The Hill Early Literacy Program (HELP) is a preschool curriculum developed by The Hill Center to help 3-4 year olds develop pre-reading skills. It is based on decades of research showing early literacy experiences are important for later school achievement. An evaluation of HELP found that preschoolers who received the curriculum improved their literacy skills like vocabulary and phonological awareness at the expected or higher rates compared to national averages, showing the program's effectiveness.

1. The Hill Early Literacy Program (HELP)
A Preschool Program for Three- and Four-Year Olds
The Hill Early Literacy Program (HELP) is an innovative
program, designed to help three- and four-year old
preschool children develop specific pre-reading skills that
will increase their chances for becoming successful readers.
With funding provided by the Mebane Charitable
Foundation, The Hill Center developed a research-
based “best practices” early literacy curriculum that
brings together critical pre-reading research and creates a
model for the successful development of reading skills in
young children. The HELP curriculum serves as both a
prevention and an intervention model for children at risk
for failure to develop critical literacy skills.
Research-based Early Literacy Program
The HELP curriculum is based on several decades of
evidence-based research on how children learn to read
and write. Studies reveal that early literacy experiences are
highly correlated with school achievement and enhanced
productivity in adult life. The development of early literacy
skills is important for all children, but especially important
for children who do not have the advantage of literacy-rich
experiences. Becoming a skilled reader develops over time
and requires many opportunities for children to:
• Build spoken language by talking and listening.
• Recognize print in books.
• Manipulate the sounds of spoken language (called
phonological awareness).
• Learn about the letters of the alphabet.
• Experience books through reading aloud and engage
in conversations about the books.
With start-up in 2005, HELP was implemented in 11
childcare programs in Davie County. The program
provided an early literacy curriculum and materials for
three- and four-year old children, professional development
training for 73 childcare providers and directors, and a
reference training video for each childcare center. Follow-
up teacher support and observations by Hill Center staff
supported effective implementation of the program.
The HELP curriculum links what is known from research
in early learning and literacy with classroom practices and
creates an explicit model for improving children’s chances
of academic success. Each of the daily, scripted lessons
builds literacy skills in five skill areas that help children
later become proficient readers and writers.
We transform students with learning differences into confident, independent learners.
What Educators are Saying About HELP
“As I used the curriculum with the children, I noticed that
it really does help the children learn the sounds of the
letters, recognize the letters, and I noticed that their ability
to rhyme has improved. Besides, they just love it! Now I am
sold on the curriculum.”
Megan Grubb, More at Four Teacher
Kountry Kids Learning Center
“I am excited about what the Hill project does for the use
of language in the classroom. The classrooms who are
participating in the project now have a structured process
to assist them in using language more appropriately and
more often in the classroom… The HELP curriculum helps
teachers who might not be comfortable in their skills to
expand on children’s ideas or language…”
Paula Burton
Child Development Specialist
Davie County Partnership for Children

2. The Hill Center • 3200 Pickett Road • Durham, NC 27705 • 919-489-7464 • www.hillcenter.org
• Older three- and all four-year olds ended the school year with
literacy skill assessment scores comparable to or higher than
national norms in two or more areas tested.
• Across all age groups, gender, race, and attendance levels,
most of the preschool children’s performance on the
receptive vocabulary assessment improved significantly. The
preschoolers demonstrated improved ability to listen and
understand the meaning of what they hear.
• The Hill Early Literacy Program training continues to be
offered by The Hill Center. For more information, contact
Pam Hoggard at 919-719-7551 or phoggard@hillcenter.org.
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3.0-year-olds 3.5-year-olds 4.0-year-olds 4.5-year-olds
DefinitionalVocabularyRawScores
Beginning of Year Raw Score Davie
County Preschool Results
End of Year Raw Score Davie County
Preschool Students (age is beginning
of year age plus 8 months)
National Average Raw Score at
Beginning of Year
National Average Raw Score at End of
Year
Changes in Davie County
Definitional Vocabulary
Raw Scores Compared to National Norms
on TOPEL
(SY 2005-2006)
n=166
HELP Results in Davie County
Preschool children in the Hill Early Literacy Program made
significant increases in their early literacy skills during a
two-year project. The HELP project, implemented in Davie
County, NC preschools from September 2005 to May
2007, was independently evaluated by RTI International
and demonstrated very significant results.
Preschool children in the study were assessed in four
areas of early literacy skills: phonological awareness, print
knowledge, definitional vocabulary, and receptive vocabu-
lary.
While almost half the households in Davie County are
headed by women who live in poverty, the preschoolers
improved their early literacy skills at a rate expected for or
faster than children of their age. This is an unexpected and
positive finding, since children living in a county with such
a high poverty level would be expected to improve their
skills at rates lower than expected for children their age.
In addition,
• Preschool students whose teachers participated in the HELP
training significantly increased their skills in four areas of
early literacy (phonological awareness, print knowledge,
definitional vocabulary, and receptive vocabulary).
• During both project years, Davie County preschoolers
improved their literacy skills in three of four areas tested
(phonological awareness, print knowledge, and definitional
vocabulary) at the rate expected for, or faster than, average
children of their age.
Figure 2-2. Changes in Davie County Phonological Awareness Raw Scores (SY 2
Compared to National Norms
14.36
17.92
15
17
0
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4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
4.0-year-olds
PhonologicalAwarenessRawScores
Beginning of the Ye
Preschool Student
End of Year Raw S
Students (age is be
months)
National Average R
Year
National Average R
Changes in Davie County
Phonological Awareness
Raw Scores Compared to National Norms
on TOPEL
(SY 2005-2006)
n=166
*Data results for SY 2006-2007
were very similar.
Figure 2-2. Changes in Davie County Phonological Awareness Raw Scores (SY 2005-2006)
Compared to National Norms
14.36
17.92
15
17
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
4.0-year-olds
PhonologicalAwarenessRawScores
Beginning of the Year Raw Score Davie County
Preschool Students
End of Year Raw Score Davie County Preschool
Students
National Average Raw Score at Beginning of
Year
National Average Raw Score at End of Year