School Readiness

Children entering kindergarten with skills they need to succeed are more likely to graduate from high school and become productive workers. But almost half of America’s kindergarteners are behind – those from low-wage households by two years. Most will not catch up.

Helping the community address early childhood issues in a comprehensive and coordinated manner is an important role for United Way of Western Connecticut.

IT'S OUR BIRTHDAY! Come and help celebrate Danbury Imagination Library's 1st year birthday on November 21, 2009 at the Danbury Railway Museum! Over 1,000 kids have registered to receive books, and we're looking to get more books to even more kids! CLICK HERE for the flyer!

IMAGINATION LIBRARY

imagination library logo United Way is committed to ensuring that children have positive developmental opportunities so they start school ready to succeed.

That's why United Way of Western Connecticut has partnered with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library to provide Children in Danbury under 5 a free book every month.

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is a unique opportunity to do something simple and powerful for preschoolers. It allows for children, from the day they are born, to receive an age-appropriate book every month until their fifth birthday.

Children that reside in Danbury can enter the program at any time. There are no selection criteria other than residency. All children under age five are eligible to register. Books are shipped directly to the children at no cost to the family.

Studies show:

Kids exposed to reading on a regular basis during preschool years have a vocabulary of 10,000 words before age 5, compared to only 3,000 for children who haven’t had this exposure.
Preschool reading and parent involvement is among the most important steps toward a child’s success in school.
When books are in the home, parents are four times more likely to read to their children.

So take an important step in getting your child ready for school:

Consider Paying It Forward!

There is no cost to a family that meets eligibility requirements for United Way of Western Connecticut's Imagination Library program. However, we welcome you to "pay it forward" as you register your own child. A suggested donation of $30 is equal to the average cost of one child for the year, and would be added to the Imagination Library fund.

Paying it forward is purely optional, and does not effect whether or not your child receives a book a month through the program. But it will ensure that we help more kids in need get resources to be successful in school.

Pay It Forward donations can be made out to United Way of Western Connecticut and mailed to:

United Way of Western Connecticut
85 West Street
Danbury , CT 06810
Attn: Imagination Library Program

THE NEW THREE R's

In Danbury we have worked with the School Readiness Council’s community planning to get all children ready for school.

This new plan is called The New Three Rs: Ready Children and Families, Ready Communities, Ready Schools.

United Way helped secure funding for a community coordinator and continues to be engaged in the efforts to prepare children to enter the school system with the skills required to be successful.

School Readiness

COOL TOOL