Program Works with Libraries, Child Care Centers and Parents to Encourage Early Literacy



Youth Services Librarian Karen Mack provides early literacy

 tips to the parents of Sedona Head Start.

 

On Wednesday, April 23^rd, more than 30 parents of children enrolled in Sedona Head Start attended an early literacy event at the Sedona Public Library. The event celebrated Sedona Head Start’s participation in Raising a Reader, a program that works with child care centers and preschools to encourage parents to read to their children every day. Raising a Reader is a program of Yavapai College funded by First Things First in the Yavapai region.

Raising a Reader works like a mobile library. Each week, the 36 children between the ages of three to five years old at Sedona Head Start bring home red bags filled with books to read with their families, and exchange the books for new ones the following week. After doing this for about 15 weeks, Sedona Head Start will have a celebration in which all participating children will receive a free book and their very own blue book bag. Families are encouraged to use the blue book bag to continue bringing books home from the public library.

The majority of families in at the Sedona Library Raising a Reader event were Spanish speaking. With the help of a translator, Carolyn Shelley, Coordinator of Raising a Reader, spoke to the families about the importance of reading to children. “Reading is a great bonding activity, and strengthens the important relationship between you and your child” said Shelley. “It also supports children’s brain development, helping them get ready for school. Just 10 minutes of reading every day is enough to make a big difference.”

Youth Services Librarian Karen Mack also taught parents tips for reading to their young kids, including asking questions about pictures and characters, pointing to words, and having an enthusiastic attitude about books. A parent’s eagerness to read, Mack said, teaches kids that reading is valuable and fun. 

The Sedona Public Library is dedicated to reaching out to and supporting Sedona’s Spanish-speaking families, and has recently hired Pam Espinosa as their new Latino Services Librarian.  At the event, Espinosa made sure all families knew that Sedona Public Library is open to everyone. “The community of Sedona cares for you and your family’s wellbeing,” said Espinosa. After the event, Espinosa gave families a tour of the library and invited them to obtain a library card for each member of the family.

By encouraging parents to read more to their children and providing resources to help them do so, Raising a Reader, Sedona Head Start, and the Sedona Public Library are working to make sure all young children in Sedona are learning, ready to read and prepared to succeed. 

 

Raising a Reader is a program of Yavapai College funded by First Things First in the Yavapai Region. For more information about Raising a Reader, please contact Carolyn Shelley at (928) 776-2245.