Raising Readers is ending March 31st 2024. Click here for the most up to date information.

Parent and Community Resources

This library of resources connects you with free, downloadable materials and organizations that support your child’s early learning.

Raising Readers Resources

Raising Readers’ Book Lists are lists for you to explore with your little. See every picture book we’ve ever given on a master list or filtered by age group (2, 3, 4, and 5 year old books).

Reading Tips Sheets for parents

Arabic | Chinese (Mandarin) | English | French | Somali | Spanish | Vietnamese

Early Literacy throughout the Year are handouts offering a year’s worth of ideas and activities to help you advance your child’s emergent literacy skills. 

January: Setting the Scene for Literacy – printable download

February: Creating a Love of Literacy – printable download

March: Promoting Oral Language – printable download

April: Building Vocabulary – printable download

May: Learning How Text Works – printable download

June: Playing with Sounds of Language – printable download

July: Building World Knowledge – printable download

August: Promoting Letter Recognition – printable download

September: Connecting Letters and Sounds – printable download

October: Building Genre Awareness – printable download

November: Building Comprehension – printable download

December: Promoting Writing – printable download


Maine Resources

Book Fairy Pantry Project is a family literacy movement sharing gently used, quality children’s books to participating food pantries and WIC offices to be given to Maine families.

Dirigo Reads is a Maine-based organization with a mission to give a book each month of the school year to every Maine first grader attending public school.

Diverse BookFinder is an online collection of children’s picture books featuring Black and Indigenous people and People of Color (BIPOC). 

Help me Grow Maine is a free service that connects parents and caregivers (of children ages birth to 8 years-old) to information and services about child development and community resources. 

I’m Your Neighbor Books is a nonprofit organization that highlights the lives of New Arrivals and New Americans through the sharing of children’s literature. I’m Your Neighbor Books is home to The Welcoming Library, a pop-up community conversation on immigration driven by a collection of picture books featuring new families.

Literacy for ME is a comprehensive Literacy for ME: Maine’s Statewide Literacy Plan unifying the efforts of state agencies, community groups, and public schools to provide support to improve literacy achievement in Maine communities. 

Literacy Volunteers provide student-focused tutoring in basic literacy and English as a Second Language at no charge to the student. Search the web for “literacy volunteers Maine” to find local affiliates.

Maine Adult Education provides adults with educational opportunities to gain and improve their literacy skills.

Maine Humanities uses books, poetry, and big ideas to promote meaningful connection and positive change in communities throughout Maine.

Maine Libraries provide diverse collections of books and many other resources in most Maine communities, large and small. Library services are designed to keep children engaged and families supported. Find a library closest to you by clicking the link. 

Maine State Library shares emergent and early literacy resources and a list of projects that parents may be able to do at home using basic materials that you already have on hand. 

Maine State Library’s Early Literacy Calendar features Maine authors and illustrators. This free downloadable calendar has an early literacy activity for nearly every day of the week!

Our Shelves is a small company that provides subscription book boxes to families that feature books with racially an ethnically diverse, LQBTQ+, and feminist characters and families, among other currently under-represented identities in children’s books. This project is based in Maine.

Talking Books Plus/Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (incl. children’s books)

Reading Together to Build Healthy Brains Video (by MaineHealth’s ChildHealth Team)


National Resources

The American Academy of Pediatrics offers a quick tip to help parents and children nurture their relationship—by reading a book together.

Tips to Help Your Child Enjoy Reading Aloud

Tips to Help Your Child Fall in Love with Reading

Connect with a Book: Take 5 and Take Out a Book (video)

Other Reading Resources

Five Easy Ways to Encourage Early Literacy Skills: Talk, Sing, Read, Write, Play (pdf download)

America’s Literacy Directory provides a list of literacy and educational resources for adult learners.

Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy is an organization working to ensure that all American adults have the opportunity to read, write, and comprehend in order to navigate the world with dignity—and to raise the next generation of readers.

The Basics shares tips to help bolster brain development for social-emotional and cognitive skill building among children ages zero to 3 in an easy-to-use format.

The Centers for Disease Control shares a full, updated list of developmental milestones for children 2 months to 5 years.

Diverse BookFinder is a go-to resource for parents who are looking for picture books featuring Black and Indigenous people and People of Color (BIPOC) children, families, and subjects. This project is based in Maine.

Unite For Literacy’s Free Digital Library is a free digital library that includes over 500 books with narrations in 50+ languages. 

Get Ready to Read supports educators, parents, and young children in the development of early literacy skills in the years before kindergarten.

Little Free Library is a  nonprofit organization that promotes neighborhood book exchanges, usually in the form of public bookcases.

National Association for the Education of Young Children is the national voice of early childhood and early childhood professionals. 

Our Shelves is a small company that provides subscription book boxes to families that feature books with racially an ethnically diverse, LQBTQ+, and feminist characters and families, among other currently under-represented identities in children’s books. This project is based in Maine.

Reading Bright Start provides tips for parents and caregivers to help a child learn to read with reading resources and reading activities.

Reach Out and Read is a national program similar to Raising Readers with recommended book lists, information on the importance of reading aloud and reading tips.

Reading Rockets is a literacy initiative offering information and resources on how young kids learn to read, why so many struggle, and how caring adults like you can help.

We Need Diverse Books is an organization that strives to create a world in which all children can see themselves in the pages of a book, offers a resource list of over 60 websites and organizations that share books set in marginalized communities.

Zero to Three provides resources to help parents support healthy growth, development, early language and literacy of their infants and toddlers.