Project CARE - Infusing Literacy in Home-Based Child Care Settings

For many parents, home-based child care offers a convenient and flexible option for their children's care while they are at work or school. In the 14215 Literacy Zone, as in many urban neighborhoods, it is the largest provider of child care for the families in the community. Sometimes, however, smaller operations may lack the resources to truly prepare children for formal school.

Project CARE (Community Action for Reading Excellence) is an RTSB program that provides the supports and resources necessary for home-based child care providers to ensure that language and literacy skills are a critical component of their care.

Now in its fourth year and funded through a generous grant from the United Way of Buffalo and Erie County, Project CARE continues to provide professional development and on site coaching supports for 14 family child care professionals and one child care center caring for nearly 200 children in the Literacy Zone. 

The goal of Project CARE is simple - ensure that language and literacy tools are an essential part of the home care environment - and that the children receive the best care possible to prepare them for school.  By providing training and other resources to child care providers, RTSB is ensuring that all children have access to high quality, literacy rich environments wherever they spend their preschool years.

The program was initially made possible by a $400,000 grant from the Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Foundation. The United Way of Buffalo and Erie County has committed funding to continue the program for until July of 2013.