Family Literacy Programs in Central Alabama
Free programs that help parents and caregivers support reading at home.
What We Offer
Coaching Parents, Not Testing Children
Children who are read to at home arrive at school ready. Many parents want to help but are not confident doing it, and some struggle to read themselves.
Our free family literacy programs are built for those adults. They teach practical ways to make reading at home feel like time together instead of homework.
Our Programs
Four Ways to Take Part
1. Coaching a Better Reader (CBR): Trains parents and caregivers to tutor kindergarten and first grade readers at home.
2. Unidos Leemos: A two-hour workshop for Spanish-speaking parents of PreK and elementary children on reading together in the home language.
3. Walker County Beats and Books: Combines dance and reading to make literacy active for all ages and abilities.
4. Walker County Summer Learning Program: Part of the statewide SAIL project, with summer reading, history, and biology activities.
Rooted in Our Community
Built With Partners You Know
CBR runs with Birmingham City Schools, the Alabama Reading Initiative's Family and Community Involvement Team, and South Baldwin Literacy Council. It began as a pilot at Barrett Elementary School and now serves as a model for statewide implementation.
Beats and Books is a collaboration with the Walker County Arts Alliance and dreamFIT Alabama. It reaches children through Walker County Schools, UAB Early Head Start, HIPPY, Healing House, and other local partners.
Why Family Literacy
A Parent's Reading Matters
Research funded by the National Institutes of Health found that a mother's reading skill was the strongest factor in her children's future school success, ahead of family income and neighborhood.
That is why the parent's own reading is part of the work. If you want to read better yourself, we offer free one-on-one tutoring and free English classes, and many parents do both.
Related reading: Family Literacy Resources to Help Prevent Summer Learning Loss · Parent Literacy Support That Makes Learning Easier at Home
Service Area
Where We Work
CBR and Unidos Leemos run in the Birmingham area. Beats and Books and the Summer Learning Program run in Walker County.
