READ/Orange County
Read Writes Newsletter: August 2010
Tutors Write
Some tutors write journals with their learners. Some tutors write journals for themselves. Some tutors really enjoy writing and share their enthusiasm with their learners. Some tutors dream about writing their own books, some have begun writing that book, AND some READ/OC tutors have accomplished that goal! Then, there are some tutors who are a bit uneasy about writing.
And there are a few things about writing that all tutors share and hopefully do not avoid:
• Writing lesson plans for their tutoring sessions
• Incorporating writing into tutoring lessons and learner’s goals
• Modeling writing during tutoring sessions
• Encouraging learners to write
• And, of course, writing (and submitting) monthly reports about tutoring sessions, learners’ goals and progress toward those goals
John Palmer is a tutor who does just that. John commits significant time in planning his weekly lesson plans. Each month he thoughtfully and faithfully prepares monthly reports and even gets them to the READ/OC office by the 5th of each month (often delivering them in person!).
He became a tutor with READ/OC in 2001 and has been a tutor to 5 learners. He always includes writing in his tutoring sessions and says writing helps “preserve what you hear.” When asked about the writing component in his tutoring sessions, John feels writing is a “bridge” to learning and improving reading. “When you read the words you see, you hear them in your mind.” He feels the only way to preserve reading and learning is to write it down, and “then when you read what you’ve written, you can hear the words in your head and remember.” Continued on page 4
Learners Write Too
Yun Wu came to READ/OC to get help with her reading, writing, and speaking skills.
She felt that she needed to improve those skills in order to express herself. After being assessed, Yun learned that she did not need the basic help she was seeking. What she did need was confidence. Yun was invited to attend monthly learner meetings where she would be able to work and converse with other learners who also wanted to improve their skills.
Yun began attending the meetings on a regular basis. It was in those meetings that Yun quickly gained the confidence she needed. Yun was always eager to read aloud or share her thoughts and she began to shine. She motivated and encouraged the other learners to do the same. In 2009, Yun decided to enter Writer to Writer, a writing challenge for adult learners in California Library Literacy Programs.
As required by the contest, Yun had to write a letter to the author of a book that inspired her. The book she chose was The Amazing Results of Positive Thinking, by Norman Vincent Peale. Yun was chosen as a finalist and her letter to Norman Vincent Peale was published in 2009 Writer to Writer: Letters of the Award Winners and Finalist publication. Read Yun’s letter on page 4.
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