers. ($110,972)
  
  
• Catholic Family & Child Service offers group meetings and home visits to share culturally appropriate child development and reading readiness activities in Kittitas County, serving low-income and Latino families. $120,000)
  
  
• Seattle Public Library Foundation serves an estimated 270 children and 500 parents, caregivers and preschool teachers, emphasizing the value of home languages and home culture. A weekly rotation of books cultivates a routine of reading aloud and provides bonding time for parents and children. The program teaches parents read-aloud strategies that enhance their child’s ability to hear words, connect sounds with letters, and enrich their vocabulary and story comprehension. ($80,850)
  
  
• Children’s Home Society offers Early Literacy Play and Learn Groups for parents and family friend and neighbor caregivers in Walla Walla County’s College Place community. The project serves 60 high need families including those with children with disabilities and homeless families. ($108,117)
  
  
• Wenatchee Valley College targets the more than 1,500 children under the age of 5 living in poverty in Chelan and Douglas counties, particularly those children not already served by Head Start or ECEAP. Bicultural and bilingual early literacy specialists work with 180 parents and 50 child care providers over a nine-month period in six north central Washington school districts: Brewster, Bridgeport, Chelan, Cascade, Wenatchee and Eastmont. ($120,000)
  
  
• Olympic Educational Service District 114 is establishing a regional reading foundation to promote community awareness of early literacy and help school districts establish ongoing, sustainable funding for early learning initiatives on the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas. The region includes eight tribal nations and seven military installations. ($119,897)
  
  
• Bremerton School District is expanding its early childhood care and education partnership to provide literacy instruction for 600 parents of young children through interactive literacy centers in child care classrooms and an array of take home activities, books and games that bring literacy to life. ($120,000)
  
  
• Northwest Educational Service District 189 is targeting three of the highest-need elementary schools in the Mount Vernon and Burlington-Edison school districts, where significant achievement gaps persist for Latino students. The project supports 160 Latino parents using reading, storytelling and other language experiences to improve school readiness. ($120,000)
  
  
• Child Care Action Council is expanding its existing services in Thurston and Mason counties to reach 1,400 children and launch services to 200 more in rural Lewis County. The Raising a Reader program inspires low-income and limited English speaking families as well as teen parents to engage in “bookcuddling” with their children ages 0 to 5 for at least 20 minutes each day. ($97,100)
  
  
• Longview Public Schools in Cowlitz County focuses on language and literacy activities for very young children, by offering classes for Latino families and teen-age parents and follow-up with parents and children together. The project is providing services for 120 families, ($76,116)
  
  
• Benton Franklin Head Start, along with the Mid Columbia Reading Foundation and the Mid-Columbia Library, uses a three-pronged strategy to assist children of low-income parents understand the how and why’s of becoming a reader. The project is helping 500 Head Start parents learn about their children’s early literacy progress, launch an early reading campaign for Latino families and connect participating families with their public libraries. ($120,000)
  
  
• Reach Out and Read is launching the first phase of the Reach Out and Read (ROR) Washington State Expansion Project. ROR is an evidence-based program that trains doctors and nurses to advise parents about the importance of reading aloud and gives books to children at pediatric check-ups from ages 6 months to 5. This is the beginning of a five-year expansion plan to strategically reach an additional 70,000 children living in high-need communities around the state. ($120,000)
  
  
• National Children’s Reading Foundation is expanding its leadership to allow it to provide start-up support and mentoring for four new reading foundations and coordinate a statewide school readiness campaign. ($120,000)

"Funding partners to Thrive by Five Washington recognize that a strategically coordinated mix of public and private dollars will yield the greatest impact for Washington's youngest children."

Reading Readiness Spring 2008 Learning Session

On March 27th, Thrive by Five hosted a panel discussion with our Reading Readiness grantees around the question, "How do we help children learn to read the world and acquire language and literacy?" Expert panelists included Dr. Colleen Huebner (University of Washington), Dr. Cara Garcia (Pepperdine University) and Dr. Graciela Italiano-Thomas (Thrive by Five Washington).

View streamed video of the 2-hour event [or purchase a DVD]

View graphic depictions of the Learning Session

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