Kentucky Reading Association

✨ Once upon a time… in the land of literacy… ✨
The Kentucky Reading Association is proud to celebrate the next generation of literacy leaders with our KRA 2026 “30 Under 30” recognition! 📚👑
Do you know an outstanding educator, leader, or changemaker under 30 who is making a difference in literacy? Now is your chance to help us recognize their story!
🌟 Nominations are OPEN now through June 1st!
🔗 Submit your nomination here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdsJsqnUVkSq5I7BsSPaAM95v8OxIPIJwPinURGjuBINEp71w/viewform
Let’s honor those who are writing the next chapter in literacy and inspiring students across Kentucky. 💙📖

📚 Would You Rather Wednesday – Literacy Edition!
Let’s talk comprehension strategies! 👇
Would you rather…
📚 Have students annotate texts
OR
🎯 Have students complete graphic organizers about texts?
Tell us your choice in the comments and why!
Both strategies support deeper thinking and understanding—we love hearing how educators across Kentucky make learning stick for their students. 💙

📚 Would You Rather Wednesday – Literacy Edition!
Let’s talk literacy instruction! 👇
Would you rather…
📖 Teach a novel study
OR
✍️ Teach a poetry unit?
Tell us your choice in the comments and why!
Both bring such powerful opportunities for student voice, comprehension, and creativity—we love hearing how you make them come alive in your classroom. 💙

As educators and advocates, we know that strong literacy foundations begin early. Access to books is one of the most powerful ways to make that happen. We are reaching out today with an important CALL TO ACTION to promote the continued state funding support of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. This program that provides free, high-quality books each month to children from birth to age five.
Across Kentucky, this program helps build home libraries, fosters a love of reading, and strengthens school readiness for our youngest learners. Imagination Library of Kentucky shared that if funding from the state is lessened or discontinued, program partners expect that more than 80 percent of the current programs would shut down.
We need your help.
We invite you to review the attached KRA Call to Action and the advocacy steps from DPIL below. This details specific steps that you can take to make a difference. Please share this information with other stakeholders, your school communities, and through social media avenues.
Together, we can ensure that every child in Kentucky has access to books and the opportunity to become a confident reader! Thank you for being a continued Voice for Literacy.
Advocating for Kentucky's children,
Kentucky Reading Association

From Imagination Library of Kentucky:
Please contact your local representatives and urge them to support the full funding of DPILKY at the current level of $2.5 million a year. Also, for the first time, it is not a clear line item in the budget. Without the state 50-50 funding match with your community's local program partner, thousands of children currently receiving books will be cut off from quality books for their home libraries! I am so proud of our footprint across the state, serving over 138,000 children with monthly book deliveries to their own mailboxes.

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Kentucky - Call for Advocacy

Why Your Call Matters

Over 52% of Kentucky’s children age 0-5 are enrolled in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
To ensure the continuance and growth of all of Kentucky’s local programs, funding must be appropriated and designated as a line item for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library
in the 2026 Legislative Budget.

The program costs just $2.60 per child per month in Kentucky’s 50/50 model.
We need full funding of $2.5 million in the Legislative Budget to keep growing early literacy in every Kentucky home!

Take Action Today!

Please call your legislator to express support for funding Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Kentucky.

Here’s how you can help in three easy steps:
1. Find Your Legislator here: https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/findyourlegislator/findyourlegislator.html
2. Call the LRC Message Line at 1-800-372-7181
3. Share Your Message: Tell the operator the names of your legislators (senate and house) and ask for this message to be forwarded to them:
“Fully fund Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Kentucky as a $2.5 million line item in the state budget and maintain the 50/50 match.”
4. Optional: Make a personal call or email to the legislators you know closely! Share stories and successes of your local program and the children it impacts!

Please also share this with all partners, community leaders, stakeholders, and families!

Let's keep books in the hands of Kentucky's youngest learners!

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📚 Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Literacy Leaders of the Commonwealth! 📚✨

The castle doors have opened… and the scrolls are already beginning to arrive! 📜

We are thrilled to share that proposals for the 2026 Kentucky Reading Association Conference are already rolling in, and the excitement across the kingdom of literacy is growing by the day.

Each year, this becomes a highly competitive process, as passionate educators from across Kentucky step forward to share the strategies, stories, and sparks that are transforming literacy in their classrooms and communities.

And now we ask you…

💭 What knowledge do you carry that could inspire another educator?
💭 What classroom magic have you discovered that deserves to be shared across the Commonwealth?
💭 What story of literacy success might help another teacher change a student’s life?

