NEWS, VIEWS & OTHER INTERESTING THINGS

With the start of the new school year, we are reminded just how valuable the contribution of our volunteers is for learners. In classrooms across the country, children are being left behind because they cannot read. In fact, 78% of Grade 4 learners in South Africa can’t engage with school curriculum because they cannot read in any language. But thanks to you and your dedication, children are getting the reading support they need.

We realise that it can sometimes be frustrating when you don’t see major improvement in the reading ability of a learner. In some instances, progress can be painfully slow. However, this year, we encourage you to celebrate progress, no matter how small it is. If there is one key we have learnt over the years of supporting learners to read is that confidence makes all the difference. You, our Volunteer Reading Helpers, are their cheerleaders, and when you celebrate a child’s progress, you blow fresh wind in their sails to keep trying.

With every reading session you attend, you are doing so much more than simply helping a child learn to read. You are building a nation, page by page. This is why we value even the smallest contribution of your time.

In 2017, we asked you, our volunteers, how we can improve and better support you as you support your learners. We have welcomed your feedback and encourage this open flow of communication to continue. In light of your feedback, we are pleased to have made key adjustments in order to improve our ability to support you and the children you assist.

Volunteer Roles

Volunteering comes in all shapes and sizes and we have worked hard to identify ways in which volunteers with limited time can still make such an important contribution. We have created additional opportunities for volunteering and have the following three main initiatives:

Core Volunteers

Our core programme needs the consistent care and attention of a concerned and dedicated adult over a period of time in order to be most effective. Core Volunteers commit to providing one-on-one reading help to a child twice a week for the duration of the school year.

Reserve Volunteers

Some volunteers cannot commit to a whole year but can commit to offering short-term support, such as a month or school term. Recognising this, we have defined a new “Reserve Corps” of volunteers. These volunteers temporarily stand in to support a child when their Core Volunteer is unable to continue, whether due to sickness, personal circumstances, moving away etc.

This role is intended to provide support until either that Core Volunteer is able to return or another long-term volunteer is identified and recruited to take over in the Core Programme. Reserve Corps volunteers are essential in ensuring that no child is dropped suddenly and without support.

Campaign Volunteers

Short-term volunteering can be difficult for some, which is why we have created the Campaign Volunteer role. Campaign Volunteers commit to participating in our reading events and campaigns at schools and partner organisations, whether for a day or an hour. Upcoming campaigns include World Read Aloud Day on 1 February, where we will be reading aloud to as many children as possible, and Literacy Day on 8 September.

Coffee Mornings

In January, we began hosting monthly Coffee Mornings, an information session where existing volunteers can connect with the help2read team, share tips and stories, network with other volunteers and ask any questions. It is also an opportunity for people interested in volunteering to find out more about the programme and how they can get involved.

If you would like to register for an upcoming Coffee Morning, click here.

Your Questions Answered

In February, we will be launching an “Ask Us” section on our website where you can submit any questions you may have, and our team will provide the answers. We hope that this will be a great resource for all volunteers to draw from.

Volunteer Support Events

Many volunteers have asked for more opportunities to learn from experts in the literacy and education space to be able to better assist their learners. This year, we will be adding a number of training events to our calendar that will specifically equip volunteers to navigate challenges and the various developmental needs of learners, such as how to assist a child who prefers games over books, how to encourage a reluctant reader to read, and how to address special issues. Importantly, we will be holding a workshop on how to understand and assess your learner’s current reading age, and what it means to graduate a learner from the programme versus progressing a reader in the programme.

Refining our Book Boxes

This year, we will be making refinements to our Book Boxes. We will be including new books graded to different reading levels and age/stage/grade standards to help volunteers check in on improvements and consider reading age assessments over time.

Matching volunteers to learners

In 2018, we aim to actively match our volunteers with learners, where possible, based on volunteer preference and the needs of learners. For example, if you prefer to assist a specific age, gender, reading level, literacy challenge, we will do our best to assign you to a learner that fits your preference.

Newsletters

Be sure to sign up for our General Newsletter to keep up to date with happenings at help2read, as well as our Volunteer Newsletter, which contains tips, resources and stories specifically curated for our volunteers and sent directly to our inbox. Sign up for our Newsletters here.