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Almost every child can learn to read at an average or better level if taught so that they can learn. Yet, in the United States, 66% of 4th graders are not reaching literacy benchmarks and in underserved communities that number jumps to 80%.
Early intervention for struggling readers is the most effective remediation and children can wire their brains to read and not suffer in the process or fall behind, yet, we have a chronic failure to identify children and give them early intervention.
The questions that underlie this profoundly complex societal issue are:
- Why do some children struggle with reading?
- What is dyslexia?
- Are all struggling readers dyslexic?
- What can parents, caregivers and communities do to intervene, provide support, share information and create solutions for struggling readers/dyslexic children?
We’ll answer these questions and more during this discussion.
Together, we can change this trajectory, but it takes community involvement. Informed parents/caregivers, librarians and teachers make all the difference in the lives of children.
This program is made possible by the Couri Educational Fund
Caroline Wilcox Ugurlu is a researcher, teacher, and Oliver Wolcott Library’s library assistant with a focus on early literacy. She has spent the last six years studying reading including the neurological processes involved in reading and the sociological, psychological, and cultural aspects of reading acquisition and its opposite - failure to acquire reading fluency. She has developed a method to help all children ages 4 to 7 break the phonemic code in a fun and playful way, and has authored a book on the subject. She is trained in the Wilson method. Her program is called Letters are Characters and is used in schools and libraries throughout Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Masks are required for all individuals aged 2 and over entering the Library who are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Masks are required for all individuals aged 2 and over entering and using the Lodewick Children’s Library regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status. Masks are optional for individuals entering the Library who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Masks must conform to current CDC recommendations.
