In the post-COVID era, early literacy (children aged 3-8) scores are decreasing like never before. Many of our children are falling behind. Statistics demonstrate that over 1/2 of San Diegan children aren’t reading at grade level by the time they enter fourth grade, especially those from low-income communities. Using a local expert facilitator, we will use this 60-minute general session to engage with diverse attendees to learn about their attitudes, perspectives and reactions about current programs, services and resources in early literacy. We will invite participants to continue working together in a collective impact model to improve literacy among early learners across San Diego County. Current research supports the use of community listening sessions in order to engage community members in identifying and solving problems. Our intention is that these listening sessions will activate current stakeholders' interest and understanding for the unique opportunities and obstacles that exist around early literacy in the region. The outcome will be a more coordinated collective impact effort to improve outcomes in the future.

Learning Objective:
1. Learn the perspectives of diverse stakeholders on the topic of early literacy, such as the unique opportunities and obstacles that exist around early literacy in the region.
2. Connect with other early literacy stakeholders 
3. Share existing resources, programs and opportunities with other early literacy stakeholders.