Spring Branch ISD Featured News

 

Several community-supported literacy programs, launched under the ReadSBISD umbrella in 2019, are expanding to more elementary campuses across Spring Branch ISD.

Literacy remains a key priority for the district, and partners and volunteers have stepped up to support students with time and resources to complement classroom learning and experiences.

Expansion of ReadSBISD programs includes:

Reading Buddies

After a year-one trial project at Spring Branch Elementary in 2019-2020, the Reading Buddies program is expanding to six schools this fall. Volunteers are currently being trained to read one-on-one with second grade students. Reading Buddies commit to read 30 minutes each week of the school year, starting in October. The goal is to directly impact students’ early literacy skills and help them develop a love of reading. Volunteers with this program are affiliated with Chapelwood United Methodist Church, St. Francis Episcopal Church, Hunters Creek Elementary parents, Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church and individual community volunteers who have expressed an interest supporting literacy in Spring Branch ISD.
 

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Reading Roundup

Thanks to generous support from the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo, the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation has provided a Reading Roundup Kit, containing 23 books and corresponding read-aloud guides, for every elementary school library in SBISD. Librarians, teachers, and volunteers are encouraged to read the curated books to groups of students and use the guides to ask deep-thinking questions and stimulate discussions.
 

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Family Literacy Involvement Program (FLIP)

This is a program developed by the Children’s Museum of Houston that places books with accompanying activity supplies in a bag that students can check out to take home and get their families involved with supporting literacy development. When a student returns the FLIP kit to the library prior to the due date, the family receives four tickets to the Children’s Museum.

Following a trial run at Treasure Forest Elementary last March, FLIP kiosks are now updated with new kits and are in use at nine additional elementary schools in the district this fall:

o    Treasure Forest
o    Spring Shadows
o    Spring Branch
o    Woodview
o    Terrace
o    Thornwood
o    Westwood
o    Housman
o    Shadow Oaks
 

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My Home Library

Students at four Spring Branch ISD elementary schools will be the recipient of home libraries this school year. Through the Barbara Bush foundation’s My Home Library program, students select six books from a list to take home and add to their home libraries. As the students progress through their elementary years, they can select grade- and reading-level-appropriate books to build a robust home collection of books. Sponsorship from returning partners Phillips 66 and Air Liquide has made the program possible at Hollibrook and Treasure Forest Elementary schools for the past four years. This year, the program is able to expand to Spring Shadows and Thornwood Elementary schools thanks to the generosity of sponsors Marathon Oil and First Community Credit Union.

 

There is a place and a way you can help students grow literacy skills that will benefit them for life.

If you or your organization would like to volunteer with or sponsor any of these literacy programs, please contact partner@springbranchisd.com.