Barriers and solutions for practitioners

I am a childminder, does this apply to me too?

When getting started, give yourself one action point that you can achieve. Then after a few months you can make another change.
The website is full of ideas that you can do by yourself. Most of the them do not cost much or are free and are easy to set in motion.
Join forces with other Early Reading Connects settings in your area, and share ideas with them. Collaboration may mean you save time and money.
Try to organise a weekly visit to the local library with the children. You will have the opportunity to listen to stories, read and borrow books, and to find out about other reading events in your area.
You could help the children to make their own books; they could be about the children themselves or they could choose a topic. Add drawings to make it even more fun.

Find the reading enthusiasts in your setting; It doesn’t matter what they read, it is their enthusiasm that counts. Encourage them to get involved in setting up a reading event or activity and by asking other members of staff along.
Using the research page, put together a short presentation or document (one side of A4) to deliver at a staff meeting or to management, about how a focus on reading for pleasure can support achievement. Support from a manager can help to get the project started. You could also use the Early Reading Connects PowerPoint presentation to introduce the idea to your colleagues.
Set up a book group to reinvigorate the reading life of the staff. You could offer wine or other incentives to encourage their participation.
Declare a day of reading and encourage all staff to get involved in the fun.
Look at more practical ideas under the EYFS category of 'Learning and development' and the subsection 'Setting strategy'

Run a sponsored read to raise funds.
Get parents, children and staff to recycle books, magazines and comics by donating them to the setting.
Try some of the practical ideas on the site. Many of these are free or do not cost much.
Find out what staff and local community members can do. They may have skills such as storytelling, cake-making or application-writing that you could use to help with fundraising, running events or raising the profile of reading.
Work with the management at your setting to gain some commitment to the project, which may allow for funding to be allocated.
Approach local businesses for sponsorship.
Have a look at the funding page for more ideas and advice.

Organise a fun event that features family learning opportunities (such as cooking together, trying musical instruments, football matches or learning a language). On the day, consult the parents about what help they would like to support their child's reading at home.
Invite librarians to come to your setting and talk to parents about what the library can offer them, as well as bringing along a selection of books. Librarians could even join up families there and then.
Have a read-at-home week, with awards and certificates for participation. Encourage families to tell each other stories, listen to story tapes or read together for 10 minutes a day.
If you have a library in your setting, ask parents to help run it.

See our practical ideas under 'Positive Relationships' for ideas on supporting dads and male carers.