Hundreds of volunteers are getting ready to go back to schools in Tucson to encourage children to read

Reading takes you on a journey of new words. “It’s not something that is told about a specific topic, that’s what reading is like,” said Lisa O’Meara, Reading Seed’s program director.

The Literacy Connects program aims to open up a new world for young readers. “We’re really focused on helping children develop an identity as readers and develop the confidence they need to have a good relationship for reading,” said O’Meara.

O’Meara goes on to say that it is important to show students that literacy comes in many forms. Whether a traditional book or a graphic novel. “It’s really about taking their interests and their passion and showing them that a whole world is available to them when we follow this through books,” said O’Meara.

Hundreds of volunteers coach children within schools across Tucson. “Teachers at our partner schools actually point out children who they think would benefit most from participating in the program,” O “Meara said. Then Kindergarten through Second Grade students become a Reading Seed volunteer and are allowed to read books take home.

“We offer a selection based on your interests, but you can choose which book to take home. And often they say, oh my little brother loves Batman. I’ll take the book home with me so I can read it to you, “said O” Meara. Making reading a family affair is key. “The volunteers can really focus on each child’s individual strengths and interests, and we use this as a guide for conducting our sessions with each child,” said O’Meara.

These sessions became challenging during the pandemic. “I would say the biggest challenge is getting all the schools we work with to be title one. So you have a large percentage of free and discounted lunches. Many of these families did not have access to the technology they needed to participate, ”said O’Meara.

Now the program is in recovery mode. “We want to go back to schools in the fall,” said O’Meara. Volunteers like Eric Van Meter will be back in the classrooms in August. He said they would look forward to sitting with children and encouraging them.

“Some of you may already love books and may be able to read. Others may have barely opened a book in their life. It’s all over the map, ”said Van Meter.

The volunteer’s mission is to focus on and build on the strengths of each student.

“That’s not how most of us go through the world. As if we weren’t going through the world looking for what is already good and right. So it became a kind of weekly detox to just change my perspective and not worry about problems, ”said Van Meter.

Keep the worries away and find a way. “There’s always a way to get in with a child. There’s always a way to make it more comfortable and confident,” said Van Meter. Watching the progress of each and every student is the best part. “It is amazing to see how some of these children change in just a few weeks,” said Van Meter.

Literacy Connects is looking for more volunteers for its Reading Seed program. Click here for more info.