{"id":43860,"date":"2026-04-24T13:01:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T18:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/?p=43860"},"modified":"2026-04-24T13:05:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T18:05:17","slug":"early-literacy-we-read-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/","title":{"rendered":"Championing Early Literacy through Reading Together","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>One of the most powerful indicators for early literacy is the development of a love for books. When volunteers spend time reading together, writing together, and learning together, that love begins to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Through the We Read Together volunteer initiative, community members step into schools to read alongside students in grades Pre-k to 2. Volunteers serve not only as reading partners, but mentors that help students build confidence, foster relationships and spark progress to reinforce what they are learning in the classroom.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;\u201cTheres\u2019s a real benefit to reading, but there\u2019s likewise a real benefit in the relationship,\u201d says Andy Rooker, a We Read Together volunteer. \u201cYou can make a difference for one child and it\u2019ll be a real benefit to both you and them.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To further promote access to quality books and a fun way to provide an incentive, book vending machines are located at the We Read Together schools, allowing students to take home a brand new book to bring home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Currently, ten RISD elementary schools are part of the program. Campuses include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Audelia Creek Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Carolyn Bukhair Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dover Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Hamilton Park Pacesetter Magnet<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mark Twain Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Northlake Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Northrich Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Richland Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>RISD Academy<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Stults Road Elementary<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Sonya Parker Goode, the RISD Director of Community Engagement says, \u201cWe Read Together continues to be one of the most meaningful examples of community impact in Richardson ISD. This program may have started as an opportunity to support literacy, but it has grown into something much greater-it\u2019s a powerful connection between our students and the caring adults who consistently show up to encourage, equip, and empower them. We are deeply grateful for the WE Read Together volunteers and everyone else who continues to say \u201cYES\u201d to our students.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Community members who are interested in getting involved can apply on the RISD <a href=\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/wereadtogether\/\">We Read Together<\/a> webpage.<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An hour that makes an impact. Volunteer readers in the We Read Together program are championing early literacy and mentoring Pre-K to second graders.<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":10,"featured_media":43861,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[37],"class_list":["post-43860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-homepage"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Championing Early Literacy through Reading Together - Richardson ISD<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Championing Early Literacy through Reading Together - Richardson ISD\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"An hour that makes an impact. Volunteer readers in the We Read Together program are championing early literacy and mentoring Pre-K to second graders.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Richardson ISD\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-24T18:01:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-24T18:05:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Reading5.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2376\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1705\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Justine Huddleston\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Justine Huddleston\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Justine Huddleston\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/#\/schema\/person\/090d7639bd159f937fa158d0ec65b00f\"},\"headline\":\"Championing Early Literacy through Reading Together\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-24T18:01:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-24T18:05:17+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\"},\"wordCount\":317,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Reading5.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"homepage\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\",\"name\":\"Championing Early Literacy through Reading Together - Richardson ISD\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Reading5.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-24T18:01:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-24T18:05:17+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Reading5.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Reading5.jpeg\",\"width\":2376,\"height\":1705,\"caption\":\"We Read Together Volunteer reading a book to a student\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/early-literacy-we-read-together\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Championing Early Literacy through Reading Together\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web.risd.org\/home\/\",\"name\":\"Richardson ISD\",\"description\":\"Every Child. 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