# Reading Bees: Adapting and Testing a Mobile App Designed to Empower Families to Read more Interactively with Children in Distinct Geographical and Cultural Contexts

> **NIH NIH G08** · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · $149,693

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Many children arrive at kindergarten unprepared to learn to read, at-risk of falling more behind, with major
inequities linked to race, geography and poverty (rates >50%). These are amplified during disruptions such as
COVID, when access to information and resources is perturbed. Low proficiency is strongly linked to adverse
school, vocational and health outcomes, with estimated costs >$350 billion/year. As parents are a child’s “first
and most important teachers,” home reading routines have a large impact on these outcomes. However, there
are wide disparities in these between high- and low-resource families, fueled by household stressors, cultural
differences, literacy challenges and other factors. Marginalized families also often face barriers to access of
reliable literacy-promoting information, programs and resources, worsening disparities. Given trusted access to
families when parenting routines are shaped, health providers are poised to help mitigate these barriers, yet
guidance tends to be general, inconsistent and can fade-out at home. The objective of the proposed project is
to enhance, “localize” and test a new, free mobile app designed to provide reliable shared reading guidance
and resources for parents (Reading Bees; RB) in an efficient, engaging way. The rationale is that no similar
approach exists, RB is free and designed to enhance existing programs, and there is evidence that its features
will be useful and effective. Content is evidence-based and has been co-developed with input from community
stakeholders and families from disadvantaged backgrounds. Core principles are clarity, credibility, flexibility
(e.g., parents set their own goals), responsiveness (child age, family concerns, ZIP), engaging content (tips,
videos, resources) and positive reinforcement (“LitCoin” awards). The long-term goal of this project is to use
RB to help improve reading and literacy outcomes. To achieve this, teams in 3 culturally distinct areas (OH,
WV, FL) will collaborate in a 3-year project. Content will first be added to address needs in each community:
lists of local reading-related resources curated by area stakeholders and a Spanish language version of RB.
Enhanced, “localized” RB will then be tested with parents in each area, first through focus groups to gauge
usefulness and guide refinement, and then by providing RB to parents (ages 0-6) during clinic visits and
measuring use over the next 2 months. Outcome measures involve feasibility, acceptance and useflness. The
central hypothesis is that local stakeholders will be engaged by the opportunity to highlight resources in their
area; families will rate RB content as useful and use RB often, especially to earn LitCoin awards; and improved
access to information and resources will fuel better reading and literacy outcomes. This work is significant and
innovative as it involves a tech-enabled, user-centered approach that is scalable within existing pediatric,
library and program ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10898780
- **Project number:** 5G08LM014107-03
- **Recipient organization:** UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** John S. Hutton
- **Activity code:** G08 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $149,693
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2024-01-23 → 2026-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10898780

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10898780, Reading Bees: Adapting and Testing a Mobile App Designed to Empower Families to Read more Interactively with Children in Distinct Geographical and Cultural Contexts (5G08LM014107-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10898780. Licensed CC0.

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