Its dedicated school support consultants provide on-site training and ongoing assistance for these paraprofessionals and tutors. The Reach for Reading program also creates a strong home connection as parents sign agreements and initial each day s homework. Based for five years in Atlanta, Reach for Reading has successfully implemented programs in almost 400 schools nationwide, including Philadelphia, Baltimore County, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Long Beach. The number of kids who will be helped by the Reach for Reading programs will really start to grow now. Nationally, paraprofessionals, instructional aides, administrative personnel, parents, AmeriCorps members and community volunteers are among the growing ranks of Reach for Reading for Reading tutors trained to work with grades 1-3 children in the Reaching Up program, and students in intermediate grades 4 and 5, in Reaching Higher .
School districts are very focused on reading results.
Reach for Reading helps children who would greatly benefit from the organized, purposeful help of a caring adult to progress their reading towards grade level. Rigby , a division of the Reed Elsevier, Inc. , was founded in 1986 and popularized balanced literacy practices in the United States. The company is credited with pioneering the guided reading methodology and the integration of carefully leveled student books. Almost half of the nation s primary school teachers have used Rigby products in their classrooms, and over 70,000 have taken advantage of the professional development resources offered.