The purpose of this project is to develop a video/electronic media training program to strengthen preschool childrens beginning reading skills. Many children in the United States, particularly children from low-income families, begin kindergarten unprepared to develop beginning reading skills. They lack the kind of experiences that research indicates are crucial to being ready to learn how to read. The researchers in this project are developing a training program that will enable parents and other caregivers to help preschool children develop their beginning reading skills. The training program is based on interventions which have been shown to be effective for teaching beginning reading skills and will be deliverable through a variety of electronic media (e.g., video cassettes, DVDs, and web-based applications). The program is designed to be low cost, easy-to-use, and appropriate for a variety of early childhood settings, including the home, day care settings, Head Start programs, nursery schools and pre-kindergarten programs
