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News Release

When Do Kids Start Learning To Read? It’s Not Kindergarten. (Photo) -05/14/25

Raising Readers Begins at Birth — Seaside Elementary Student Helps Inspire Families, Child Care Providers with Toolkits Featuring Her Artwork

ASTORIA – Mously Mbathie, an eight-year-old from Seaside, was recently selected as the winner of a county-wide art contest. Her submission features her standing among all of her favorite book characters. There’s a bespectacled elephant named Gerald, Raggedy Ann with her bright red hair, Barbie in a pink dress and a vested alligator named Brash. 

“They make me feel like they are always with me,” Mously says about her winning submission.  

Mously was one of dozens of students who entered a county-wide art contest called “Inspired to Read.”  

The contest was part of a wider campaign -- dubbed How to Raise a Reader -- developed by the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub to promote early literacy. Students were invited to share what they love about reading and what it means to them. 

Using the artwork from the contest winners, the hub team developed a toolkit to help parents and child care providers promote early reading skills. 

Brain science tells us children start developing literacy skills the moment they’re born and not once they start going to school as some people might think. That means families and child care providers are the ones helping children develop those early skills that will set them up for success once they reach kindergarten. 

Following these tips is not complicated or time-consuming, but learning to follow them does take practice. 

“We thought it could be so much more powerful to talk about early literacy using children’s own voices,” says Abbey Lutskovsky, who oversees the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub and rolled out the contest in the fall in partnership with school districts and child care providers. “Integrating their ideas and artwork into the toolkits really brought them to life,” she says. 

Abbey and colleagues then teamed up with Oregon’s Department of Human Services to add Little Free Libraries to self-sufficiency offices in Seaside, Astoria, St. Helens and Tillamook. The reading tips and artwork are featured at each little library. 

She also staffed a panel to select high-quality books for every age and has co-hosted ribbon-cutting ceremonies with the student artists in St. Helens and Tillamook. The Clatsop County ceremony will take place at 4 p.m. next Wednesday, May 21 at the Department of Human Services office in Seaside. 

This weekend, along with NWRESD’s Child Care Resource and Referral team, the staff will start distributing toolkits around the region to an estimated 75 child care providers in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties as part of the annual Child Care Appreciation events. 

The Clatsop County Appreciation Event Will Be Held 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at the Following Location - MEDIA INVITED TO ATTEND
 

  • Captain Robert Gray School (785 Alameda Avenue Astoria OR 97103)

More About the Toolkits

The toolkits include posters, trifold brochures, stickers and social media graphics all based on the student art contest winners. These materials will help teach parents, caregivers and child care providers about how they can start building literacy skills in babies, toddlers and preschoolers. The full toolkit is available at nwresd.org/raise-a-reader. But here’s a recap: 

Top Literacy Tips:
 

  • Sing or talk to your child in short, simple phrases — and don’t be afraid to use a higher pitch. Babies love it. 

  • Cuddle up and read together — any type of book will do, but babies and toddlers love to look at pictures.

  • Ask questions as you read aloud to build comprehension.

Other Resources for Parents and Child Care Providers:

About the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub


Young children from birth to 5 are learning and developing at a rapid pace — faster than any other time in their lives. The Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub works to ensure young children and their families in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties have the resources and support to thrive. We are educators, health care providers, community advocates, program providers and businesses who believe we can do more for our communities together than we can on our own.

Attached Media Files: Mouslymatou Mbathie portrait, How to Raise a Reader toolkit, How to Raise a Reader toolkit, How to Raise a Reader toolkit,

When Do Kids Start Learning To Read? It’s Not Kindergarten. (Photo) -05/14/25

Raising Readers Begins at Birth — Nestucca Valley 8-Year-Old Helps Inspire Families, Child Care Providers with Toolkits Featuring Her Artwork

TILLAMOOK – If you ask Aaliyah, an 8-year-old from Nestucca Valley, who inspired her to read, she’ll tell her it was her mom. 

“She gave me courage to read by myself,” Aaliyah says. 

So when her after-school program invited students to participate in a Tillamook County-based art contest all about reading, Aaliyah knew right away who she would draw. 

In the center of her submission is her mom and surrounding her are pink and read hearts with open pages and a stack of books. This aspiring park ranger from this coastal Oregon town was surprised to learn her entry was selected among dozens from her region. Not even her mom knew about it and said later she was so honored her daughter thought of her that way. 

The contest was part of a wider campaign -- dubbed How to Raise a Reader -- developed by the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub to promote early literacy. Students were invited to share what they love about reading and what it means to them. 

Using the artwork from the contest winners, the hub team developed a toolkit to help parents and child care providers promote early reading skills. 

Brain science tells us children start developing literacy skills the moment they’re born and not once they start going to school as some people might think. That means families and child care providers are the ones helping children develop those early skills that will set them up for success once they reach kindergarten. 

Following these tips is not complicated or time-consuming, but learning to follow them does take practice. 

“We thought it could be so much more powerful to talk about early literacy using children’s own voices,” says Abbey Lutskovsky, who oversees the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub and rolled out the contest in the fall in partnership with school districts and child care providers. “Integrating their ideas and artwork into the toolkits really brought them to life,” she says. 

Abbey and colleagues then teamed up with Oregon’s Department of Human Services to add Little Free Libraries to self-sufficiency offices in Seaside, Astoria, St. Helens and Tillamook. The reading tips and artwork are featured at each little library. 

