Most children in the United States struggle to read on grade level (NAEP, 2022). It is very important for children to be taught specific literacy skills to become good readers. When children develop strong reading skills early, they do better in school, work, and life overall (National Reading Panel, 2000). Families can help students learn to read and tools like game-based online reading programs can help.   

EVERFI invites you to join a research study of the free online early literacy program, WORD Force, you can learn more about the course here. We want to learn more about how it helps students learn the sounds in words and how to read printed words. 

Who can participate? 

• Children in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten or 1st grade (about 4-7 years old) in the Spring of 2024 
• Children who have not played WORD Force before in school or at home 

 Benefits for you and your child 

• Free access to WORD Force, our flagship early literacy educational program 
• You will receive a detailed report on your child’s early literacy skill development. 
• You will receive $50 for each child you sign up for the study ($150 maximum per family), upon completion of required tasks.   

What does your child need to do?   

• All children: Complete an early literacy test online before and after playing WORD Force 
• Only children assigned to WORD Force: Play at least 6 games for 4-weeks between March and April of 2024 
• *All participants will have free access to WORD Force once the study is completed in April 2024. 

What do you need to do?  

• Fill out a survey in March 2024 about your child’s home literacy environment (e.g., how many books they have access to, how often you teach your child how to read letters and words) and your family composition.  
• Use the early literacy skill checklist we provide to evaluate your child’s literacy skills twice, once in March 2024 and another in April 2024.  

Time Commitment: 

• For children in the course condition group, at least 5 hours during the 4-week window to play at least 6 games in WORD Force. 
• The independent, digitized early literacy skill assessment takes about 15 minutes to finish. 
• The home literacy environment survey takes about 5 minutes to finish. 
• The early literacy skill evaluation takes about 20 minutes to finish.