What is Read Your Heart Out?

Read Your Heart Out was created by Michelle Belnavis, a teacher in the Madison Metropolitan School District over 18 years ago.  RYHO was intended to align to National African American Parent Involvement Day that occurs in February.  This event started in one school, and grew to the district at large in preceding years.  Michelle then became the Family Engagement Coordinator for the District and expanded this formally to all schools in Madison and surrounding districts.  She then worked for the RtI Center and this became a key Family Engagement/Equity strand related to Culturally Responsive Practices. 

RYHO’s intent was to utilize culturally represented texts that show African Americans in a positive way.  The goal further then aims to have community and family members from the African American community come into schools to read aloud these texts so that students can see themselves in both texts and in roles in the community.  RYHO is deeply rooted in African American culture, community and values.  Those values are represented in our flyer that we sent to families, our community and have posted in our school.  

Other Resources/links:

• Read Your Heart Out - WI RtI Center as a Culturally Responsive Practice

• https://www.wisconsinrticenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/RYHO2019-20Flyer.pdf

• Link to Madison Metropolitan School District RYHO website

Opportunities for follow up conversations around Equity, Race and Black History

• National African American Parent Involvement Day 

• https://www.learningforjustice.org/ 

• https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/black-history-milestones 

• https://www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/

• https://www.edutopia.org/article/teaching-black-history-culturally-responsive-ways 

• https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race 

• https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/audiences/parent-caregiver 

• https://sites.google.com/madison.k12.wi.us/ryho/home 

• https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/seven-principles-kwanzaa 

• https://www.berea.edu/cgwc/the-power-of-sankofa/ 

• https://parade.com/1059547/jessicasager/black-national-anthem-lift-every-voice-and-sing/ 

History of National African American Parent Involvement Day

National African American Parent Involvement Day was founded by Joseph Dulin in 1995 and was inspired by the Million Man March. The goals of NAAPID are:

• Promote African American parent involvement in their child's education.

• Promote and provide strategies for African American parents and students to take full advantage of the educational process at all levels of the educational system (preschool through postsecondary).

• Identify and develop partnership efforts between all sectors of the community (business, school, home etc.).

• Create a national network on the state and local levels to achieve the mission and goals of NAAPID.

• Develop fundraising strategies and put them into effect to finance the endeavors of NAAPID (grants, public and private donations, in-kind services etc.).

• Offer educational workshops, seminars and institutes relating to parental involvement and eliminating the achievement gap.

• Establish an annual National African American Parent Involvement Day celebration on the second Monday in February.

Reference:

The African American Desk Reference

Schomburg Center for research in Black Culture

Copyright 1999 The Stonesong Press Inc. and

The New York Public Library, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Pub.

ISBN 0-471-23924-0