The Read to Succeed Office and each school district must plan for and act decisively to engage the families of students as full participating partners in promoting the reading and writing habits and skills development of their children. With support from the Read to Succeed Office, districts and individual schools shall provide families with information about how children progress as readers and writers and how they can support this progress. This family support must include providing time for their child to read, as well as reading to the child. To ensure that all families have access to a considerable number and diverse range of books appealing to their children, schools should develop plans for enhancing home libraries and for accessing books from county libraries and school libraries and to inform families about their child's ability to comprehend grade-level texts and how to interpret information about reading that is sent home. The districts and schools shall help families learn about reading and writing through open houses, South Carolina Educational Television, video and audio tapes, websites, and school-family events and collaborations that help link the home and school of the student. The information should enable family members to understand the reading and writing skills required for graduation and essential for success in a career. Each institution of higher learning may operate a year-round program similar to a summer reading camp to assist students not reading at grade level.
HISTORY: 2014 Act No. 284 (S.516), Section 1, eff June 11, 2014.