Free literacy event to promote families reading at home

WILLIAMSBURG — A new literacy event in Williamsburg aims to help families support their children’s literacy at home as another school year approached.

“Burg Reads: Uniting Through Literacy” is a free event for families Aug. 24 from noon to 2 p.m. at the Williamsburg Public Library, 300 W. State St.

The event is designed for families with preschool to third-grade children.

Attendees can choose three of nine sessions that dive into topics like phonemic awareness, mental health in early childhood, speech and language development and building reading fluency.

Though the event is free, tickets are required and available at burgreads.com, along with a schedule of speakers. Space for the event is limited to about 50 families.

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“We want to give parents the power to support literacy in their homes and enhance what is already happening in the school systems and also making sure students are really school-ready,” said Mindy VanZuiden, organizer of the event and owner of Tutorburg, a private dyslexia center in Williamsburg that provides professional development, advocacy, educational consultations and tutoring.

VanZuiden also works with the Mid-Prairie Homeschool Assistance Program as a dyslexia specialist and is president for the Decoding Dyslexia Iowa Board and chair of the Advisory Council for the Iowa Reading Research Center.

Reading with kids

Another speaker at Burg Reads will be Shawn Datchuk, director of Iowa Reading Research Center, which researches how to improve the literacy skills of students and provides professional learning for teachers.

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“Research is clear that regardless of where you’re child is at or how old they are, if you can engage them in reading and talking about what they’re reading, it can only increase their school readiness,” Datchuk said. “That can be as simple as having your child read a chapter book or a picture book for as little as 15 minutes a day.”

Navigation Play — a business in Williamsburg owned by Molly Bishop that focuses on child-led play experiences — will be at Burg Reads to mind children while families learn about literacy, VanZuiden said.

Bishop also will speak to families about how play-based activities can support children’s early literacy and foster a love for reading and learning.

Schools on board

Another partner of the event is the Williamsburg Community School District.

Brent Zirkel, principal of Mary Welsh Elementary School in the Williamsburg school district, said literacy is a “foundational skill” that goes beyond reading. It’s critical for students as they learn math, science, social studies and other subjects.

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“Parents are our best partners,” Zirkel said. “They know their kids better than we do — and we know them pretty well. But having that help at home and extra repetition can help students develop a joy of reading.”

Children thrive in school through a strong partnership between their families and their teachers, said Datchuk, of the reading research center. Supporting learning at home can be as easy as talking to your children and helping them expand their vocabulary.

“Even if you yourself are not engaged in daily reading, talking with your child about new words, new ideas, things related to reading like a popular TV series based off books, all those things are going to play into a well-developed reader,” Datchuk said.

Free resources are available online at irrc-caregiver.org to families through the Iowa Reading Research Center to help families support literacy at home. Topics covered include core literacy skills, the science of reading, understanding standardized tests, assisted technology and advocating for your student.

Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com