Whether you bring research, practical strategies, leadership insights, or classroom-tested ideas, your voice could become a powerful part of this year’s story.

✨ Early literacy innovations
✨ Engagement strategies for growing readers
✨ Leadership and advocacy in literacy
✨ Practical tools educators can take back to their classrooms

The story of Kentucky literacy is still being written… and your chapter could be next.

📜 Submit your proposal here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc47uhC7asx-Be5f_E_yRCBJgq8FrcKToHEAmn6fiO9jhL5YA/viewform

The kingdom is listening. The quills are ready.
What wisdom will you share with the educators of Kentucky? 👑📖

📚 Introducing a New Weekly Series from the Kentucky Reading Association!

We’re excited to launch Would You Rather Wednesday – Literacy Edition! 🎉

Each Wednesday we’ll share a fun literacy question for educators, librarians, and reading lovers across Kentucky. It’s a quick way to spark conversation, share ideas, and celebrate the many ways we bring literacy to life in our classrooms and communities.

Drop your answer in the comments!

Share your love and knowledge of literacy with educators across the state! Sign up here to be a presenter at KRA Conference 2026.

✨📚 Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Literacy Leaders of the Commonwealth! 📚✨
Once upon a time… in a land not so far away… a kingdom of passionate educators gathered to share stories, spark ideas, and ignite a love of literacy that would echo for generations.
And now… the next chapter begins. 👑
The Kentucky Reading Association is thrilled to announce that we are officially accepting proposals for our 2026 KRA Conference!
Do you have a story to tell?
A strategy that transforms readers into heroes?
A literacy practice that feels like pure magic in your classroom?
We invite you to step into the castle, take the stage, and share your wisdom with fellow educators from across our great Commonwealth. Whether your session is filled with research-backed treasures, classroom-tested tools, or inspiring success stories — your voice belongs in this tale.
✨ From early literacy to adolescent engagement
✨ From innovative instruction to leadership in literacy
✨ From practical strategies to powerful inspiration
This is your moment to help write the next chapter of Kentucky literacy.
📜 Submit your proposal here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc47uhC7asx-Be5f_E_yRCBJgq8FrcKToHEAmn6fiO9jhL5YA/viewform
The kingdom awaits your brilliance. The stage is set. The story is yours to tell.

Once upon a time, in a land where stories sparkled and words held magical power, there gathered a fellowship of educators devoted to the noble quest of literacy. And in this kingdom of readers and dreamers, the wise council of the Kentucky Reading Association prepared to welcome two beloved champions of the written word…
From distant realms of knowledge and passion come the storytellers and literacy leaders of Melissa & Lori Love Literacy — ready to share their wisdom, practical spells (the evidence-based kind!), and heart for empowering teachers everywhere.
With the royal sponsorship of Great Minds, this enchanting session promises research-backed insights, classroom-ready tools, and inspiration that will echo far beyond the castle walls.
Prepare to gather your fellow literacy knights, dust off your notebooks, and journey with us into conversations that strengthen our craft and renew our purpose. Because in this land of literacy, every educator is a hero… and every child deserves a happily ever after. ✨
Stay tuned, dear friends — the magic of KRA Conference 2026 is only just beginning. 🏰

Happy Read Across America Day! 📚

✨📚 Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Literacy Leaders of the Commonwealth! 📚✨
Once upon a time… in a land not so far away… a kingdom of passionate educators gathered to share stories, spark ideas, and ignite a love of literacy that would echo for generations.
And now… the next chapter begins. 👑
The Kentucky Reading Association is thrilled to announce that we are officially accepting proposals for our 2026 KRA Conference!
Do you have a story to tell?
A strategy that transforms readers into heroes?
A literacy practice that feels like pure magic in your classroom?
We invite you to step into the castle, take the stage, and share your wisdom with fellow educators from across our great Commonwealth. Whether your session is filled with research-backed treasures, classroom-tested tools, or inspiring success stories — your voice belongs in this tale.
✨ From early literacy to adolescent engagement
✨ From innovative instruction to leadership in literacy
✨ From practical strategies to powerful inspiration
This is your moment to help write the next chapter of Kentucky literacy.
📜 Submit your proposal here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc47uhC7asx-Be5f_E_yRCBJgq8FrcKToHEAmn6fiO9jhL5YA/viewform
The kingdom awaits your brilliance. The stage is set. The story is yours to tell.

Today, we’re introducing our Kentucky Reading Journal Editor — the leader who helps share powerful literacy research and best practices with educators across the state! Meet the educator who supports KRA’s mission through scholarship, professional learning, and a passion for strengthening literacy instruction at every level.