Hands On Learning for
Kids In Partnership Families
During the early dismissal week at Fair Oaks Elementary, 32 youth and 2 moms, volunteered to
participate in a KIP art day. These dedicated youth and helpful moms worked
together along with Project READ staff on collaborative art projects that will
be displayed at our annual BBQ and Award Ceremony in July.
Later in the week, over
50 KIP students, tutors, and moms ventured outside of the neighborhood on a
field trip to the Children’s Discovery
Museum in San Jose. There, students
and families enjoyed hands-on fun including food sculptures with multi-sensory
play dough, watering the garden, imaginative play, bubble fun and self face
painting. Students were also excited to
see that the imagination station exhibit stocked full of large foam blocks was
back!
KIP Story Hour
Celebration at Fair Oaks Community Library
Daylight savings came just in time for our spring
celebration at this month's story hour!
Over 75 students, tutors,
family members and community volunteers came to kick off the extra hour of
light with a puppet show performed by Randall Metz of the Puppet Company.
Families also enjoyed receiving the monthly family book, Mouse’s First Spring, and creating art
projects inspired by the story including signs-of-spring binoculars, watercolor
butterflies, and a food sculpture “mouse” family made of strawberries,
chocolate chips and licorice.
Hands-On-Bay-Area volunteers, lead by Maryanne, continued to be a vital
source of support at this month’s story hour. These dedicated volunteers not
only helped with set up and clean up, but also brought the interactive crafts
to life for many of our KIP students and families. We truly appreciate their
support! Participants finished the evening with choosing additional books for
the home library.
KIP Small Groups and
One-on-One Tutoring at Fair Oaks Elementary
Weekly, over 70 youth
continue to participate in small groups and one-on-one tutoring at Fair Oaks
Elementary. In addition to individualized tutoring, this month’s enrichment and
hands-on learning included homemade helium balloon science projects, salsa
making cooking classes, and group games like Four Corners. Students
participating in weekly book clubs continued to increase their vocabulary and
English language idioms through reading and discussing books like Diary of a Wimpy Kid Hard Luck, Pictures of
Hollis Woods, Dot, Cactus Soup and Our
California.
Adult Programs
This month was a celebratory month for all Adult
programs. A mother in the Adult
Community Program, whose son also has a tutor and comes to FLIC, passed her
Citizenship Exams and officially became a U.S. Citizen. She and her tutor have been meeting once a
week for six months to achieve this goal!
Families For Literacy
A single mother of four passed her final GED
test. She and her tutor met multiple
days and many hours each week using a technique that has worked for other
Spanish-speaking learners. While the
learner took the five GED exams in Spanish, she and her tutor (who speaks no Spanish)
worked in English GED and comprehension-building materials. Project READ’s mission is to help learners
meet their goals in the most comfortable way possible. For this learner, she improved her English
literacy skills and test-taking strategies to take an exam in a language she
felt more comfortable with. We applaud
her for such a big accomplishment.
Adult Inmate / FFL
Project READ staff received a letter from a learner who
participated in the Fathers and Families Nonviolent Parenting program at the
Maguire Correctional Facility in September of 2013. This particular learner was not in regular
contact with his children, for the relationship had been strained by
incarceration. Part of the Fathers
program is that graduates record themselves reading a children’s book and send
the book, CD, and a message home to their children. Apparently this gesture opened the door for
communication between this incarcerated parent and his children. The learner subsequently went to state
prison. In the letter we received this
month, he writes:
Because
of the letters I wrote my daughters while I was [in county jail], we are now in
constant communication, and now my 16 year old has someone she can dump all of
her problems. That she trusts I won’t judge her. I love it!!
My
kids are really proud I’m getting my GED. In fact it might be the only thing
stopping [my 16-year-old daughter] from dropping out [of high school].
FLIC/FFL/Families In
Partnership
During this month’s Story Hour at the Downtown Library, four
learners and three tutors in the Families in Partnership (FIP) Program were
honored by a local State Farm office because of their participation in a
writing contest. Students were asked to read a biography about someone who
inspired them and write a short passage. All the students and tutors were given
a gift card for their participation. A grand prize was given to one of the
pairs because their story not only talked about how inspirational Martin Luther
King was, it also discussed how they hope to one day make a difference in their
community. During the presentation, the local State Farm representatives
thanked everyone at Project READ for either volunteering their time or making a
commitment to improve their literacy skills. It was a very joyous occasion, and
we are grateful to State Farm for reaching out and encouraging students to try
their best.
