The Born To Read Volunteer Reader Program

Research shows that no single activity is more important to a child’s success in school and in lifelong learning than being read to regularly by a caring adult in the first five years of life. By offering less than an hour per week of your time, you can help children in your community develop a love of reading!

• How it Works
• Impact
• Getting Started
• Training and Tips

“The great joy and warmth that come from being read to should be every child’s birthright.” —Rosemary Wells

How It Works

The Born to Read Volunteer Program is a partnership with the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). Local RSVP offices match volunteers with child care programs or preschools convenient to their location and schedule. Volunteers visit children once a week to read aloud for thirty minutes or more. Once a year, Born to Read sends new, high-quality picture books to participating programs: one for the on-site library and one for every child to take home. Volunteers attend trainings and events where they exchange ideas and receive new children’s books. Through reading, singing, playing games, and other activities, volunteer readers offer the kind of stimulating, early literacy experience that all children need in their formative years.

Impact

Volunteer readers from the Born to Read program truly make a difference in the lives of Maine’s youngest children. Early childhood educators consistently report dramatic, positive changes in children’s behavior and literacy skills, due to the regular involvement of a volunteer reader. These significant changes include:

• · increased attention span
• · improved conversational skills with peers and adults
• · increased interest in books and literature
• · improved ability to express themselves
• · increased vocabulary development
• · increased self-confidence.

But by far the most frequent observation made by teachers and caregivers is of the impact in the connections created between young children and older adults.

One volunteer explained the development of such a relationship: “There was a little girl, about 3 or 4 years old, who said nothing. She’d experienced a bunch of family tragedies. Said no and frowned all the time. As time went on, she began to speak a little bit. One day she said, ‘Come here and read, Nancy.’ She asked me to read a certain book. Slowly, her arm came around me. Later, the day care provider told me how the little girl’s language was progressing.”

Volunteers benefit from their connection with young children, too. An early childhood educator explains, “In today’s large world, families often live far away from grandparents. Because these two ages [preschoolers and senior citizens] are ‘magical’ together, it’s wonderful to provide a venue for them to interact.”

This article by a volunteer reader was published in “Senior News,” the newsletter of the Southern Maine Agency on Aging.

Getting Started

Born to Read seeks volunteer readers on an ongoing basis in Aroostook, Cumberland, Franklin, Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset, Waldo, Washington, and York Counties. Due to high interest and need on the part of child care providers, volunteers are always needed in every county. If you decide to become an RSVP volunteer in the Born to Read program, you will receive four books and a Volunteer Manual to get you started. RSVP staff will accompany you on your first read-aloud visit to the child care program or preschool to ensure that the match is successful.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer reader, please contact: your local RSVP agency (below) or the Born to Read Volunteer Reader Program, 207-773-5051 or 1-866-MEreader.

If you live in the Brunswick region, another Volunteer Reader Program, modeled on Born to Read, operates through Success by Six in Bath, serving providers in the mid-coast area.

Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) Contact Information:

Training and Tips

Born to Read offers volunteer readers two training sessions per year. These sessions provide information on early literacy and a chance to share books and strategies with other volunteers. Special presenters such as children’s authors or librarians are sometimes featured.

Volunteers are also invited to regular Born to Read trainings, seminars, and conferences. Please visit our calendar to learn about upcoming events in your area.

Here are some tips and resources for current volunteers!

• Reading Aloud to Groups of Young Children
• Reading to Mixed-Age Groups
• General Born to Read Resources

Born to Read
Maine Humanities Council
674 Brighton Avenue, Portland, ME 04102

Phone: (207) 773-5051
Fax: (207) 773-2416

• Denise Pendleton
  Program Director
  dpendle@mainehumanities.org
• Brita Zitin
  Program Assistant
  brita@mainehumanities.org