Reading Worldwide
Building Family Literacy Through Community Voices
Reading Worldwide, formerly known as "Bedtime Stories", is a multi-generational virtual literacy model brings diverse authors, elected officials, and community leaders into engaging virtual story times with students and families—fully coordinated, professionally promoted, and designed for sustainability.
A Proven Virtual Literacy Engagement Model for Schools
Reading Worldwide invites the community to engage in virtual story times with young scholars and families—fully coordinated, professionally promoted, and designed for sustainability.📚 Published Authors — Share their books, writing journeys, and love of reading
🌍 Community Leaders — Connect students to civic engagement and diverse role models
✨ Scholar Readers — Students build reading fluency and confidence by reading to their peers, families, and community
How it works
📚 Weekly virtual story time sessions featuring published authors, community leaders and scholar readers
🌍 Professional coordination and reader recruitment
🎨 Custom promotional materials for each session
📊 Family engagement tracking and impact reporting
What makes Reading Worldwide different
Sessions began as 15-minute author readings and organically grew to 40+ minutes as students volunteer to share their own reading—even kindergarteners. This authentic engagement creates a supportive environment where students practice literacy skills while families witness their growth in real-time.The program addresses:
✅ Reading fluency development (students practice with authentic audiences)
✅ Family engagement (parents actively participate and celebrate their children)
✅ Social-emotional learning (confidence-building through leadership opportunities)
✅ Cultural enrichment (diverse authors and stories)
✅ Civic engagement (community leaders as role models)
✅ Fostering global literacy
Educator Voices"Ms. Sylvain's reading program was truly embraced by both the parents and students in my district. The children were excited to be chosen as readers each month, and they were always eager to practice their reading skills both in the classroom and at home."
— L. Blades, Educator
Westbury Union Free School DistrictCommunity Leader Voice:
Participating in this program (formerly Bedtime Stories, now Reading Worldwide) was a gratifying experience.
It was a joy to share the love of reading not only with my own grandchildren but also with the other children in the community.
- Viviana Russell,
Nassau County LegislatorAuthor Voices
"I appreciated the opportunity to share my books with young readers because they give you the best unfiltered feedback. They were my focus group. During the Q&A segment of Bedtime Stories (Reading Worldwide), one of the scholars said my book was 'cool.' That was the ultimate compliment. I look forward to reading again."
— Daphne Tillman Perry, Author
ABCs of Love, The Great Fish, and more
www.daphnetillmanperry.com"As a first time author of children's books, the Reading Worldwide virtual program was a great opportunity to share my story to an audience who believed in the power of story telling. From the curious eyes of the engaged child to the reception of supportive parents, stories of hope, confidence and childhood were echoed throughout each session creating a space where each individual can share, learn and imagine; building a community where each one teaches one, supporting the goal of imparting but more importantly encouraging the significance of reading in the early years."
Kemmone Hall, Author
Nasberry Seeds
www.kemmonehall.comScholar Reader Voices:
"This program helped me a lot with reading in public and facing my fear towards reading to other people. It expanded my desire for reading. I also enjoyed meeting new people from different school districts and professionals that would be in invited to the program."
- Mia, Scholar Reader"I would like to say Bedtime Stories was a really good experience for me. It helped me with my reading and socialization skills. I have always been a shy person, but ever since Vicki invited me to Bedtime Stories, I got to express my thoughts and feelings with people I didn’t know and felt really comfortable. It was good opportunity to get me out of my comfort zone and do something I don’t do often which is reading to other people, older or younger."
- Adriana, Scholar ReaderParent Voice:
"For me, as a mother, the program was so helpful. My daughter liked to read, but when she was in the program, she enjoyed it so much. She eagerly awaited the day she could participate; she wanted it to be every day."
- Katya, Westbury Mom
Program investment
Founding Partner Pilot — $12,000
Limited to 5 schools for Spring 2026
Semester Program — $18,000
15-week implementation
Full Academic Year — $35,000
30-week implementationSummer Programs
Summer Reading Support — $10,000
8-week program
School-Year Client Discount — $8,000
For existing partnersYear-Round Bundles
Full Year + Summer — $42,000 (Save $3,000)
Semester + Summer Trial — $25,000 (Save $3,000)
Ready to transform family literacy engagement and prevent summer learning loss?
📧 [email protected]
📞 (516) 205-9035Nassau County Certified MWBE
Reading Worldwide is operated through VSS Group, LLC, a Nassau County certified MWBE (Minority and Woman-Owned Business Enterprise), in partnership with Quiescere Resource Center, a nonprofit supporting global literacy and community well-being initiatives.MWBE Certification Number: OMA-24-063 | Valid through April 2027Contracting with The VSS Group supports institutional commitments to diverse vendor partnerships.© 2025 The VSS Group, LLC. All rights reserved.