Events

The Barksdale Reading Institute (BRI) is proud to partner with Bramlett Elementary School and Lafayette Lower Elementary School to offer The LOU Parent Academy to parents of three, four, and five-year-olds in our community.  The LOU Parent Academy is a free program designed to help parents prepare their three, four, and five-year-old children for a successful start in school. Any parents with three, four, and five-year-olds in the LOU Community may participate.  

The program covers a series of kindergarten-readiness topics such as oral language, early reading, math, general development, etc. over the course of the school year, referred to as “modules.” The modules are conducted monthly. Parents will receive hands-on instruction and be given free materials and activities to take home and use with their children to support their learning and development.  Door prizes, meal, and limited childcare will also be provided! It does not matter at which school your child attends/will attend kindergarten during the 2020-2021 school year.

The Barksdale Reading Institute was founded in 2000 by Jim and Sally Barksdale, who, after researching the state of education in America, became convinced that reading is the most fundamental skill that every child must master in order to become successful. BRI is designed to significantly improve Mississippi students’ pre-literacy and reading skills.​

We are pleased and honored that Parent Academy will be provided to the LOU Community for the 2020-2021 school year. While LOU families and local schools navigate the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, LOU Reads and its collaborators are striving to provide a program that will deliver on Parent Academy’s mission in an environment that is safe for all. Details on scheduling and modules for the 2020-2021 Parent Academy program are coming soon.

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For more information about The Parent Academy and/or The Barksdale Reading Institute, please visit www.msreads.org.