Nemours® Reading BrightStart! A Parent's Guide to Reading Readiness - English
Learning to read is one of the major milestones in a child's life, and it's one that parents worry about. This guide gives parents information on how to support their child on his or her reading journey. Now parents of children, aged three to five years old, have the power to ensure their child becomes a successful reader.
About Nemours BrightStart!
Nemours BrightStart! creates programs to support early identification and treatment for young children at risk for reading failure, a major child health issue that affects many American children. The work begins with pre-kindergarteners, when preventive action can help the most.
Every part of this program is designed to raise awareness about the warning signs of dyslexia and other causes of reading failure, and offer guidance to help prevent young, vulnerable learners from falling behind their peers. Numerous programs are offered for struggling learners, parents, teachers and health care providers, in addition to informing entire communities about reading failure, dyslexia and keys to reading success. Nemours BrightStart! also measures its impact and contributes valuable new insights through scientific research and program evaluation.
Nemours BrightStart! services take place out in the community: in child care centers, schools and other locations where children and families gather, increasing access to the Nemours legacy of scientific and clinical expertise. To date, Nemours BrightStart! programs have incubated in Jacksonville, FL, to develop unique services with proven effectiveness. The results and impact have been remarkable:
- Over 9,400 pre-kindergarteners have been screened on early literacy skills
- Over 1,500 at-risk children have received Nemours BrightStart!’s intensive educational intervention
- Two-thirds of participating at-risk children have moved to the typical range in their reading readiness skills, after receiving the Nemours BrightStart! educational intervention
- At-risk pre-kindergarteners who participate in Nemours BrightStart!'s intensive educational intervention gain an average of 128% on their reading readiness scores upon completion of the program. By comparison, their typically developing peers gain an average of 25% over the same time period. This is strong evidence that Nemours BrightStart! is closing the achievement gap for at-risk children.
- The majority continue to display strong reading performance into the early elementary school grades
- Program results have been presented in peer-reviewed presentations and the Journal of Learning Disabilities (2009)
- Mobile classroom units have introduced thousands of families to key concepts about reading development and reading failure
- Parents, teachers, and professionals have attended presentations on reading development, reading failure, and dyslexia, raising community awareness on these important topics
Unique Service. Extraordinary Results.
Dyslexia occurs in 15 to 20% of the population, and reading failure affects 30% or more of our nation’s children. All aspects of a child’s development may suffer as a consequence, making it a major child health issue. Nemours BrightStart! is the only program of its kind nationwide and combines expertise from the fields of child health, early childhood and reading to design unique and impactful services and products:
- Unique educational program specifically designed for at-risk pre-kindergarteners, which has a proven remarkable impact on youngsters’ reading readiness rates.
- A Tool Kit for Pediatricians on reading readiness, to help them identify children at risk for reading problems and counsel parents on ways to help
- Informative, engaging professional development presentations for educators and health care providers
Nemours BrightStart! products and services are now available for purchase, so other communities can reap the benefits of this innovative approach to prevention of reading failure.
Improving Lives For Children and Their Families
Nemours BrightStart! is a life-changing program for children at risk for reading failure and their families. Reading is the foundation for all school success, without which a child often experiences chronic failure, self-doubt, emotional and behavioral problems that can have negative consequences for a lifetime. Nemours BrightStart! helps parents, teachers, and health care providers understand the causes and solutions for struggling readers, and provides valuable information to put them on the road to reading success.
Part of the Nemours System of Care
Through strategic integration with other Nemours programs, Nemours BrightStart! provides a continuum of child health services from prevention to tertiary care. Combining the pediatric medical and research expertise within Nemours, with expertise from the fields of early childhood education and learning disorders, makes Nemours BrightStart! a truly unique program and the only one of its kind. This initiative is a perfect illustration of the Nemours commitment to comprehensive child health, over and above child health care. The very existence of Nemours BrightStart! is a wonderful example of the Nemours mission and vision.
Special Awards & Recognition
- Featured in national documentary, “Demystifying Dyslexia,” 2006
- Featured on Good Morning America Health 2009
- Dr. Laura Bailet, Executive Director, received Jacksonville’s prestigious EVE Award in 2006 for innovative Nemours BrightStart! program
- First-year research outcomes published in peer-reviewed Journal of Learning Disabilities (2009)
- Recipient of grants and contracts that support and extend our work
- Featured in the Florida Times Union newspaper 2007-2009
- Featured in the Orlando Sentinel newspaper 2008
- Featured in Florida Trend Magazine 2006 and 2008
- Nemours BrightStart! mobile classrooms received an Addy Award for the wrap design
