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How do I get the New Worlds Reading Scholarship for my child?

Use the free tool — Free Tutoring Finder FL

What is the New Worlds Reading Scholarship?

The New Worlds Reading Scholarship Accounts program is a state-funded account for eligible K–5 students in Florida who are behind in reading. It is set up under Fla. Stat. 1002.411. The money is meant to pay for tutoring, materials and reading programs for your child.

Who might qualify?

The statute describes the accounts as being for eligible K–5 students who are behind in reading. Our source material does not spell out every eligibility detail beyond that, so you will need to confirm the exact rules directly with the scholarship funding organization or your school.

• Grade level: kindergarten through 5th grade.
• Reading status: behind in reading, sometimes described as a reading deficiency.

This tool cannot determine your child's eligibility for you — always confirm with the program itself.

How does this connect to what the school already told you?

Under Fla. Stat. 1008.25, a K-3 student (and older students, depending on district policy) with a substantial reading deficiency must get intensive reading intervention, and you must be notified in writing and given a read-at-home plan. If your 3rd grader scores at the lowest level on the state reading assessment, retention generally applies unless a good-cause exemption fits — an alternative assessment, a portfolio, ESOL with less than two years of instruction, certain ESE students, or prior retention — and the district must offer a summer reading camp.

The school's written notice about a reading deficiency is worth keeping. It documents your child's situation and may be useful when you look into New Worlds.

Free books — a separate program

Don't confuse the scholarship with the New Worlds Reading Initiative, which mails free books each month to eligible K–5 students. Check newworldsreading.com for that program's own eligibility rules and sign-up.

How to apply

You apply for the New Worlds Reading Scholarship Accounts through the scholarship funding organization — not through this tool, and not directly through the school. Our material does not include a direct application link. Ask your school, your district's Title I or reading coordinator, or search for "New Worlds Reading Scholarship Accounts" to find the current funding organization and its application steps.

While you wait: free help you can use now

• Florida public libraries offer free live online tutoring — ask your branch or check the Florida Electronic Library.
• University reading and math clinics may offer low-cost or free help — check the nearest university's college of education.
• If you suspect a learning difference, you can request an evaluation for exceptional student education in writing at any time — see FDOE's ESE parent resources.

What to do next

This guide covers the general rules. Every child's situation is different. The free tool reads your own document or numbers — the grade, the school's letter, a test score — and tells you which of these supports fit your child right now, in English or Spanish, and helps you draft a letter asking the school for its written plan.

This is not legal, medical or educational advice. Confirm your child's data and plan with the school, and confirm eligibility and availability with the New Worlds program directly.

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.