MFISD’s 2020 initiative invites community to help kids learn to read
STAFF WRITER JENNIFER FIERRO
MARBLE FALLS — Leslie Baty admitted she will still pick up a book that’s not required reading.
The director of Elementary Education at Marble Falls Independent School District couldn’t stop smiling as she talked about why she enjoys reading.
“It takes you to places you might not be able to go in person,” she said. “It’s like a television or movie running in your mind.”
To help children develop that same love, especially those at the elementary campuses, the school district is launching Literacy 2020, an initiative designed to ensure every second-grader is reading at or above grade level by the year 2020.
Each campus teacher will promote the importance of reading for 20 minutes each night, be provided training and resources to help students want to read, and conduct Literacy Nights.
Marble Falls school officials aren’t stopping there. They realized that to achieve such a goal, they need the help of families, businesses, and volunteers.
Parents and guardians are encouraged to ask their children to read to them for 20 minutes. Baty suggested the adults read one page and the child read the next or have the child read aloud as the parent is preparing meals or performing other chores. After the 20 minutes are finished, adults should ask the child what the story was about, what they learned from reading the story, and other questions.
Children will write the titles of books and the minutes they read in their Literacy 2020 folder, which their school will provide.
The readers are encouraged to set goals and work toward achieving them, which also teaches a life lesson.
The director said parents can choose reading material that interests them and their children such as magazines, newspapers, or books. When it comes to role models, there’s no one better for children than their guardians.
“There’s so much value sitting on your couch listening to your child read,” Baty said.
Baty intends to visit local businesses, especially doctor and dentist offices, to develop partnerships that will provide literacy resources and plans to purchase buckets to fill with books to put in medical offices for children as they wait for their appointment.
She is encouraging health professionals to talk to families about the importance of reading.
“A lot of times, parents will listen to the doctor or dentist,” she said.
The Daybreak Rotary Club of Marble Falls has donated $1,500 to the program, while Chik-fil-A of the Highland Lakes donated 200 books.
“They decided it was a worthwhile cause,” she said. “I’m still looking for a grant to fund more, but this is a good start.”
Community involvement also is needed for the Reading Buddies program. Reading Buddies are volunteer readers who will have two elementary students read to them for 15 minutes each once a week. Volunteers must submit to a background check.
Baty said several churches and businesses have already agreed to send members and employees to the campuses, but more are needed. Parents also can sign up. Spicewood Elementary School already has this program, and the director said it has gone very well.
“The kids will read the book and talk about it,” she said. “It develops a good relationship with the kids, and it’s an opportunity to be a good role model and mentor.”
Baty said the school district has many students reading below grade level.
“We feel like by promoting this effort, families will start or will read more,” she said. “If kids will do that with their families and at school, it’s like double dipping for students who are behind. It’ll accelerate the growth for the ones who need it. They’ll get three times the amount of literacy poured into them.”
While movies and books on tape have a place, Baty said nothing can replace the value of reading a story.
“The way our brains work is when you read, you access a part of your brain and develop and connect synopsis that don’t fire up by watching a movie,” she said. “We want to continue to develop our brains and keep them active.”
As children become working adults, they’ll discover they must be able to read for their careers, the director said.
“We have to know how to read,” she said. “That’s going to open so many doors for you in life. It’s important for your job or just anything.”