ELCFV

Literacy Initiatives

Here at ELCFV, we are always looking for ways to promote emergent literacy skills in Flagler and Volusia Counties.

Sharing books with children as early as possible is imperative to their future success. Reading with your child is one of the best ways to stimulate brain development and build motivation for reading along with a sense of curiosity and memory. Studies have shown children with access to high-quality books and early education programs enter kindergarten better prepared to succeed.

There are several ways we assist providers in fostering emergent literacy skills.

Mr. Roger’s “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” Day

Happy Birthday, Mr. Rogers! Wednesday, March 20th is Won’t You Be My Neighbor Day?”

Fred Rogers left a legacy of helping children and their families treat everyone with respect and find the beauty all around them. Help honor his legacy and spread joy, beauty, and kindness in your neighborhood! Decorate your school’s sidewalk or playground with colorful art and words of kindness.

Send us your pictures and we will post on social media. The school with the most “likes” will receive a Daniel Tiger Neighborhood Scavenger Kit for each family in your school! All participating schools will receive books to grow your classroom libraries or family lending library. The first 30 schools to register will receive a pack of sidewalk chalk!

Other ways to celebrate Won’t You Be My Neighbor Day:

(Submit your photos if you do anything else to show we are helpful and kind in our community so we can share out!)

Think of ways you can be helpful in your neighborhood. Here are some suggestions (and give your families the opportunity to help you on these efforts!):

  • Send thank you notes or cards decorated by your kiddos to your community helpers
  • Collect old towels or dog/cat food to donate to local animal shelter
  • Host a bake sale/lemonade stand/garage sale and donate proceeds to a local charity
  • Host a food or book drive and donate to local charity

Read Across America Day

ELCFV celebrated Read Across America Day on Friday, March 1st with a shared reading event to help promote the importance of literacy and reading aloud with children.

Celebrate Literacy Week, Florida!

Each year, the Just Read, Florida! Office and the Florida Department of Education (FDOE), in partnership with other FDOE offices, the Office of Early Learning (OEL), school districts, early learning coalitions and numerous other state agencies, announce the annual statewide Celebrate Literacy Week, Florida!

Celebrate Literacy Week, Florida (January 22-26, 2024) is designed to raise awareness about the importance of reading and to inspire Florida’s children and families to make reading part of their daily routines. Providers across the state will read the same book at the same time to spread the love of literacy and stimulate language and cognitive skills.

This year our theme was Believe in Your “Shelf”- Building Resiliency Through Reading! Providers in our two counties participated by reading The Little Butterfly That Could by Ross Burach.

We invited leaders in our community to come out and help promote literacy and join the fun by signing up to be a guest Leader Reader. They brought their favorite childhood story to share with the children in your community with one of our child care providers.

World Read Aloud Day

LitWorld founded World Read Aloud Day® (WRAD) in 2010 to celebrate the power of reading aloud in creating community and amplifying new stories, and to advocate for literacy as a foundational human right. 

Why do we celebrate?

  1. Reading aloud at home and at school is one of the best ways to help children develop literacy skills.
  2. Reading aloud helps us share stories.
  3. Reading aloud helps us build community.

Find out more on how to celebrate in the
World Read Aloud Day Activity Hub!

Read for the Record

A campaign to foster language and social-emotional development. Each year, Jumpstart selects a book that will be read across the country and around the world by adults and children on Read for the Record day. Books are available in both English and Spanish and come with activity guides and resources to help your center or child care expand on the story.

When the next Read for the Record happens, we will send out an email to those centers and child cares we contract with so they can sign up to participate. From there, we take care of ordering the book and even coordinate providing a volunteer to read to your classroom if you so choose.

Fourteen of our providers participated in Read for the Record this year, impacting about 400 children. Teachers and volunteers read the book The Greatest Adventure by Tony Piedra. We hope you can join us in October 2024!

Interested in Volunteering?