Illinois State Board of Education

Special Bulletin —April 1, 2002

Early Reading First is a new program authorized under Title I, Part B, of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Public Law 107-110.  Early Reading First complements another new key reading program, Reading First, which helps states and school districts to implement programs and strategies scientifically proven to be effective in helping school age children (in grades K-3) learn to read.

Early Reading First Program Goals:

• To support local efforts to enhance the early language, literacy, and pre-reading development of preschool-age children, particularly those from low-income families, through strategies and professional development that are based on scientifically based reading research.
• To provide preschool-age children with cognitive learning opportunities in high-quality language and literature-rich environments so that the children can attain the fundamental knowledge and skills necessary for optimal reading development in kindergarten and beyond.
• To demonstrate language and literacy activities based on scientifically based reading research that support the age-appropriate development of
• Oral language (vocabulary, expressive language, listening comprehension)
• Phonological awareness (rhyming, blending, segmenting)
• Print awareness
• Alphabetic knowledge.
• To use screening assessments to effectively identify preschool-age children who may be at risk for reading failure.

Eligible Early Reading First Applicants:

• One or more local educational agencies (LEAs) eligible under Reading First.
• One or more eligible public or private organizations in a community served by such an LEA, acting on behalf of a preschool program, such as Head Start, Even Start, childcare agencies, or the program itself.
• One or more eligible LEAs collaborating with one or more eligible public or private organizations or agencies.

Funding:

• Congress appropriated $75 million for the first year of the programs.  The Department anticipates funding about 175 grants, ranging between $250,000 and $2.5 million each year.
• Early Reading First application package will be available March 30, 2002, and the deadline for submitting Early Reading First pre-applications will be mid-May, 2002.
• Applicants submit pre-applications that briefly address certain concepts.  Only those applicants that have pre-applications rated highly by the experts and deemed to have substantial potential to become successful projects will be invited to file full applications.

More information about Early Reading First may be found at  www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/earlyreading/faq.html.