I’m Ready Pilot Project
“Nancy Bassendowski, R.SLP will be hosting the I’m Ready Pilot Project in partnership with Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education and Medicine Hat School District No. 76.
The Hanen I’m Ready! Program shows parents how to use fun, practical tips and strategies to make early literacy-learning a natural and enjoyable part of the day. Studies have shown that children who start school with higher levels of early literacy skills have greater academic success. As the most important teachers in a young child’s life, parents play a critical role in promoting these skills before their child gets to school. In the Hanen I’m Ready! Program, parents learn how to transform reading a book and other everyday activities into opportunities to help their child build the foundation skills that are related to later reading success. These skills include vocabulary knowledge, ability to understand stories and understanding how print works.
What the Hanen I’m Ready! Program includes Parents attend five or six 2-hour group sessions with their child. Each session includes:
- A time for parents to meet with the program leader to discuss literacy-building strategies while children are engaged in a separate session
- A time for parents to join their children to practice strategies while sharing a book Parents are also supported by a user-friendly guidebook, I’m Ready! How to Prepare Your Child for Reading Success (Greenberg & Weitzman, 2014).
Who should attend Parents of children 3-5 years of age who are interested in helping their child learn what he/she needs to know before beginning to learn to read and write. What parents learn Parents learn practical research-based strategies for:
- Turning book reading into a time to talk
- Helping to increase their child’s vocabulary
- Deepening their child’s understanding of stories
- Building their child’s knowledge of how print works
What parents say about the Hanen I’m Ready! Program:
This was an awesome experience! My child is now so much more involved when I read to him. He listens more attentively and talks more about the book. He also now gets excited about the print he notices around him.
I would definitely recommend this program to other parents. I have completely changed the way I now read to my child!
