Engagement Event Calendar
Early literacy
Early literacy: leveraging volunteer service to help increase the number of 3rd graders reading at grade level.
Third-grade reading levels have been proven to be one of the most important indicators of educational success later in life. In Seattle, of children reading at grade level by 3rd, they are:
- 90.7 % of White students
- 65.4% of Latino students
- 50% of Native American students
- 63.2% of low income students
- 57.5 % of black students
- 41.2% of English Language Learners
- 78.9% of Asian and Pacific Islander students (% is much lower for specific Asian or Pacific Islander communities)
Our Early Literacy Initiative seeks to help address that problem by recruiting volunteer reading tutors for these emerging readers. Working in partnership with the Washington Reading Corps last year, volunteers were engaged in four elementary schools, and 100 students who would have otherwise lost ground when summer school was cut were supported in their literacy through a five-week long, volunteer driven summer reading camp. This year, we are deepening that work with schools and non-profits to recruit volunteers committed to student achievement and to increasing the volunteer capacity of meaningful, effective volunteer opportunities in communities who need it most.
Our partners:
"Caring adults in the lives of young people make Seattle a better place not just for our kids today, but for all of us and for our future."
United Way of King County
Seattle Works
Be Here, Get There
Other volunteer opportunities
Volunteer opportunities with the City
For Mentoring contact The 4C Coalition, Seattle Cares Mentoring Movement, or Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound.
For Out-of-School Time programs with middle school Community Learning Centers, contact Daisy Catague at Daisy.Catague@seattle.gov or 206-615-0303.