More Than 1,300 Literacy Buddies Paired for Success in 2010-2011 School Year

May 3, 2011 - PRLog -- More than 1,300 children in Southwest Florida have received the gift of literacy through the kindness of others this school year. Via the Early Learning Coalition of Southwest Florida’s (ELC) “Literacy Buddies” program, 3 to 4 year old children were paired with community volunteers in an effort to increase literacy. Forty-nine childcare providers were involved in this multi-county program.

A Literacy Buddy agrees to receive letters from a child in an early learning facility served by the Early Learning Coalition. The Buddy, will in turn, send a letter and a high quality book to this child in response. This exchange will take place three times over the course of a school year. The purpose is to teach children about correspondence, communication and instill appreciation of reading. For some of children, this provides the only opportunity to have books of their own at home.

Literacy Buddies has direct, measurable results. In nearly every case the child’s communication skills are positively impacted and visible via letters and verbal communication changes. You can be directly involved in enriching the lives of many children through your participation in this program!

“We are thrilled to share that every child enrolled in the program was matched with a buddy,” commented Jill Corbett, Assessment Coordinator. “Exposure to attentive buddies who respond to the child’s interests has resulted in significant improvements in writing skills and curiosity about the world of books and interesting stories.”

In existence for three years, the purpose of Literacy Buddies is to help young, pre-elementary school aged children develop and excel in literacy. For more information on the Literacy Buddies initiative or to download an application for next year, please visit http://www.elcofswfl.org/downloads-literacy_buddy_project... or email
literacybuddies@gmail.com with your name, address and phone number.

The Early Learning Coalition of Southwest Florida exists to enhance the quality of children's lives by providing low income families, early childhood educators, care-givers and community partners in Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee Counties, with opportunities to positively impact the future. For details on our many services or to donate, please visit http://www.elcofswfl.org or call (239) 267-4105.

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We serve the families of Collier, Glades Hendry and Lee Counties. It is our goal to make certain that children ages birth to five and beyond, have access to high quality early education experiences to cultivate their natural enthusiasm for learning.