KUAT Kids Book Club
Arizona Public Media®’s Ready to Learn service is designed to bring a rich, comprehensive reading experience to participating students, through the KUAT Kids Book Club, established in selected local schools.
Based on the PBS Between the Lions television series, the “club” features comprehensive teacher resource materials centered on monthly themes, corresponding videos, and free books delivered each month to every first grade student. Participating schools are targeted from low-income neighborhoods and draw a high percentage of limited-literacy students.
During the last school year approximately 2,600 books were delivered to first-grade students through this program. To date, more than 70,000 free books have been distributed to local children.
Parent WorkshopsArizona Public Media® sponsors parent workshops which include multiple contacts with parents, particularly those participants from Family Literacy settings.
Initial contact focuses on an experiential workshop centered on the PBS television program Clifford and the Learning Triangle (view a program, identify the theme, and complete the learning experience with selected books).
Performance achievements for the 2006-2007 year included 60 multi-contact workshops, 85% of which were presented in Spanish or both Spanish and English and 8 single-contact workshops, including workshops offered to parents of children in the Kids Book Club. Participants included 755 parents and 121 educators, and represented approximately 2,236 children. Nearly 800 books were distributed through these workshops.
Arizona Public Media® and Public broadcasting are committed to assisting teachers in the utilization of the wide variety of educational programming available for use in the classroom. See what Arizona Public Media® has to offer you
http://www.pbs.org/teachers/
Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators ContestThis year celebrated the 15th Annual, READING RAINBOW Young Writers and Illustrators Contest. An awards ceremony was held at the U of A Poetry Center on May 3rd to give recognition to all participants. The Reading Rainbow Contest encourages, challenges, and recognizes Kindergarten through third graders who share stories they create with their own words and pictures. Above all, the Reading Rainbow Contest is meant to be fun for children and to offer a chance to be recognized for their creative efforts. Congratulations to this years winners!
See this year's winners!
PBS KIDS IslandFREE literacy tools and activities for children, parents, caregivers and teachers to use at home or in the classroom.
PBS KIDS Island lets children build their own online island by playing reading games with PBS KIDS Raising Readers characters. The research-based program guides children through eight different gaming levels that address seven skills: rhyming, letter identification, alliteration, phonics, letter sequencing, phonemic awareness and reading/vocabulary.
PBS KIDS Island offers a fun and safe online environment that serves children ages two-to-five. The site will be expanded to offer literacy games and activities for children ages six-to-eight.
Key Features for Children
- Fun Reading Games Based on Familiar PBS KIDS Shows and Characters: PBS KIDS Island features dozens of reading games. Favorite characters from PBS KIDS Raising Readers programs, including SUPER WHY!, WORDWORLD, BETWEEN THE LIONS and SESAME STREET, guide and help children learn critical reading skills.
- Customization: PBS KIDS Island offers a total of eight levels of reading games and activities, starting with letter recognition and moving children along the path of learning to read with vocabulary and build simple sentences.
Key Features for Parents, Caregivers and Teachers
- Guided Tour: Parents, caregivers and teachers can tour PBS KIDS Island and preview the games children will be playing.
- Detailed Reading Skill Information: As they click on a game, an overview of the game and its corresponding reading skill appear on screen.
- Progress Tracker: The Child Progress Tracker lets parents, caregivers and teachers understand and cultivate their child’s learning.