She also staffed a panel to select high-quality books for every age and has co-hosted ribbon-cutting ceremonies with the student artists in St. Helens and Tillamook. The Clatsop County ceremony will take place at 4 p.m. next Wednesday, May 21 at the Department of Human Services office in Seaside. 

This weekend, along with NWRESD’s Child Care Resource and Referral team, the staff will start distributing toolkits around the region to an estimated 75 child care providers in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties as part of the annual Child Care Appreciation events. 

A Tillamook County Event Will Be Held 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at the Following Location - MEDIA INVITED TO ATTEND
 

  • Child Care Resource & Referral Building (1315 3rd Street Tillamook, OR 97141)

More About the Toolkits

The toolkits include posters, trifold brochures, stickers and social media graphics all based on the student art contest winners. These materials will help teach parents, caregivers and child care providers about how they can start building literacy skills in babies, toddlers and preschoolers. The full toolkit is available at nwresd.org/raise-a-reader. But here’s a recap: 

Top Literacy Tips:
 

  • Sing or talk to your child in short, simple phrases — and don’t be afraid to use a higher pitch. Babies love it. 

  • Cuddle up and read together — any type of book will do, but babies and toddlers love to look at pictures.

  • Ask questions as you read aloud to build comprehension.

Other Resources for Parents and Child Care Providers:

About the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub


Young children from birth to 5 are learning and developing at a rapid pace — faster than any other time in their lives. The Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub works to ensure young children and their families in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties have the resources and support to thrive. We are educators, health care providers, community advocates, program providers and businesses who believe we can do more for our communities together than we can on our own.

Attached Media Files: Aaliyah Kinder portrait, How to Raise a Reader toolkit featured Aaliyah's artwork,

When Do Kids Start Learning To Read? It’s Not Kindergarten. (Photo) -05/14/25

Raising Readers Begins at Birth — Clatskanie High Schooler Helps Inspire Families, Child Care Providers with Toolkits Featuring Her Artwork

ST. HELENS – Grace Hadley, a 15-year-old from Clatskanie, loves reading dystopian, fantasy and historical fiction books. She also loves penning stories — so when she heard about a recent county-wide art contest, she decided to create artwork to go along with one of her stories. 

Using colored pencils, she drew her characters in a bleak forested winterscape. Birds play heavily in her storylines, too. “Hawks represent power and the throne, while owls represent wiseness and magic,” Grace says. 

She was delighted to find out her submission was selected from among dozens of submissions as the winner of the “Inspired to Read Art Contest.” 

The contest was part of a wider campaign — dubbed How to Raise a Reader — developed by the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub to promote early literacy. Students were invited to share what they love about reading and what it means to them. 

Using the artwork from the contest winners, the hub team developed a toolkit to help parents and child care providers promote early reading skills. 

Brain science tells us children start developing literacy skills the moment they’re born and not once they start going to school as some people might think. That means families and child care providers are the ones helping children develop those early skills that will set them up for success once they reach kindergarten. 

Following these tips is not complicated or time-consuming, but learning to follow them does take practice. 

“We thought it could be so much more powerful to talk about early literacy using children’s own voices,” says Abbey Lutskovsky, who oversees the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub and rolled out the contest in the fall in partnership with school districts and child care providers. “Integrating their ideas and artwork into the toolkits really brought them to life,” she says. 

Abbey and colleagues then teamed up with Oregon’s Department of Human Services to add Little Free Libraries to self-sufficiency offices in Seaside, Astoria, St. Helens and Tillamook. The reading tips and artwork are featured at each little library. 

She also staffed a panel to select high-quality books for every age and has co-hosted ribbon-cutting ceremonies with the student artists in St. Helens and Tillamook. The Clatsop County ceremony will take place at 4 p.m. next Wednesday, May 21 at the Department of Human Services office in Seaside. 


This weekend, along with NWRESD’s Child Care Resource and Referral team, the staff will start distributing toolkits around the region to an estimated 75 child care providers in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties as part of the annual Child Care Appreciation events. 

A Columbia County Appreciation Event Will Be Held 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at the Following Location - MEDIA INVITED TO ATTEND

  • Grant Watts Elementary School (52000 SE 3rd Place Scappoose, Oregon 97056) 

More About the Toolkits

The toolkits include posters, trifold brochures, stickers and social media graphics all based on the student art contest winners. These materials will help teach parents, caregivers and child care providers about how they can start building literacy skills in babies, toddlers and preschoolers. The full toolkit is available at nwresd.org/raise-a-reader. 

Top Literacy Tips:
 

  • Sing or talk to your child in short, simple phrases — and don’t be afraid to use a higher pitch. Babies love it. 

  • Cuddle up and read together — any type of book will do, but babies and toddlers love to look at pictures.

  • Ask questions as you read aloud to build comprehension.

Other Resources for Parents and Child Care Providers:

About the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub


Young children from birth to 5 are learning and developing at a rapid pace — faster than any other time in their lives. The Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub works to ensure young children and their families in Clatsop, Columbia and Tillamook counties have the resources and support to thrive. We are educators, health care providers, community advocates, program providers and businesses who believe we can do more for our communities together than we can on our own.

Attached Media Files: Grace Hadley portrait, Photo of How to Raise a Reader toolkit featuring Grace's artwork, Grace Hadley, a 15-year-old from Clatskanie, cuts the ribbon on the Little Free Library at the Department of Human Services office in St. Helens. Photos by Megan Mahoney., Grace Hadley, a 15-year-old from Clatskanie, holds up part of the “How to Raise a Reader” toolkit that features her artwork. Grace won an Inspired to Read art contest hosted by the Northwest Regional Early Learning Hub.,