Readers 2 Leaders

Readers 2 Leaders Creates Access to Literacy-Readers 2 Leaders is creating a Dallas where all children read at or above grade level. Our mission is to equip students for success through the power of reading. Through a high-quality, research-based literacy tutoring model and in partnership with schools, non-profits, and families, Readers 2 Leaders meets students where they are with reading intervention and enrichment supports that will help them reach their academic goals and transform their lives. Our team focuses on reaching students in the early elementary years who dont have access to other resources due to economic inequality and systemic racism.Readers 2 Leaders (R2L) launched its literacy intervention programs in 2011 and is a registered 501(c)3 based in West Dallas with partner sites throughout Dallas County. We reach students through strategic partnerships with Dallas Independent School istrict, independent schools, and partner nonprofits, as well as through programs at our own facility.Today, Readers 2 Leaders operates two main programs: R2L Tutoring provides research-based, high-dosage tutoring services to children in kindergarten through 5th grade during In-School, After-School, and Summer Camp programs; R2L Coaching equips adults to impact the long-term literacy outcomes of their students through ongoing training and accompaniment, extending our impact to hundreds of additional students per year. R2L Tutoring and Coaching served 1673 students and 301 adults in the 2022-23 school year and summer. Through Coaching, we impact hundreds of additional adults and students as our program participants take their new knowledge and tools into their communities.Reaching Students Where They Are Through Tutoring and Coaching-Readers 2 Leaders provides the literacy expertise students need through In-School,After-School, and Summer Camp Tutoring and Coaching. We partner with schools andcommunity agencies to reach students where they are and offer the specific instruction they need to become proficient readers. Students in R2L Tutoring programs work with R2L Instructors four days a week for at least 30 minutes per session to target essential literacy skills including fluency, comprehension, and word decoding skills. Our trained instructors use research-driven methodologies, based on the curriculum Phonics Suite, published by Really Great Reading. Through small group instruction, one-on-one reading sessions with volunteers, tech-based learning, and hands-on activities, students master the tools and concepts they need to become strong, independent readers!Readers 2 Leaders Coaching equips adults who work with striving readers, including nonprofit professionals, educators, and caregivers, to provide high-quality reading support to students in their existing contexts. Through a suite of services that vary in duration and focus but all remain rooted in phonics and the science of reading, we are increasing the number of adults who can help children read.Methodology and Evaluation-Readers 2 Leaders teaches the mechanics of reading, rooted in phonics, that help students gain fluency and comprehension so they can access grade-level reading material. Every child tutored by an R2L instructor or at a certified partner site is assessed before, during, and at the conclusion of the program. At R2L, we use Renaissance Star assessments which provide validated measures of student progress and evaluate proficiency in core literacy skills. These assessments allow R2L to set goals for students and track their progress toward becoming strong, independent readers. In addition, R2L is able to access Dallas ISD Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) data to see the growth of the specific students in our programs as well as the control data of students not receiving additional services. We know these programs work. In 2022-23, our first year using Renaissance Star, 83 percent of academic-year students and 81 percent of summer session students made measurable progress toward their reading goals.R2Ls Impact-As a former classroom teacher, mom of three Porcha knows the importance of reaching children as early as possible with the essential literacy supports that will help them become strong readers and successful students. After seeing Readers 2 Leaders in action at two of the schools where she taught, Porcha knew she would enroll her own kids in the program. Readers 2 Leaders is an intervention that I knew would foster my childs love of reading from early on, she explained. Her two older children, third-grader Elijah and first-grader Jonah, have participated in R2LsAfter-School and Summer Camp programs and made significant progress toward theirgrade-level goals. For Elijah, R2L has opened up a world of imagination through his newfound love of chapter books like Magic Tree House. He dreams of being an actor and can already imagine himself reading scripts one day. Because of what he and his classmates are learning with his R2L Instructor Ms. Stringfellow, We will remember how to read for the rest of our lives. Meanwhile, younger brother Jonah is learning his letter sounds and has noticed that it helps [him] learn better at school.Porcha now works at a nearby non-profit helping run their out-of-school time programs, and she is eager to bring Readers 2 Leaders Coaching to her team. She is hopeful that Coaching can show us how to maximize and make literacy impactful in a short amount of time after school. R2L is proud to serve families like this one by providing literacy intervention and enrichment programs designed to help more Dallas children in reading.