Family Resources

These local, state, and national parent and family resources provide further information and prepare your child for kindergarten.

Literacy and Learning Resources

There is a lot of information out there to help you develop your child's literacy skills. Here are a few websites we recommend:

Brightly - Information on child and literacy development from birth through adulthood with an emphasis on authors, illustrators and book picks.
KidCentral TN - A one-stop shop for Tennessee's resources for children and families. Learn about health, social services and your child's development.
Nashville Public Library - Visit NPL's Kid Zone for games, information, and recommended age-appropriate books to check out at your local branch! Plus the library has free events and workshops to support early literacy.
Book'em (For Educators) - Book'em helps low-income families acquire age-appropriate books for their children for free!
Bringing Books to Life - Dedicated to literacy education for early childhood, BBTL offers recommended books, tips, and resources as you help your child develop his or her literacy skills at home and/or at preschool!
Imagination Library - Imagination Library provides FREE age-appropriate books to your child from birth to age 5! Imagination Library in Davidson, Williamson and Sumner Counties is provided through a partnership between United Way of Metro Nashville and the Governor's Books From Birth Foundation.
Get Ready to Read - Get Ready to Read!, from the National Center for Learning Disabilities, provides great tips for reading to and with your child to encourage love of reading.
ReadyRosie - ReadyRosie uses video modeling and mobile technology to reach parents on the go, by email or text message. In hundreds of videos, real parents show how they turn daily home life into "learning moments." Videos are in English, Spanish, and in English with Arabic and Vietnamese subtitles. ReadyRosie is a free resource available through the Nashville Public Library.
HGSE Early Literacy Mobile Apps - Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) introduced a series of free research-backed early-literacy apps designed to help children thrive & succeed as early learners & readers, at home, at school and in their communities. These free mobile apps are meant for parents, caregivers, and their children to play together. They encourage laughter and fun interaction, and they inspire new ways to promote family conversation.

INFORMATION ON LITERACY

Reading Rockets - Lots of information about helping your child become a reader.
Color in Colorado - Great bilingual resource for parents and educators
PNC Grow-Up Great - Sesame Street themed resources for educators and parents, available in English and Spanish.
Reading Is Fundamental - Activities and information for parents and educators. You can search by age or topic. Also has free e-books to download in English and Spanish.

ONLINE BOOKS

Nashville Public Library: The Nashville Public library has many resources that families can access for free online with their Nashville Public Library card. Don't have a card for the Nashville Public Library? Signing up is easy, and you can do it online to receive immediate access to all online services and downloads!
- BookFlix -Watch animated versions of favorite picture books. Each picture book is paired with an e-book of a related informational text. Resources for parents and teachers, too. Login on a computer in a library location or at home with your library card number and PIN.
- Tumblebooks - Online e-books and activities that are free with your library card.
- Overdrive for Kids - Borrow e-books with your library card to read on your computer or device (via free app). Only children's titles are included here, and many have read-along features. You will need your library card number and PIN in order to borrow and download books.
- Age/grade-leveled booklists curated by the Nashville Public Library staff.
International Children's Digital Library - This online resource provides stories in many languages, including Arabic, Farsi, Spanish and Russian.
Storyline Online - Free online videos of actors reading children's books

Healthy Children Resources

Your child's health is important to their development and academic success. Below are health resources for families:

American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry has compiled important information on your child's dental health

Center for Disease Control & prevention (CDC)

The CDC provides tips on how to raise a healthy child between the ages of 4 - 11. The site also has tips for raising all child age groups.

Drugwatch

Drugwatch, a free web resource that provides health information guides, as well as research on various medical conditions and unsafe drugs. The Children's Health Guide covers topic from Growth and Development to Bullying and Preteens.

Healthy Children

Healthy Children has up-to-the-minute pediatric health information and answers to your developmental questions! Visit the Healthy Children's site and learn about your child's health and developmental milestones.

KidCentral TN

KidCentral TN is a great resource provided by the state of Tennessee. Find information on nutrition, safety, checkups, insurance, TN health services and more!

MNPS Child Find

If you're concerned your child may not be developing at the right speed, or if you believe your child may be gifted in other ways, visit the MNPS Child Find to access developmental standard information and learn about free screenings for Individualized Education Programs.

Women, Infants and Children (WIC)

WIC is also called the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program. WIC is a federal program designed to provide supplemental food to low-income pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women, infants and children until the age of five. The program provides a combination of nutrition education

Child Care Resources

Below is information on Tennessee child care resources for families:

A Parent's Guide to Choosing Quality Child Care in TN

For detailed information on assessing childcare facilities to meet your child's needs, review A Parent's Guide to Choosing Quality Child Care from the TN Department of Human Services. It includes information on various types of childcare options and suggested questions to ask during a prescreen telephone call and while touring a facility.

Child Care Locator and Resources

When you are ready to look for and enroll your little one in childcare, visit the TN Department of Human Services' Child Care Locator. The TN Department of Human Services has helpful information to young families.

Tools

These tools are additional support to help your child get ready for kindergarten. Our tools include videos to support learning at home, a monthly calendar to provide activities to support your child's learning and an informative monthly newsletter to support families. For additional resources visit the Get Ready for Kindergarten section of this site.

Tools

Home Learning Activities

Summer Learning Resources

Summer Activity Guide

Summer Learning Resources Info Sheet