A children's after-school literacy programme has proven that three 90 minute sessions a week can help youngsters to vastly improve their reading and writing skills.

The Doodle Den scheme ran in six schools in Tallaght West between 2008-2011 and found that word recognition, sentence structure and word choice among the senior infant children taking part improved considerably.

Improved concentration, reduced problem behaviours in school, an increase in family library activity and an increase in the child's reading at home were also noted by the Childhood Development Initiative (CDI), which ran the pilot programme.

CDI chief executive Marian Quinn commented: "Doodle Den offers a real opportunity to give children a good start in life. Literacy is a core life skill, without which later chances of full employment and active citizenship are greatly reduced."

The results of the programme have led to a recommendation by the CDI that Doodle Den should be used as a point of reference for after-school schemes across Ireland, particularly in disadvantaged areas.

Written by Donal Walsh

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