VALLSS is the Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE)-sponsored reading screener that is designed to show a child’s level of risk for developing reading difficulties and provide teachers with information to plan instruction. VALLSS replaces the previous PALS screener. VALLSS includes subtests that measure decoding, encoding, and language, all of which are necessary to develop reading comprehension. 

VALLSS helps educators understand each student’s risk level for future reading difficulties by assigning them to one of three Bands of Risk: Low Risk, Moderate Risk, or High Risk.

Students identified in the High Risk category are the most likely to experience ongoing reading challenges. To ensure these students receive the support they need, they qualify for additional intervention services through the Early Intervention Reading Initiative (EIRI) and the Virginia Literacy Act. This includes 2.5 hours per week of targeted intervention services in addition to their regular classroom instruction, and the development of a Student Reading Plan.

STAR Reading is an adaptive computer-based test students take to support teachers with determining a student’s level of understanding in the area of reading . The test is administered throughout a school year to allow teachers to monitor student literacy growth.  To learn more about scores shown on the STAR report and what they mean, click the link below.

Sample STAR Report with Explanations

Virginia Literacy Partnerships (VLP)

Early Literacy Resources for Families

Literacy activities and information to support families with foundational literacy skills in kindergarten through third grade.  

Students may visit their school's media center to check out books, but they also have online access to ebooks, interactive books, and audiobooks. Click on the link to see what NPS libraries have to offer. 

NPS Library Media Catalogs

REACH, Inc. promotes literacy for children throughout Coastal Virginia through access and ownership of books. The Big Free Bookstore, located at Janaf Shopping Center in Norfolk, provides quality books and educational literature readily available to the community at no cost. 

The Big Free Bookstore guidelines:

• Two new and two used per person, per household (not all members of the household need to be present).

• Visit up to two times per week.

The Big Free Bookstore