All tools · Free Tutoring Finder FL

Will my child be held back in 3rd grade for reading?

Use the free tool — Free Tutoring Finder FL

What Florida law actually requires

If your child has a substantial reading deficiency, the school must give intensive reading intervention. You must be notified in writing, and you must be given a read-at-home plan. This comes from Fla. Stat. 1008.25. This applies to K–3 students, and to older students under district policy.

If your 3rd grader scores at the lowest level on the state reading assessment, retention generally applies — unless a good-cause exemption fits.

Good-cause exemptions — ask which one might apply

A 3rd grader may avoid retention if one of these fits, under Fla. Stat. 1008.25:

• An alternative assessment shows the student is not deficient.
• A portfolio demonstrates the required skills.
• The student is an ESOL student with less than two years of instruction in an English for Speakers of Other Languages program.
• The student is an ESE student whose individual plan says the state assessment isn't appropriate.
• The student was already retained in a previous year for reading.

The district must also offer a summer reading camp. This tool cannot tell you your child's actual score or which exemption applies — ask the school directly and get it in writing.

Free help you can use right now

• New Worlds Reading Scholarship Accounts — a state-funded account for eligible K–5 students with a reading deficiency, meant to pay for tutoring, materials and programs. You apply through the scholarship funding organization, not through this tool. See Fla. Stat. 1002.411.
• New Worlds Reading Initiative — mails free books monthly to eligible K–5 students. Check eligibility at newworldsreading.com.
• Free live online tutoring through your public library — ask your branch, or check the Florida Electronic Library.
• University reading clinics, Boys & Girls Clubs' Power Hour, Communities In Schools, and local literacy councils often tutor for free or low cost — ask what's near you.
• Title I schools receive federal funds for supplemental academic support and must involve parents — ask if your school is Title I.

If English is not your child's first language

A student learning English is entitled to language support. A reading deficiency must be distinguished from normal language acquisition — ask the ESOL coordinator to help sort this out. Remember: the good-cause exemption for ESOL students with less than two years of instruction is specifically relevant to 3rd-grade retention.

If you suspect a learning difference

This tool never diagnoses anything. But you can ask, in writing, at any time, for an evaluation for exceptional student education. That written request starts a process with a deadline. See FDOE — ESE parent resources.

The letter to send the school

A good letter is dated, and includes:

• Your child's name, grade, and teacher.
• Your concern, and any data you already have.
• A request for current assessment data.
• A request for the progress-monitoring or intervention plan, in writing — what is being done, how often, by whom.
• A request for the read-at-home plan.
• A request for any tutoring or summer camp the school offers.
• If relevant, a request for an ESE evaluation.
• A request for a meeting and a written response by a stated date.

What to do next

The free tool at Free Tutoring Finder FL reads what you type — the grade, the subject, what the school has said, and your county — and gives you the specific supports that fit, and a draft of the letter above, in English or Spanish. Nothing you type is stored. It is not legal, medical, or educational advice, and it can be wrong. Always confirm your child's actual data and plan with the school, and confirm eligibility and availability directly with each program.

Free Tutoring Finder FL explains Florida's academic-support requirements and free tutoring resources in plain language from official sources; it can be wrong, and it is not educational, medical or legal advice. Nothing you type is stored.