School Resources
The United States Department of Educations sponsors a number of programs to improve teaching and to support learning gains. Various community organizations also seek to tap into local talent to bring volunteers into schools to help children experience the joy of reading, receive free books, and improve their literacy skills.
TeachableMoment.Org provides educators with teaching ideas to encourage critical thinking on issues of the day and foster a positive classroom environment. It is a project of Educators for Social Responsibility Metropolitan Area.
The Reading Success Network (RSN) is one example of a U.S. Department of Education program operated by the Network of Comprehensive Centers and designed to improve teaching and learning. The purpose of the RSN is to improve student reading achievement by developing a national network of trainers of teacher-coaches who support classroom teachers' efforts to provide powerful instruction in reading. The comprehensive centers provide support, training, and follow-up to the teacher-coaches engaged in this important reading initiative.
Rolling Readers and Everybody Wins! are not-for-profit organizations that facilitate collaborations between schools, community agencies, and local businesses to help children experience the joy of reading, receive free books, and improve their literacy skills.
The Knowledge Loom is a Web-based professional learning resource managed by the Education Alliance at Brown University. It features collections of K-12 best practice resources and draws on the work of nationally-recognized technical assistance organizations, researchers, schools, and districts.
The Forum for Youth Investment is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to helping communities make sure all young people are ready for work, college, and life by age 21. The Forum provides youth and adult leaders with information, technical assistance, training, network support, and partnerships opportunities to increase the quality and quantity of youth investment and involvement.
BookPALS was founded on the clear premise that in order for children, especially those who are non-native English speakers or are not read to at home, to learn to read, they must experience books and develop a love for reading. An all-volunteer team of professional actors (SAG, AFTRA, and EQUITY members) reads aloud to children at public elementary schools in at-risk neighborhoods, helping introduce them to the world of reading and literacy though story telling -- the actor's craft.
