Erika Fink is a part of a recent Nebraska Growing Readers (NGR) Writers Workshop held for Sixpence home visitors and staff, Rooted in Relationships coaches, and other early childhood partners. NGR, which is a Nebraska Children and Families Foundation initiative, holds these workshops to encourage the production of local content that will be meaningful to the state’s children, families, and communities.
A partnership between Nebraska Children and Families Foundation’s Beyond School Bells (BSB), Nebraska Growing Readers (NGR), Unite for Literacy, and Linked to Literacy funds literacy efforts. In March of this year, by offering grants of up to $2,500 for literacy projects connected to summer programming, Beyond School Bells implemented what Education Commisioner Brian Maher described as the Department of Education’s vision of fostering “a culture of proficient and lifelong readers in Nebraska.”
Rosa Alvarado made reading part of Darlita’s routine. At each home visit, she would dedicate story time where Darlita’s mother or father would sit with her and read. She says of the routine she has established, “what we are trying to do here with our Sixpence is to create a culture of literacy.” This built-in routine of shared-reading has paid off. Not only has Darlita begun to engage with books, but she has also created her own safe space for reading, where she can self-regulate her emotions.
Josh Cramer soon returned to his home state of Nebraska where he took on his position at Nebraska Children and where he said to Mike McGuffee of Unite for Literacy, “I would like to see Nebraska lead the nation in family literacy programs.” The two then began discussing a way to make Nebraska Unite’s first statewide literacy effort.
Rooted in Relationships will be a part of the statewide collaborative that has been invited to join the current cohort of Zero to Three’s Financing Policy Project for 2025.
Tracy Went emphasizes the growth of coaching across the state, but asks an important question, “there is so much coaching going on and though so many supports exist, there is always more need. How can we continue to build those…
Growing the Good Life 