SPARK Early Literacy

SPARK Early Literacy is a family-school-community partnership literacy intervention developed by Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee for low-income and minority elementary students in Milwaukee Public Schools. The program serves kindergarten through second grade students who are pulled out of non-core classes for one-on-one tutoring three times per week for 30 minutes per session over two school years (approximately 155 sessions total). Each tutoring session follows a standardized lesson plan with five research-based literacy activities: Familiar activity, Word Play (phonics and phonemic awareness using Word Sorts and Making Words), Reading at the instructional level with leveled books, Running Records assessments, and Writing using Elkonin boxes. Tutoring is delivered by college students and community members supervised by a certified teacher who serves as program manager. The program also includes a family engagement component with parent partners who conduct home visits, monthly family events, newsletters, and phone/email contacts to help families support literacy development at home. An afterschool component leverages Boys & Girls Clubs programming for academic enrichment and social-emotional learning. Before implementation, tutors receive all-program training on lesson implementation, lesson planning, and literacy assessments, plus ongoing individualized training, informal support, and formal monthly observations with feedback.