Welcome to NYC Reads

Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) serves the borough’s 2.5 million residents, offering thousands of public programs, millions of books and use of more than 1,100 free internet-accessible computers. BPL offers innovative public programs that encourage reading and academic achievement.

We offer:

• Diverse programs for all ages such as story hours and ready for kindergarten workshops
• Multilingual programs and staff
• Library card sign up
• Help for families to access countless resources provided by the library including books, ebooks, movies, and learning databases Free homework assistance for all grades through Brainfuse
• Support for schools to expand children’s exposure to the library and literacy through workshops, trips to the library, and guest authors

City Year believes that all students can succeed and that developing the skills and mindsets of children and young adults contributes to strong, vibrant communities—outcomes that benefit all of us. City Year provides academic support and afterschool services for struggling public schools, with the goal of increasing graduation rates for students. To address the dropout crisis, City Year deploys teams of AmeriCorps members—idealistic, diverse, and energetic 17-24 year-olds – who work closely with youth to improve their attendance, behavior, and course performance in math and literacy. AmeriCorps members serve full-time as student success coaches, who partner with classroom teachers to help students cultivate key social, emotional and academic skills that are important in school and in life. Classrooms and students are identified by the school administration for participation in City Year support programming.

We offer:

• Student success coaches (AmeriCorps members) that work in partnership with classroom teachers
• Help to create environments where students can build on their strengths, take risks in their learning and feel connected to their school community
• Support for students to stay on track to graduate by improving their course performance, attendance and behavior
• One-on-one or small group tutoring and mentoring and additional support in classroom instruction

When a child reads, a community succeeds! Literacy in Community (LINC) works at the intersection of education and community development to address the literacy crisis facing New York City. Our community literacy model surrounds families – in schools, libraries, day care centers, parks and other public spaces – with early literacy-building programs for children from birth-kindergarten and their parents. The result is confident parents who lead daily reading routines with their children, community partners that support and reinforce our mission, and children that are enthusiastic readers who succeed. All of our programs are free and many are open to the public.

New York Public Library offers free bilingual storytimes, play programs and art activities for children of all ages across neighborhood libraries. Each library hosts a variety of free children’s programming that encourages reading, playing, talking and singing with your child. With a free library card you can check out books, early learning tablets, STEAM activity kits, e-books, DVDs and more! Go to the New York Public Library website to see what free programs are happening today and check out the online resources including free tutoring, multilingual storytime videos and at-home activity guides. East Harlem Reads partnership programs can be found at the Aguilar, 125th Street and Harlem branch libraries.

ParentChild+ works to close the achievement gap by giving parents tools, skills, and encouragement to prepare their children for school success. The evidence-based program provides a two-year cycle of twice weekly home visits to two-to-four-year-olds and their parents. Using books and educational toys that are gifts to the family, trained home visitors model reading, play, and conversation activities, building language-rich home environments, increasing positive parent-child interaction, and developing pre-literacy and social-emotional skills that are essential for school success.

Queens Public Library (QPL) transforms lives and builds strong communities by cultivating personal and intellectual growth. QPL serves the borough’s 2.3 million residents, offering thousands of public programs, millions of books, and use of more than 1,000 free internet-accessible computers. QPL offers innovative public programs that encourage reading including: Summer Reading, Toddler Learning Centers for early learners, homework assistance for school-aged children, family literacy programs and educational collections, references and materials. Through all of this, QPL contributes to an empowered society that is vibrant, informed, and cohesive.

We offer:

• Fun, educational, literacy and cultural programs for the whole family
• Multilingual programs and staff
• Library card sign up
• Homework help free of charge for students in all grades
• Access to many resources including books, ebooks, movies, and learning databases
• Opportunities to engage with students at local schools

Reach Out and Read of Greater New York (ROR GNY) prepares children to succeed in school by partnering with doctors to prescribe books and encourage families to read together. Doctors, nurse practitioners, and other medical professionals incorporate Reach Out and Read’s evidence-based model into regular pediatric checkups, by talking to parents about the importance of reading aloud and giving developmentally-appropriate books to children. The program begins at the six-month checkup and continues through age 5. Families served by Reach Out and Read read together more often, and their children enter kindergarten with larger vocabularies, stronger language skills, and a six-month developmental edge. This provides a solid foundation for success in school.

Read Alliance (READ) works to accelerate the educational trajectory of early elementary students through the power of teens who provide one-to-one literacy tutoring. READ’s dual-impact model addresses the achievement gap for young students while engaging youth in serving their communities as paid reading tutors. Read Alliance provides students with the building blocks to academic success. While early literacy remains at the core of our mission, our unique model also employs teens to tutor their younger peers, tackling a secondary challenge of youth unemployment, particularly among low-income, young people of color. READ students receive the one-to-one support in foundational reading skills they require to catch up to their peers, and gain the confidence to thrive academically in their classrooms. READ TeenLeaders gain meaningful after school and summer employment, become economically empowered, gain college focus, learn important professional skills, and serve as role models for their younger counterparts. READ works with students in Kindergarten – 2nd grade. Students are selected for participation by teachers and school administrators.

We offer:

• A one-to-one learning opportunity twice-a-week after school for 45 sessions led by high school Teen Leaders
• Reading instruction and homework help
• Youth employment and professional skills for teens recruited from local high schools

Reading Partners students become lifelong readers. Empowered community volunteers are connected to elementary students in kindergarten – 4th grade for individualized one-on-one tutoring. Sessions are delivered twice per week for 45 minutes and result in proud confident readers, excited about learning and ready for success. Through this work Reading Partners helps ensure that every child in NYC has the literacy skills needed to reach their full potential in the classroom and beyond.

We offer:

• One-on-one tutoring twice per week during 45 minute sessions
• Trained community volunteers who work individually with students in K-4th grade
• An easy-to-use curriculum to help students gain the skills needed to be independent and successful readers

Springboard Collaborative works with students from Pre-K – 4th grade. Springboard’s summer and after school programs close the literacy gap by closing the gap between home and school. Teachers and parents receive coaching to work together setting goals, practicing reading, measuring progress and celebrating success. Students are identified for participation based on recommendations from school teachers and administrators.