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Reading to Kids News
August 6, 2020
 

Dear Friends of Reading to Kids,

We wanted to share with you a heartwarming note we received from one of our teacher Zoom hosts about a 4th grader who joined our July 11th virtual reading clubs.

"(He) didn't participate in remote learning all of March, April, May, and June, so it was really good to see him join Reading to Kids. Thanks for giving him the opportunity!"
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MAYBE OPEN SPOTS FOR VIRTUAL
READING CLUBS THIS SATURDAY

This week a few more teachers signed up with us to host our "Arts & Creativity" Zoom reading clubs this Saturday, though the new volunteer spots filled up quickly by those checking our website.

If you have ever read with us at any of our prior reading clubs (face-to-face or virtual), please keep checking our home page at www.readingtokids.org to see if there any new openings for you to submit your RSVP for our virtual reading clubs this Saturday!

(If you are signed up but can't attend after all, please click here to cancel ASAP or before 3:00 p.m. tomorrow so someone else can take your place!)

If you check the website and find it is full, please keep checking back, since additional spots may open later today or tomorrow until 3pm.

We are again limiting RSVPs for these experimental virtual reading clubs only to returning volunteers - people who have volunteered with us at least once before at any of our previous reading clubs.

HOW VIRTUAL READING CLUBS WORK

Because LAUSD teachers are using Zoom to reach their students, we will use Zoom for these virtual reading clubs. The reading clubs will be hosted by participating teachers at each school using their school Zoom accounts, but you will need your own Zoom account to join the reading club. If you don’t already have a Zoom account, you can sign up for a free, Basic account here: https://zoom.us/pricing

IMPORTANT: You will need to use Zoom from a desktop or laptop computer. The phone and tablet versions of Zoom do not have the necessary features for our virtual reading clubs.

We are again limiting RSVPs for these virtual reading clubs to returning volunteers - people who have volunteered with us at least once before at any of our previous reading clubs.

Ideally, anyone who volunteers for these virtual reading clubs will be comfortable using Zoom. If you wish to test out your Zoom connectivity prior to the reading clubs, we encourage you to email us at info@readingtokids.org so we may do a brief test run with you before the virtual reading clubs.

The Friday before the reading clubs you will receive a link for a Zoom "check-in" session with your Site Coordinators that will begin promptly at 9:00 a.m. that Saturday. Click here to review the schedule for these virtual reading clubs.

Once you and your fellow volunteers are checked in, that same Zoom session will have a Zoom Volunteer Orientation / Virtual Reading Club Training that will start promptly at 9:15 a.m.

At 9:30 a.m. you and your volunteer partner will leave that Site Coordinator session and then join the teacher's Zoom session. The teacher will host the Zoom call and make you co-hosts. The first 30 minutes will be for troubleshooting and a prep session for just you and your reading partner and the teacher.

The kids will join that same reading club Zoom session at 10:00 a.m., and it will likely go until 10:30 or 11:00, at the teacher's discretion.

After the reading clubs end you will then rejoin your Site Coordinator's Zoom call for a brief wrap-up.

To screen share the book you will be reading with the children, you will need Adobe Acrobat or the free Adobe Reader from https://get.adobe.com/reader.

We will provide you a PDF of the read-aloud book so you can prepare for the reading clubs. You can see the read-aloud book titles for this month at https://readingtokids.org/Books/BooksMonth.php.

We will provide at the above link activities and simple craft ideas the kids can do at home. You would prepare to lead the kids in an activity and craft, though you may not actually do a craft, depending upon how the Zoom session goes. The kids may just want to talk to new faces!

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OPERATIONS VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Volunteers checking in with their Site Coordinators on Zoom

For our virtual reading clubs we need experienced volunteers to be a second or third virtual Site Coordinator in our Zoom reading clubs for any of our schools.

These smaller summer reading clubs are the best times to step into this important role - all training pleasantly provided safely at home!

Please e-mail us at info@readingtokids.org if you can help create wonderful reading clubs!

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HELP US FIND GRANTS!

Jessica Brown-Clark with Target grant check

Did you know Reading to Kids receives about half of our funding from corporation and foundation grants? For example, over the last five years alone six of our volunteers helped us receive $140,000 in grants from their employers!

Please check to see if your employer offers grants that Reading to Kids can apply to and let us know! You may help us buy thousands of books for kids!

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Thanks, and we hope you can submit your RSVP today for our Virtual Reading Clubs this Saturday!

Sincerely,

Charlie Orchard & Talethe Jackson
Reading to Kids
1600 Sawtelle Blvd, Suite 210
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 479-7455
(310) 479-7435 (FAX)
info@readingtokids.org
www.readingtokids.org
www.facebook.com/readingtokids
www.twitter.com/readingtokids
www.readingtokids.blogspot.com

Make a donation:
www.readingtokids.org/HowToHelp/HelpDonate.php

August 2020
Reading Club RSVPs
School RSVPs Capacity
Alta Loma 6 6
Esperanza 11 11
Gratts 5 5
Los Angeles 12 12
MacArthur Park 11 11
Magnolia 10 10
Politi 8 8
White 12 12
TOTAL 75 75
AUGUST Books. . .
Kindergarten book
Kindergarten
First Grade book
First Grade
Second Grade book
Second Grade
Third Grade book
Third Grade
Fourth Grade book
Fourth Grade
Fifth Grade book
Fifth Grade

Reading to Kids is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Visit www.readingtokids.org for more information.

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