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Reading Readiness

Long before a child picks up a book and begins to read on their own, the groundwork for reading success is already being laid. Early literacy doesn’t start with formal reading instruction; it begins with a child listening to the sounds of language, noticing print in the world around them, and discovering that their own marks on paper can carry meaning. These emerging abilities, from hearing the rhymes and rhythms in spoken words to making the first connections between letters and sounds, develop naturally through play, conversation, and shared experiences with caring adults. When these emerging abilities are intentionally supported and encouraged, they can blossom into the strong reading foundations that every child needs — and this is exactly where programs like Nemours Children’s Reading BrightStart! (NCRBS!) come in. NCRBS! is one example of how early literacy can be nurtured through research-based approaches, offering parents and educators practical, age-appropriate ways […]

While many parents are familiar with developmental screenings for hearing or vision, they may not be aware of the importance of screening for issues like reading readiness. Reading readiness screening tools—like the Nemours BrightStart! Preschool Reading Screener for children ages 3-5—can provide a snapshot of a child’s progress in essential pre-reading skills. They can also show how a child’s progress compares to developmental milestones for those skills. Early screening gives parents, health and early childhood professionals the chance to offer additional supports for children who may not be on track for developmental milestones. Providing these supports as early as possible makes it much more likely that children will gain the skills they need to be successful readers. Nemours knows that literacy and health are connected, so we developed ReadingBrightStart.org to help parents build their children’s early literacy skills. It’s loaded with tips, milestones, developmentally appropriate activities, articles and recommended books by age, […]

Rare diseases are medical conditions that affect a low proportion of the general population. Although the incidence of rare diseases is fairly uncommon, there are over 7,000 types! Here at Nemours, our biomedical researchers are actively engaged in the scientific discovery of causes, treatments, and cures for many rare diseases. And clinicians and health care providers at all of our Nemours sites provide medical management for children with these conditions, most of which are inherited (genetically linked). Rare Disease Day Always the last day of February, Rare Disease Day was established in 2008 by EURODIS (the voice of rare disease patients in Europe) as a worldwide day of recognition. Since then, thousands of events have taken place, reaching hundreds of thousands of people and increasing awareness around the globe. Increased awareness of rare diseases helps to: improve understanding of these conditions offer support to patients and their families inform policy- […]