While many children thrive on face-to-face exchanges and some lack access to the technology required to learn online, others benefit from the accessibility afforded when they don’t have transportation to the library. Since the pandemic, New Haven has offered 100% virtual READy for the Grade programming. In 2022, site leaders may offer a hybrid model that blends online activities with the in-person program described below.

Tables are filled with children doing various group activities.
At one table, children play sight word bingo. At another table, students identify cause and effect in a story. A third group of children completes worksheets to help them develop writing skills. Another group of students practices sight words through song.

After table time, children explore other areas of the room, forming reading circles on a big rug or along the wall. In one group the teacher supplies each child with story cards. As volunteers read sections of the story, the teacher peppers the children with questions about whether they can relate to the story, a clever way to check on their comprehension. The children read echo style (one reads and then all read the same section) and there are opportunities for vocabulary review and phonetic reminders. Each time the teacher asks for a volunteer to read, a sea of hands arises, as children request their chance to shine.

In another group of slightly younger children, students practice spelling with physical movements. They also make short booklets of their own to take away and to use in the group for reading practice.