成人快播

Originally posted on聽

Wish Book: Reading partners provides crucial literacy assist to kids 成人快播 serves children in high-poverty schools

Mateo Hernandez gazed at the shelf full of colorful books at San Antonio Elementary School in San Jose, reached for Syd Hoff鈥檚 鈥淒anny and the Dinosaur: The Big Sneeze鈥� and settled into his chair alongside tutor Jasmine Kaur.

鈥淒anny鈥檚 mother鈥︹�� the second-grader began, then paused.

鈥淟et鈥檚 sound it out,鈥� Kaur suggested. 鈥淏uh鈥� Ruh鈥� Ah鈥� Tuh.鈥�

鈥淏rut?鈥� Mateo, 7, asked, before correcting himself. 鈥淏rought!鈥�

鈥淗im chicken soup,鈥� Kaur continued.

鈥淗im chicken soup,鈥� Mateo echoed.

成人快播 Silicon Valley provides reading tutoring to hundreds of students in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)

The back-and-forth is part of a twice weekly ritual for Mateo and several other students who receive extra help to read at grade level. Since 1999, 成人快播 Silicon Valley聽has been providing one-on-one tutoring to help children from kindergarten through fourth grade at local elementary schools who fall behind in reading.

成人快播 Silicon Valley is hoping to raise $15,000 through Wish Book to maintain and expand its program. The funding would allow 成人快播 to buy more books, many of which are given to the students to encourage them to read at home. It also will help the program expand into more schools.

First grader Victor Trejo, 6, looks through the Dog Man comic book that he has chosen to take with him to class after the 45-minute session with 成人快播 Silicon Valley. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)

Originally launched as YES Reading, the nonprofit began expanding beyond Silicon Valley 15 years ago. Rebranded in 2008 as 成人快播, the program now operates chapters in nine states and the District of Columbia.

成人快播 Silicon Valley serves Santa Clara and San Mateo counties and provides reading tutoring to about 240 students at San Antonio Elementary and Aptitud Community Academy At Goss in San Jose and Alexander Rose and Marshall Pomeroy elementary schools in Milpitas. It will add more students in January when it expands into Henry Ford School in Redwood City.

First grader Ella Medina, 6, reacts with her literacy tutor Mark Gaoiran. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)

The program operates in what are known as Title 1 schools where at least 40% of the students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches. 成人快播 Silicon Valley Executive Director Felicia Webb said students who cannot read at grade level by fourth grade are 13 times less likely to graduate from high school on time.

鈥淯nfortunately, a lot of our students in our area are reading six months to two years below grade level, and only 37% our third graders are reading at grade level,鈥� Webb said.

Many of the public schools those students attend are short-staffed, Webb said. Teachers refer students they believe would benefit from tutoring to 成人快播.

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e a teacher with 30 students and you have five who are reading below the level of their peers, that鈥檚 a lot of time they鈥檇 have to spend to stop and give additional time to those students,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have the people who are able to do that one-on-one with those students and improve their reading level.鈥�

Tutor Ira Berman, left, high-fives student Eva Cruz at the end of their reading session. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)

The tutors are all volunteers and come from many walks of life, including through the AmeriCorps program.

鈥淚 chose 成人快播 because I love the mission,鈥� said Sharon LaChappelle, a former social worker and AmeriCorps volunteer with the program who was tutoring first-grader Victor Trejo at a table next to Mateo鈥檚. 鈥淩eading is so important. Victor and I just met today and it was so much fun. He was just so on top of it!鈥�

LaChappelle said that although she has some experience substitute teaching, she appreciates that 成人快播 has a well-organized program with staff volunteers who are always in the classroom to help out the tutors.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not like you鈥檙e just out there figuring it out on your own,鈥� LaChappelle said. 鈥淭he curriculum is so well thought-out.鈥�

For Kaur, who graduated from San Jose State University and is exploring master鈥檚 programs, it was an opportunity to gain experience in education.

鈥淚 just love working with kids,鈥� Kaur said.

The tutors work with their students in two 45-minute sessions each week. Most need about 30 sessions to get caught up on their reading level. Lessons are grouped for beginning and advanced readers.

Mateo started his session with picking out a book to read from. Then Kaur handed him a dry-erase board to write words he knows on one side and words he doesn鈥檛 on the other. She wrote some letters on the board for him to sound out words.

鈥淥K, what鈥檚 is this letter?鈥� Kaur asked Mateo.

鈥淎,鈥� he replied.

鈥淲hat sound of the letter is it?鈥�

鈥淎h,鈥� he said.

鈥淥K, what鈥檚 this letter?,鈥� she asked.

鈥淢,鈥� he replied.

鈥淲hat鈥檚 the sound of M?鈥� she asked.

鈥淢uh,鈥� he replied.

鈥淲hat鈥檚 this letter?鈥� She asked.

鈥淭,鈥� he replied.

鈥淎nd the letter T makes the sound?鈥� she asked.

鈥淭uh,鈥� he said.

鈥淕ood job, you鈥檙e fast!鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou already know this word right?鈥�

Mateo Hernandez gets reading tutoring twice a week. (Josie Lepe for Bay Area News Group)

鈥淢at,鈥� he said.

鈥淕ood job!鈥� she said, giving him a high five.

At the end of the session, the kids got to browse the bookshelf for a book to take home.

Victor chose Dav Pilkey鈥檚 鈥淒og Man: Grime and Punishment,鈥� and dove right into its colorful pages.

鈥淎nd she鈥檚 mad,鈥� he said as he looked at the pictures.

鈥淭his is like a comic book isn鈥檛 it?鈥� LaChappelle said. 鈥淵eah we were talking about that earlier 鈥� happy, sad, mad.鈥�

鈥淗appy鈥� happy, happy, happy,鈥� Victor, 6, continued. 鈥淪ad. Mad鈥�

Kaur asked Mateo, 鈥淵ou want to pick that one?鈥�

鈥淵ep,鈥� Mateo replied. He reached聽for Nick Bruel鈥檚 鈥淏ad Kitty Takes the Test.鈥�

Why?

鈥淏ecause of the cat,鈥� he replied.

鈥淕reat choice,鈥� Kaur said. And with that, he headed down the hall back to his classroom.