A full house of parents and children gathered for the love of literacy. The James P. Gills Family YMCA hosted a successful New Worlds Reading Initiative event last month at Sunray Elementary School.
A free, at-home Florida literacy program, New Worlds is for VPK (voluntary prekindergarten) to grade five public and charter school students reading below grade level. The program mails free books and reading activities to eligible students each month of the school year. YMCA of the Suncoast hosted our first event promoting the New Worlds Reading Initiative in January of 2024. Since then, we have educated and connected over 900 people to the program.
“We had a great event at Sunray Elementary. There were about 35 parents and 35 children in attendance. We took advantage of the cooler temperatures with a campfire, s'mores and told campfire stories while parents learned about how to enroll in this program,” explains Jeremy Marzicola, Aquatics Director for Gills YMCA, who helped oversee the event.
“Schools like Sunray Elementary are Title 1 schools, which improve student achievement. Studies show that kids not on grade level as early as even third grade will continue to struggle with literacy and comprehension throughout the rest of their lives. Low-level child readers make up 75% of adults below the poverty line. It is critical that we do our best to provide kids with every opportunity to achieve,” adds Jeremy.
He thanked Sunray Elementary principal, Mrs. Hlady for being a “great YMCA partner to advance our literacy initiatives. We are grateful to her and her team for allowing us to extend our impact on the community.”
Kiara Avila, Youth Initiative Director for the Suncoast Y notes, “early literacy development is foundational for future learning, and this initiative supports struggling readers by offering resources tailored to their needs. The New Worlds Reading Initiative also ensures that all children, regardless of background, have equal access to educational resources, leveling the playing field for academic achievement.”
New Worlds is funded by the University of Florida’s Lastinger Center for Learning. Books are selected in collaboration with the Florida Department of Education based on children’s interests, grade level and Florida B.E.S.T. (Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking) Standards. They include both fiction and nonfiction books in English, Spanish, Haitian Creole and braille.
To support any Suncoast Y program, please donate here.
Published Thursday, February 27, 2025.