ReadyRosie Learning Program largest in nation

Educational tool being used by 20,000 San Antonio-area families

SAN ANTONIO – A digital application for computers, tablets and smartphones called ReadyRose has caught on in the Alamo City, with approximately 20,000 families using it.

The San Antonio-area is now the No. 1 user of ReadyRosie in the nation. 

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ReadyRosie is a video-based application that sends a daily parent tool via a 1 1/2-minute video that shows one way to teach your pre-kindergarten-aged child a lesson in vocabulary, math or other skill.

P16 Plus Council of Greater Bexar County Executive Director Judy McCormick said it's easy to use and accessible for anyone with a phone.

"It's the parents being their child's first teacher and giving them the tools so they can ask good questions, like 'Is this bigger or smaller,'" she said.

Several Head Start parents have been among the first to use ReadyRosie, and say it equips them with easy to understand ways to help their children think, learn and reason. 

An example of a short video that is sent to the 90,000 family members who have registered shows a father reading a book to his daughter in funny, but incorrect, ways. By doing so, the child explains how the parent is doing it wrong, thus reinforcing correct terms for upside down, backward, front, back and other words.

"It grabs their interest in the small things," local grandmother Sylvia Carr said. "If you do the games, it's more like playing than learning."

Evaluation of the videos' impact show pre-K students experience an 85 percent increase in literacy, 82 percent increase in numeracy-focused language, as well as giving the children a head start in counting and alphabet sounds.

Leslie Martinez has been using it for several weeks and sees an impact already.

"My son is 5 and it really helps us take advantage of those everyday situations of like when you're waiting at the grocery store or in a doctor's office," she said.

Another mother of two pre-school girls, Secret Gonzalez, says she's used it at the zoo, teaching the children how to count animals, as well as cooking.

"It's really easy, it's right there in your hand. The videos are two minutes or less and it really explains things to do with your kids in everyday situations," she said.

The praise ReadyRosie is receiving is due in part to its price. It normally would cost each family $35 for a subscription, but all the agencies working together have brought the price down to $5 a family.  As a result, a large number of parents represents the largest user base in the country today.

McCormick said they've worked with a collective of agencies to make that number happen, including Alamo Colleges, AVANCE San Antonio, City of San Antonio Head Start, Eastside Promise Neighborhood, Family Service Association, Workforce Solutions Alamo, and Parent Child, Inc.

For more information on the digital application and how you may qualify, contact www.readyrosie.com.


About the Author:

Ursula Pari has been a staple of television news in Texas at KSAT 12 News since 1996 and a veteran of broadcast journalism for more than 30 years.