1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Total Learning Act . 2. Findings The Congress finds as follows: (1) Research conducted by the Census Bureau suggests that 21.8 percent of children under the age of 18 are living in poverty. (2) Research conducted by the Bureau of the Census of the Department of Commerce shows that socioeconomic status and family background characteristics are highly correlated with educational outcomes, with a concentration of low-performing schools in low-income and underserved communities. (3) As an example of an innovative early learning curriculum producing tangible results for low-income children, an independent evaluation of the Total Learning Curriculum developed by Action for Bridgeport Community Development, Inc., in cooperation with the Dr. Edward Zigler of the Yale Child Study Center and implemented in Bridgeport, Connecticut, has demonstrated that students who received all the elements of the Total Learning Curriculum made an average 2-point gain on the Diagnostic Reading Assessment (DRA) compared to an average 1.76-point gain on such assessment by those students who did not participate in the Total Learning Curriculum. (4) Such independent evaluation also showed that students who received all elements of Total Learning Curriculum have an average score of 22.35 points on the Concept of Print assessment, compared to an average score of 20.82 points on such assessment by those students who did not participate in the Total Learning Curriculum. (5) According to the findings of such independent evaluation, children with low initial DRA scores, high-family risk levels, low parental involvement, have special needs, or who are English-language-learners or participate in extended-day programs, make significant DRA gains after receiving all the elements of the Total Learning Curriculum. 3. Purpose It is the purpose of this Act to promote academic success for children living in poverty by— (1) improving and promoting school readiness by enhancing the cognitive, social, and emotional