Only 44% of District of Columbia third graders score as proficient readers on the DC Comprehensive Assessment System (DC CAS). When broken down by race, 91% of white students are at reading proficiency but only 36% of African American students are (www.learndc.org/schoolprofiles/view#dc/reportcard).

Recognizing the long-term impact that below-grade level reading has on an individual and a community, the DC government put a heightened emphasis on early success, creating an Early Success Framework in 2012. The framework is “an effort to more closely coordinate across D.C. government agencies and community partners to ensure all District children develop and learn in nurturing and healthy environments.” (dmhhs.dc.gov/release/early-success-framework)

The library has long provided story times and other activities that support the early literacy skills of young children. The heightened focus on early success created an opportunity for the library to expand programming in support of parents and caregivers, those who have a critical influence in a child’s foundational years. For the library, this manifests as raising awareness of the critical role that reading readiness plays in preparing a child for success in school, and helping adults with low literacy skills learn techniques and best practice for incorporating early literacy activities into their everyday lives.

The Sing, Talk, and Read public awareness campaign is a collaboration of the library, the Offices of the Deputy Mayors for Education and Health and Human Services, and the State Early Childhood Development Coordinating Council (SECDCC), and received $500,000 in funding from the Mayor’s office and the SECDCC. The initial phase of the campaign was research: DCPL and partner agencies conducted focus groups in different areas of the city to gain a deeper understanding of what early literacy activities were in regular use, and where gaps in knowledge existed. One finding was that many parents believed their children would “catch up” once they started school. Based on the results, DCPL designed a targeted marketing and outreach strategy.

Over a three month period, the program blanketed the city in awareness materials, including advertisements in subway stations, on transit buses, on television and the radio, streaming radio services, and print newspapers. Street teams of staff and volunteers handed out information at subway stations, beauty salons, laundromats, places of worship, and more, all in an effort to get the Sing, Talk, and Read message to residents who don’t typically come into the library. Collateral materials include simple tips on how parents can incorporate singing, talking, and reading into their daily routines, and pointed them towards additional books, programs, and resources available at libraries. The library produced instructional videos for parents and caregivers and shared them on YouTube and also partnered with a partner radio station to receive weekly tips via text message.

The public awareness campaign culminated in an Early Literacy Festival at the central library, bringing more than 200 people together for information, resources, and entertainment.

The public awareness campaign was monitored and received an estimated 22.7 million impressions. Recognizing the critical nature of this work, the city recently allocated additional funding for the current and upcoming fiscal years. A second round of promotion and a second Early Literacy Festival are currently being planned. Moving beyond awareness to training, library staff are now leading STAR workshops for parents and caregivers to give training on STAR techniques. The goal is to provide practical tips, teach a simple rhymes, and demonstrate how to share books with children even if the parent is not a confident reader. Workshops are conducted in English and Spanish, and have taken place at daycare centers, in high school programs for teen parents, at community groups, and more.

Since September of 2013, about 40 workshops have taken place for more than 400 parents/caregivers. The library is also now leading a task force under the Mayor's Early Success Council focused on parent engagement, working with seven other city agencies ranging from the Office of the State Superintendent for Education to the Department of Behavioral Health. This task force will develop a strategy for aligning agency efforts at supporting parents in preparing their children to be reading at level by third grade.