Volunteer for Reading Partners

Dr. Celeste Roseberry-McKibbin delivering about 500 books to students at Sacramento's Thomas Edison Elementary School

I have had the joy of donating about 25,000 children's books to date, with almost 2,000 of them provided to Sacramento Reading Partners.  They work in 11 Sacramento area public schools, pairing adult mentors with children in grades 2-5 who are struggling with reading.

They have shown that 26 hours of 1:1 mentoring with an adult improves these children’s reading scores by one whole year.  It is incredibly exciting!  They need tutors to spend one hour a week with children, 1:1.  Please consider giving one hour a week that will have a huge impact on improving a child’s academic future. Sacramento/Chico Sign-Up https://readingpartners.org/volunteer/sacramento-volunteer-form

If you are interested in volunteering in 2012-13, please fill out the requested information below and submit this form. You will receive a confirmation email immediately and you will be contacted shortly about next steps for your first visit to your reading center.  All information provided will be kept confidential.

If you have any problems submitting this form or other questions, please contact us at   (916) 996-0830 or rlakos@readingpartners.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

 

“Itʼs refreshing! People here are walking the talk around their values. Volunteering your time is more than just writing a check. That kind of energy and enthusiasm is very, very contagious. It makes me want to come back. And the children, theyʼre wide open! I love that openness.”

Bernie Purcell, Retired former school principal

 

READING PARTNERS’ TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESS^*

 (source: readingpartners.com)

• 88% of students accelerate their progress in reading
• Students gain an entire grade level in reading skills for every 26 hours of  tutoring
• 81% of students who began the year with low self-confidence and classroom participation increased their self-confidence levels
• 100% of principals noted school-wide progress in reading

^* Based on 2010-2011 results from standardized assessments and surveys of teachers and principals

STUDENT/SCHOOL PROFILE

• K-5 students at Title I schools
• 6months to 2 years behind in reading
• Have some conversational English
• Referred by teachers or principals
• 98% of students qualify for Free/Reduced Price Lunch

 “With budget cuts in effect, our schools need Reading Partners more than ever. We will do everything in our power to keep and grow the program in our schools”

Noel Gallo, President of the School Board, Oakland Unified School District

Reading Partners Strategies:

• Focus on children from low-income communities.
• Give one-on-one instruction at the student’s reading level.
• Recruit and train community volunteers to work with children.
• Partner with high-need elementary schools to offer an effective program on campus.
• Provide a way for volunteers to give a small amount of their time to make a huge difference in a child’s life.

About Volunteering

When you volunteer at Reading Partners, you'll work one-on-one with a child who has fallen behind in reading.

• Each tutoring session is 45 minutes.
• Volunteers can tutor once a week or twice a week.  (Children are tutored twice a week.)
• Volunteers can tutor one child or several.  (Some tutors tutor several children in back-to-back sessions.)
• Tutoring takes place on the campuses of local schools that have a relationship with Reading Partners.

 What people are saying: 

PRINCIPALS:

 

"With budget cuts, it's challenging for schools like us. We need all the help we can get. This program was a godsend."

Carla Haakma, Los Arboles Elementary School in San Jose, CA

 

TEACHERS:

 

“Students are motivated and their self esteem improves. They love reading and itʼs wonderful that a tutor is working with them one on one based on their specific reading needs.”

Benjamin Salas, Third Grade Teacher, Belle Haven Elementary in East Menlo Park, CA

 

“Many of my students benefited emotionally as well as academically due to the one-on-one setting.”

Kelly Lasky, Third Grade Teacher, Berkley Maynard Academy in Oakland

Reading Partners in action at Sacramento's Thomas Edison Elementary School

 

VOLUNTEERS:

“Reading Partners is so much fun! Because I see the same students each week, Iʼve gotten to know them and their learning styles, and Iʼve been able to really see them progress. I love that there is a clear program to follow so that tutors arenʼt expected to make something up, yet weʼre also free to modify the program to work to the studentʼs strengths. This is a way to make a difference in childrenʼs lives and an opportunity to experience that difference.”

Christine Gibson, College student 

Background & History

Incorporated March 2001 as a not-for-profit organization serving East Palo Alto, CA

 

A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation founded in 2001, Reading Partners provides volunteer-led, one-on-one literacy tutoring to 3,000 K-5 students from low-income families with a success rate of nearly 90% in helping students improve their performance in reading.

Locations

San Francisco                East Bay

Silicon Valley                 Los Angeles

Sacramento                    Washington, D.C.

New York City                 Baltimore

Dallas

NEED FOR EARLY INTERVENTION LITERACY TUTORING

According to the U.S. Department of Education, 89% of children growing up in low-income households in the United States are reading below grade level.  Studies show that 3rd grade reading scores can predict high school graduation rates with 70% accuracy because once students fall back, they tend to fall behind more quickly as time passes. Fortunately, early intervention can set K-5 students on a path towards success in school and in life, and equipping young students with strong reading skills can unlock the opportunity to escape the cycle of poverty.

“The best experience of my life—other than raising my own children.”

Judie Fernandez, Retired, Reading Partners volunteer