Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball Partners with Real Dads Read, Fathers Read Every Day and the Dedicated Men at University of North Texas to Help Build Up the Babies of the Brothers on the Bottom in Tarrant County.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS – The Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball is pleased to announced a new initiative with Real Dads Read and Fathers Read Every Day to support and help improve the crisis reading levels of struggling students in Tarrant County.
“Our goal for this partnership is to help the Brothers on the Bottom build healthy and helpful relationships with their children and other children in our village,” says Rev. K. P. Tatum, Sr., Commissioner of the Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball League.
The Real Dads Read (RDR) is aimed at preschool and school aged children (0-18) and their fathers/male caregivers with the goals of 1) encouraging children to develop a love of reading, 2) improving children’s literacy skills and educational outcomes, and 3) strengthening bonds between fathers/caregivers and their children. Real Dads Read is a two-generation approach to engaging and improving outcomes for both men and the children for which they are responsible.
The Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball Program is launching a countywide campaign to help the over 40 school districts and charter schools in Tarrant County to embrace the project on October 27th and beyond by promoting the Texas A&M University Extension Father’s Read Every Day (FRED) curriculum.
“Men lie, women lie but the numbers don’t lie. 84% of third grade African American students in FWISD can’t read on grade level and we see similar numbers throughout the county. We must do better by our babies if we want them to get better. Prayerfully, Real Men Read and Fathers Read Every Day will help us reach our Brothers on the Bottom, ” says Rev. Tatum
Fathers Reading Every Day (FRED) is an award-winning family literacy program developed over a decade ago to encourage greater parental involvement in children’s early literacy development, with a specific focus on fathers. During the program, fathers and father-figures of children enrolled in early childhood programs and elementary schools are presented with research-based, best-practice strategies for helping them initiate daily reading activities with their children.
A group of male college students from the Dedicated Men at the University of North Texas have agreed to serve as storytellers and life coaches for the initiative.
For more information on you can become apart of this initiative contact Rev. K.P. Tatum at 817-966-7625, kptatum1@gmail.com
Real Fathers Read: https://www.realdadsread.org
Fathers Read Everyday: https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/solutions/fathers-reading-everyday/
Research on Fathers Read Every Day: https://www.joe.org/joe/2002october/iw4.php
UNT Dedicated Men: https://thededicatedmen.wixsite.com/connect
CONTACT: Rev. Kyev P. Tatum, Sr., Commissioner, Fort Worth Association of Midnight Basketball at 817-966-7625, kptatum1@gmail.com
