The teachers and administrators of Dr. Charles A. Bejarano Elementary School in Miami, Arizona are dedicated to implementing innovative programs to help their Pre-K through second grade students become fluent readers. For the 2023 to 2024 school year, the school received a $3,000 grant from SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) to support family literacy nights that were part of the school’s “Reading Through the Seasons” program. These events were designed to motivate 250 students to read fiction and nonfiction books and encourage their families to be actively involved in their child’s education. The grant funds were used to purchase new books for the students, food and supplies needed for activities completed at the literacy events and materials used to advertise the events.
As part of the overall program, the students participated in many reading activities for each season. In the fall, they were able to read by “spotlight” with their families outside or inside the school. In the winter, books were distributed to all the children who attended the winter concert, and they could participate in a family project to disguise a snowman or gingerbread man. In the spring, the students rotated through science lesson-based activities. At the end of a season’s literacy event, each student was given a new book to add to their home library, giving all of the students access to books at home. This is very important for a town with a population of 1,353 with 26.4 percent living in poverty.
As part of the program’s evaluation process (in addition to the excitement evidenced by the students as they participated in activities with their family members) sign-in sheets were used to track the number of students and their families in attendance at each event. Families were also asked to rate their experience at each event and indicate which activity they found most enjoyable.
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