Description

Description of the Comprehensive Community Initiative

The Success By 6 community initiative for Lawton is broad-based and outcome driven. The following projects serve as our framework and enable Success By 6/Smart Start Lawton to provide services and to support existing efforts to ensure school readiness in our youngest learners.

• Leap Into Literacy for Childcare Providers, Head Start and Pre-K Teachers - This program provides free, on-site training for childcare center and family daycare providers and for Head Start and Pre-K teachers. Effective reading techniques are modeled in an on-site story-time experience and individuals are introduced to activities designed to build and strengthen literacy skills in the young child. Supplemental child development materials, age- appropriate books, and video materials are made available without cost to participants. Training credit is awarded by Great Plains Child Care Resource & Referral.
• Childcare Provider Training - This is an interactive, participatory, hands-on training that is also fun. The training materials can be used at an off-site location. Provider evaluations have indicated a need for training that focuses on the “now” and is more tailored to the individual needs of the provider’s services to the children. Four trainings will be offered, one each quarter, using an Out-of-the-Box Training Kit (Early Childhood Training Kit from Exchange Press) Tier I and II training credit is pending.
• Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) Parenting/Nutrition Training - This collaborative effort with the Comanche County Health Department allows Success By 6 staff to present a weekly parenting and nutrition education presentation tailored to meet the needs of area parents who qualify for the WIC program. In addition to enlightening materials, each family receives a book to read with their child.
• Raising A Reader - Lawton 586 is currently partnering with the Lawton Public Schools in the implementation of this program. 1,500 children in every pre-k classroom are currently part of the program. Raising A Reader, a powerful pre-literacy program for families with pre-school children, is a take-home book bag program that “targets the first five years of life, a vital development window when 90% of brain growth occurs.” Bright red book bags filled with books are rotated weekly among families with children involved in the local 4 year old program. The goal of the Raising A Reader program is to significantly increase the number of families that share books with their preschool children regularly and consistently throughout the week. The program provides multicultural books and specially selected books that enable limited English-speaking and illiterate families to participate in the reading experience. Teachers are trained to implement the program and families, through parent meetings, are supported and affirmed through out the Raising A Reader experience.
• Bibs & Books - Families with a newborn receive a “Read To Me” Success By 6 bib and a packet of educational materials to take home when they leave area hospitals. To begin the reading adventure, each family is also given a book to read to their child. (There are approximately 2000 births in Comanche County each year.)
• Lawton Reads - Community volunteers of all ages read in the local public school, Head Start and childcare classrooms. The frequency and time of the reading event is mutually determined by the volunteer and teacher. This program is offered throughout the school year and into the summer for facilities offering summer programs. Success By 6 coordinates this program.
• Parent University - A community-wide collaborative event, Parent University brings together the expertise of numerous individuals and community agencies with one goal: improving and developing the essential skills necessary to prepare children for tomorrow’s challenges. Each year, the format and the content of Parent University changes to meet the ever-changing needs of parents, grandparents, guardians, childcare workers and educators.
• Leap Into Literacy Family Night with Head Start - Parents and educators bring books to life with this program. An evening of reading-centered activities helps parents learn how to effectively share books withchildren. This program was established through a collaborative effort of parents, Early Head Start/Head Start Staff, Success By 6 and the Lawton Public Library.
• Clearinghouse for Early Childhood Resources - Success By 6 functions as a resource and referral point for information, materials or issues related to early childhood education.
• Community Parenting Presentations - Success By 6 is frequently asked to provide parenting workshops and presentations in the community.
• Strengthening Families to Build Strong Communities - A partnership with the City of Lawton and the National League of Cities. Community leaders are involved.
• Parent Library - In conjunction with the Lawton Public Library and the Friends of the Library, Success By 6 has provided the Lawton Public Library money to purchase books, videos, magazines, and other important information for parents of children from birth through adolescence.  These resources can be found in the Parent Library section of the library.

All Oklahoma children will enter school healthy and ready to succeed in school and in life.