Marissa Griffin

CBL Paper
May 11, 2016
Literacy in the Head Start Program
Introduction
Head Start is a program that offers a free education to students who come from lowincome families. This federally funded program offers support to students who are under the age
of five and their families. Every child should have the opportunity to develop early literacy skills
at home as well as at school. Reading aloud, looking at pictures in a book, as well as listening to
someone read are some ways that students can develop their literacy skills at any age. The more
students are exposed to different types of books the better chance they will have at succeeding
academically when they enter elementary school. Students who come from low-income families
tend are not exposed to as many books as the students who do not come from low-income
families. I have created a book drive to give books to the students at Head Start in Talent,
Oregon. Since the beginning of 2016, I have been collecting different types of literature books
for students between the ages of one and five. My goal was to collect one hundred books, so
students will have the opportunity to take home at least two books each. I exceeded my goal and
have collected over five hundred books.
Rationale
I chose this project because I was not encouraged to read or had people read to me when I was
younger. Once I entered elementary school I did not enjoy reading nor did I develop the literacy

skills that I needed to succeed academically. I want to help students find a love for reading and
give them the resources to succeed in school. Students gain knowledge and vocabulary the more
that they read. It is important for students to be read to every day because it helps students
develop literacy skills, a love for reading and to practice sitting still during a story. Most students
that come from low-income families do not have as much access to different types of literature or
they do not have many books at home. I am passionate about spreading the love of reading at a
young age. I want to continue to encourage students to become excited about finding a new book
that interests them. Reading is an important tool to learn and use. Every student should have an
equal opportunity to be proficient with their literacy skills.
Review of Literature
"Reading" is a dynamic construct --what counts as proficient varies as a function of text
demands, situation, purpose of reading, and reader characteristics(Lesaux, Nonie). Early
literacy can help increase the chances of students succeeding in reading and writing when they
enter elementary school. This book drive helps to provide resources to families that may not have
the materials to support their children. Children from low-income families and with limited
English proficiency are often reared in homes that fail to provide sufficient early literacy
experiences and materials to promote print-related skills; their families typically do not support
the acquisition of literacy skills to the same degree that parents of higher socioeconomic status
do (Campbell, Goldstein, Schaefer, & Ramey, 1991; Lonigan, Burgess, Anthony, & Barker,
1998). This shows that providing more materials such as books to low-income programs can
benefit students. By handing out the books, it was important that I to talk to the parents about the
importance of reading to their children each day and the impact it can have on their success when
they enter elementary school. Reading represents the convergence of numerous cognitive skills

and multiple experiences with oral and written language during early childhood, preschool, and
the elementary school years (Anderson et al., 1985). Reading to children before they reach
preschool and kindergarten will help prevent students from having to catch up to their peers in
literacy skills. Giving the resources and materials to students and their families can help students
before they enter school.

Description of the Process

The main learning objectives that I wanted to gain from my community based project
were to find multiple ways to help students be more exposed to early literacy. I wanted to find
ways that teachers can support the parents with helping their students gain early literacy skills at
home. Lastly, I wanted to learn more about students who come from low-income families and the
different ways that they learn. My plan was to volunteer in the Head Start Program for ten hours
each week. I to read to as many students as I could each time that I spent time in the classroom.
Also, I wanted to get to know each student by figuring out their interests. At the end of
volunteering my plan I gathered all the books that I have been collecting since the beginning of
the year and put a stack of books in individual bags. Then I handed out eight books to each
student with a special quote about reading. The more that you read, the more things you will
know. The more that you learn, the more places youll go by Dr. Seuss. As I was creating piles
of books to give to each student, I began to realize that I was creating them based on what I had
learned about the students interests. I believe that this was a great way for students to be excited
to read their new books that they were given. Overall, the book drive went wonderful. The
excitement on each students face was a rewarding feeling. If I had the opportunity to do this
project again I would love to have a new book that I would bring into the classroom each week

to create a love of reading inside the classroom before giving the students books for home. I have
learned that there is more ways to helping students gain literacy skills at school as well. The
benefit of this project was to give students the opportunity to have more literacy resources at
home to continue to read with friends and family members. I was given the opportunity to talk to
each parent or family member that came to pick up their student about the importance of early
literacy and the different ways they can support their children with it.
Reflections
On April 22, 2016, I walked into the Head Start Program to talk to the students about the special
gift that they will receive at the end of the day. I shared one of my favorite books with the class
called The Very Hungry Caterpillar written by Eric Carle. I explained to the students that I want
them to continue to read and look at books, so I brought them each a bag of books that they can
take home at the end of the day. As each student collected their books I heard comments such as
its just like Christmas and I love this book. The excitement on each childs face gave me
hope that they will continue to have a love for books and reading. The next time that I saw the
students, some of the students shared with the class which books they received were there
favorite and who read them the book. This was a reaction that my supervising teacher or I were
surprised about because we did not plan for the students to bring back their books and to share
them. The students were full of excitement and wanted to share with their friends. I learned that
encouraging students to share their books with the class also encouraged other students to want
to share their own books. Another realization I had was when I first started to volunteer at Head
Start, the students could not keep their attention on one book for very long. As I continued to
read to the students I noticed that they were more engaged in the stories. The more that teachers,
parents and friends read to children, the better chance they have with finding a love in reading.

Reading can bring special bonding moments between children and parents. This project has
inspired me to find more ways to encourage students to read. The more books the students read,
the more opportunities they have to develop their literacy skills and vocabulary. I have gained
considerable insight about students who come from low-income families and the challenges that
they may face. I want to continue to provide as many materials as I can to help students succeed.

Works Cited
Gettinger, Maribeth. Applying a Response-to-intervention model for Early Literacy Development
in Low-Income Children. February 2008. Vol. 27 no. 4 . Peer Reviewed Journal.
Lesaux, Nonie. Reading and Reading instruction for Children from Low-income and NonEnglish-Speaking Households. Fall 2012, Vol. 22. Peer Reviewed Journal.
Rush, Karen. Caregiver-child interactions and early literacy development of preschool children
from low-income enviornments. Spring 1999, Vol. 19. Peer Reviewed Journal.