NCFL Literacy Now

Model Literacy Program
Pittsburg has embarked on a new literacy program based on this idea: “to encourage reading and improved literacy among children and adults in convenient locations around the city.” Way to go, Pittsburg!  From the Contra Costa Times.

Starfall
Starfall is primarily designed for first grade, but is also useful for pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and second grade.  The site walks children through the process of learning to read. It’s a very fun, interactive way to learn to read.  Great for parents, teachers and students.

Help Me Find a Book
For those looking for reading suggestions, this is a great page on the Sylvan Book Adventure site.  Just enter the child’s grade level, reading level and subject areas of interest, and a list of suggestions pops up.  Thanks to Anna on the Literacy is Priceless blog for this link.

Calling all family literacy teachers! It’s that time of year again.

This year marks the 13th annual Toyota Family Literacy Teacher of the Year award. This year’s winner will receive $7,500 for his or her family literacy program as well as a free trip to the 2009 National Conference on Family Literacy in Orlando, Florida.

The applications are available online by clicking here, and are due by December 5.

Here are the guidelines:
• The online nomination form should be completed by the program director or coordinator;
• It must include a statement of support for the nominated educator written by a parent/adult student;
• Programs may nominate up to two educators; and
• The nominated educator cannot have been a finalist in the past three years.

For more information, visit http://www.famlit.org/ToyotaTeacher. Good luck!

2008 Winner Katy Kibbey on the Jumbotron in Times Square.

NCFL would like to express our sincere thanks and excitement that Republic Bank has stepped up to the role of title sponsor of the 2008 Louisville Technology Acronym Bee (LTAB)!

The LTAB is our exclusive annual fundraising event held NCFL’s hometown of Louisville, KY. Since its inception six years ago, this competition/event has raised over $80,000 for our work — thanks to the generous support of community businesses and partners like Republic Bank.

 We’re registering teams and sponsors from the Louisville area now! To enter your tech team, attend the event, or just find out more about the LTAB, click here or visit www.famlit.org/LTAB.

International Children’s Digital Library
Their mission is “to excite and inspire the world’s children to become members of the global community - children who understand the value of tolerance and respect for diverse cultures, languages and ideas — by making the best in children’s literature available online.” A great resource for parents and teachers. Thanks to Angela Maiers for the link.

Beyond the Book: A New Role for Your Students
Students learn how to think creatively as Web researchers. From Edutopia.
Are you using technology in an innovative way in your program or classroom? More info coming soon about the $25,000 Verizon Tech Savvy Award.

Raising the Bar: How Parents Can Fix Education
From The Wall Street Journal.

Liza Benson is NCFL’s new Early Childhood Training Specialist.  She will be working with the FACE program.  Welcome to NCFL, Liza! 

Whenever I move somewhere new, one of the first things I do is get a library card.

So having the opportunity to work each day where literacy is the focus feels like a gift. For the past 11 years I have been working as a school psychologist and have seen the frustration and discouragement created when children struggle with reading and writing. In that role, interventions were often more reactive than proactive.

I am truly looking forward to having the opportunity to meet, work with, and support the teachers and families in the FACE program.

During the last week of every month, Resplendence Publishing donates a percentage of sales to a nonprofit, and this month they have chosen NCFL!  And on top of that, you get 15% off any e-book purchase when you enter NCFL15 at the checkout (hence the “Read Green”).

Just click here to save money while supporting NCFL.  But shop soon!  This limited-time offer ends August 30th.
 

The school year is back in full swing. And here’s your chance to share with other Literacy Now readers what’s in store now that the classrooms are full.

Post a comment about new technology you are using, resources you’ve run across this summer, or anything you are excited or nervous about for the upcoming year.

I’m looking forward to your responses, and have a great fall!

Photo by Robert Pollack.

Word Connect
A Tetris-like game for vocabulary review. Players even get to choose their own category of words. Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo for the link.

Federal grant to boost after-school programs at 17 high schools
Administrators at 17 area high schools will turn to teenagers for advice this fall in developing after-school programs.

High schools from Oceanside to Escondido and Valley Center have been awarded more than $2.8 million in federal grant money to enhance their after-school classes.

From the North County Times.

Students hit the streets
A story from Australia about making literacy fun. Thanks to Reading Rocket for the link.

The story “Companies Take Lead in Assimilation Efforts; Programs Aid Immigrant Workers” ran in the Washington Post on August 9.

NCFL knows the importance of educating immigrant families– the Toyota Family Literacy Program (TFLP) was created specifically for this population and has been extremely successful by improving parents’ English skills and helping them encourage their children’s success in school.

Read the letter to the editor from Sharon Darling published in yesterday’s Washington Post on the importance of funding and supporting efforts that teach critical education skills to more than one generation.

One more month of school
Avon Elementary is extending its school year for students who are behind in reading. From the Vail Daily.

Tickle your back-to-school funny bone
From the Today show, click the “Launch” button on the right side of the page for some back-to-school cartoons.

Never too late to learn
Marketing effort pushes diverse groups to get high school diploma. From The Sun News.

Boarding Schools Generate China’s Sport Stars
Everyone I know is caught up in Olympic fever. So today on the roundup I’m featuring a story on a different kind of school– athletic training schools in China. An interesting fact: The director of the Institute of Physical Science under the General Administration of Sports estimates that each Olympic gold medal has cost Beijing around $7 million. From NPR.