Free Reading Resources Now Available for All Tennessee Families of K-2 Children
Wednesday, May 12, 2021 | 12:08pm
Free Decodables to Use at Home to Build Strong Reading Skills
Nashville, TN—Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced the free At-Home Decodable Book Series are now available to Tennessee families of kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade children to help our youngest learners become stronger readers. This launch is part of the family component of the state’s Reading 360 initiative to help boost strong reading skills amongst Tennessee students.
Designed for Tennessee children in grades K-2, in partnership with Tennessee teachers and state-adopted instructional materials from the State Board of Education approved list, each free pack has 7 decodable booklets which contain 20+ exciting stories full of sounds and words to help practice phonics and develop strong reading skills.
Tennessee families can order one booklet pack for each of their kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade students using this order form.
“Reading and strong literacy skills open doors of opportunity for children throughout their education and well after they graduate. Tennessee has deeply invested in literacy to help strengthen and extend the learning that happens in classrooms every day,” said Commissioner Penny Schwinn. “From teachers to school and district personnel, state officials to elected leaders, and most importantly, parents and families-- everyone can play a role in helping our youngest learners become strong readers. As a parent, I hope all Tennessee families will order the free At-Home Decodable Book series to support their children in learning and reading together.”
A decodable is a book or story carefully sequenced to include letter sounds and words familiar to readers that allow them to practice important phonics and decoding skills at their grade level.
As part of Reading 360, the At-Home Decodable Book Series was intentionally designed to practice important grade-level sounds and provide adult readers with guidance on how to focus on sounds when reading aloud with their child.
“Family support for early reading is crucial to student success and I am so excited that families will be able to get free decodables to read with their children at home,” said Kristy Brown, Director of Schools, Jackson County Schools. “This is a great resource that will support strong literacy skills for students in Jackson County and throughout the state.”
Teachers can also utilize these resources to help families extend learning that takes place in the classroom.
“Helping families have access to decodable booklets, which are filled with engaging stories full of sounds and words to practice, will enable them to support their children, who are hungry to read independently at home as they continue to build upon the foundational skills they have acquired in the classroom,” said Hannah Cunningham and Brandy Puckett, 1st Grade Teachers at Indian Springs Elementary School, Sullivan County Schools. “There is nothing better than seeing the delight and self-confidence students exhibit when they successfully transition to reading stories on their own. As we know, early literacy leads to future success!”
For family ordering: Families seeking to order booklet packs for their kindergarten, first or second grade students can do so at this link. Booklets will be delivered to the mailing address provided. In addition to the order form, a step-by-step ordering guide, FAQs and additional information can be found online at www.tn.gov/education/decodables.
For teachers: Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade teachers participating this summer in the Reading360 Early Literacy Training program will receive At-Home Decodable Reading Series booklet packs for their K-2nd grade classrooms for free. If you are a teacher who will not complete the training, please contact TN.decodables@tn.gov to learn more about how to help your students access these free resources.
Tennessee families and teachers are encouraged to share fun and exciting reading moments using these and other reading resources on social media. Join in by using the hashtags #TNDecodables, #Reading360 or #ReadTogetherTN.
Reading 360 is a comprehensive statewide literacy initiative to provide optional grants and resources to help more Tennessee students develop strong phonics-based reading skills by supporting districts, teachers, and families. Components of the Reading 360 initiative including the At-Home Decodable Book series are funded with federal COVID-19 relief and stimulus funding. To access additional resources on Reading 360, click here.