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Why Summer Reading Is Critical to Academic Success and Beyond
Summer reading isn’t just a way to pass the time during the long, lazy days; it’s a cornerstone of academic success and is pivotal in mitigating the educational backslide often experienced during the summer months, known as the “summer slide”. Engaging with books over the summer enhances comprehension skills, fosters a love for learning and helps develop critical thinking and ...
Episode 1: Reading is a Family Affair, Brilliant Together Podcast, featuring Raising a Reader and Little Free Library.
RAR’s CEO Michelle Torgerson and Lexie Neeley of Little Free Library joined a conversation hosted by Cassie Williams, Executive Director of K-12 Literacy for Detroit Public Schools for the first episode of the Brilliant Togeter Podcast! The episode dives deep into the impact reading has on strengthening family bonds and developing empathy and critical thinking skills. As highlighted by Torgerson, ...
Enhancing Summer Learning: Raising a Reader’s Perspective on the National Summer Learning Project
From the perspective of Raising a Reader, the findings of the National Summer Learning Project spearheaded by the Wallace Foundation affirm the necessity of summer learning opportunities to mitigate learning loss and promote academic achievement. This research, focusing on the effects of voluntary, district-led summer learning programs for low-income, urban elementary students, underscores several key areas where Raising a Reader’s ...
Bridging the Summer Gap: How Federal Initiatives and Community Can Unite to Combat Learning Loss
The Biden-Harris Administration’s Improving Student Achievement Agenda for 2024, particularly its emphasis on increasing summer learning and extended or afterschool learning time, aligns closely with initiatives like Raising a Reader’s Super Summer Learning Adventures Program (SSLA). SSLA is designed to activate summer learning in the home and help prepare children for the school year ahead. Through supporting families in reading ...
Partners Spotlight Series
Read the Room – Using Place and Space to Facilitate Reading
Leveraging technology, family reading and school readiness to improve healthy outcomes for children Caption: Worldreader’s BookSmart app and the Raising a Reader organization are helping to virtually fill the shelves of little libraries in “Kinder Ready” pediatric clinics. By Kristen Walter, Director of US Programs, Worldreader Every clinic waiting room has one: the frazzled adult with several kids in tow, ...
Summer Reading is Here. Get in Shape. Stay in Shape.
Reading over summer vacation may not be a priority for children, but parents and teachers should make it one. Why? Summer reading is critical for students to defeat summer learning loss and retain knowledge and skills learned in the previous school year and help prepare them for the upcoming school year. Students who don’t read are at risk of ...
Webinars
Can we talk about Bruno?
By Michelle Torgerson, President and CEO, Raising a Reader Can we talk about Bruno?! Is Encanto’s soundtrack playing on loop at your house? It is at mine, and we almost have all the songs memorized! The movie tells the story of the Madrigal family as they navigate their special powers within their community. So many people—young and old—are feeling seen ...
Empowering Parents to Engage Through Books
Empowering Parents to Engage Through Books As we enter into National Book Month, all of us at Raising a Reader were once again heartened by the Washington Post article late this summer, “How To Get Kids To Look Away From Their Screens and Take Pleasure in Books.” While we still find it discouraging that it appeared in the Lifestyle section ...
Press Releases
Investing in Summer Reading Programs: A Crucial Step towards Learning Recovery and Social Emotional Learning, Experts Say
Experts are emphasizing the critical role of summer reading programs in promoting learning recovery and fostering social emotional development. Investing in these programs has become an urgent necessity to address the widening educational gaps and support the development of our students. The disruptions caused by the pandemic have had a profound impact on education, with many students experiencing learning loss ...
We’re joining forces with Lit Lab
We are thrilled to announce Raising a Reader is joining forces with Lit Lab’s incredible community committed to serving children and their families, and are accepting the donation of LitLab’s kidappolis, designed for caregivers to support early learning in literacy, math, and science. The bilingual English/Spanish kidappolis app is is aligned with RAR’s mission to engage caregivers in a routine ...