Gov. Olene Walker unveiled her flagship early literacy initiative, "Read With a Child," recently and signed an executive order announcing the formation of the Governor's Commission on Literacy.
The purpose of the initiative, which falls under the Walker Work Plan, is to ensure that by early 2005 no less than 90 percent of Utah's children can read on or above grade level by the third grade. It urges Utahns to read to a child at least 20 minutes every day.
"I have set a high standard to achieve by 2005, and it will take all of us to reach that goal," Walker said Tuesday.
Walker said that Utah has 21,000 children who read below grade level in third grade and 70 percent of them will not catch up to grade level.
"Kindergarten through third-grade children learn to read; after that they read to learn," said Walker. "If they are not reading by third grade, chances are they will fall behind and have difficulty throughout their school years."
Read With a Child encourages every Utahn to read aloud and tell stories to their children to help them develop a larger vocabulary, a longer attention span, better listening skills and a good reading foundation.
Under the initiative Walker also plans to announce a book of the month, initiate a summer reading program, create community story buses to reach rural communities and hold community book festivals while using the literacy commission as her panel on literacy issues and research.
She said it is a goal that the state should be able to reach because the responsibility is not solely on the schools or the teachers but involves the community as a whole.
"Just think what 400 days could accomplish if we had every adult reading with a child," said Walker. "If every child were read to, it would do more for education than almost anything else I can think of."
The governor is wasting no time — planning to start some of the programs this month — and already has a commitment from all the Boys and Girls Clubs in the state to read to children for 20 minutes daily. She has also asked ethnic councils to have literacy conferences during the year to raise awareness and focus on helping parents in minority groups improve children's literacy. In addition, she has asked mayors and PTAs for cooperation to help ensure that every community in the state will be working on the project.
Walker made the announcement at the Sorenson Multi-Cultural Center after she and husband Myron Walker read the Dr. Seuss classic "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" to a group of Riley Elementary children.
E-mail: terickson@desnews.com