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Reading to Kids News
September 23, 2021
 

Dear Friends of Reading to Kids,

OCT. 9TH READING CLUBS
RSVPS NOW OPEN!

Volunteers, many in costume, at our Zoom lunch gathering after Saturday's reading clubs

Hooray, we have now opened the October 9th reading clubs RSVPs, so sign up quickly if you know you can join us!

If you have ever read with us at any of our prior reading clubs (face-to-face or virtual), please RSVP now at our homepage at www.readingtokids.org or keep checking back to submit your RSVP for our "Halloween, Magic, & Monsters" virtual reading clubs on October 9th!

We must continue to limit RSVPs for these virtual reading clubs only to returning volunteers - people who have volunteered with us at least once before at any of our previous face-to-face or virtual reading clubs. See below for how virtual clubs work.

We are confident we will be able to add more reader spots as more teachers commit to hosting for us on October 9th.

If you check our website and find all reader spots are full today or over the next two weeks, please keep checking back so we'll have enough volunteers.


STAND-BY READERS WANTED!

If all spots are full you can also let us know at info@readingtokids.org if you are willing to be a "stand-by" reader for Saturday, October 9th. A "stand-by" reader is someone willing to fill in for any grade at any school if we have any last-second reader cancellations.

Stand-by readers must be available that Saturday morning from 8am to around 11am and willing to read via Zoom to any grade at any school. It's a really important role!

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 virtual Site Coordinator in our Zoom reading clubs for any of our schools.

Being a Site Coordinator guarantees you a (non-reading) spot at our next reading clubs, so please e-mail us at info@readingtokids.org if you can help us create wonderful reading clubs!
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HOW VIRTUAL READING CLUBS WORK

Zoom reading clubs

Because LAUSD has not yet determined when volunteer organizations can return to on-campus events, we continue to 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.

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!

Kindergarten crafts at LA Elementary
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CAN'T RUN 26 MILES OR 5K?
THEN DONATE TO SUPPORT OUR
2021 MARATHON RUNNERS
OR HAND OUT WATER DURING THE RACE!

Team Reading to Kids LA Marathon runners

Please support Team Reading to Kids as they run the Los Angeles Marathon on November 7th!

They have until November 7th to reach their $10,000 fundraising goal! If you can donate a buck a mile to your favorite runner, you'll help fuel them towards the finish line!

Team Reading to Kids banner

With every mile they train and every dollar they raise, these valiant souls help you inspire kids with a love of reading.

HAND OUT WATER DURING THE RACE!

Help represent Reading to Kids during the marathon by handing out water to the runners!

Our group will be at Water Station Mile 5 at Glendale Blvd., between Bellevue and Kent St. in Echo Park, on Sunday, November 7th from 5am - 11am.

Click this link to sign up. Our group is Reading to Kids and our shift location should be listed in green. Click the box to the green J05 Water Station Mile 5 shift, complete the form, and sign up to volunteer!

Supporting our runners
_______________________________________________

10 RUNNERS NEEDED FOR THE
2022 LA MARATHON,
13.1 MILE CHARITY CHALLENGE,
OR 5K!

Do you know any runners? Are you a runner? Please forward this email to them and ask them to join Team Reading to Kids in the 2022 Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday, March 20th!

 Team Reading to Kids logo

We're looking for at least four more marathon runners and six Charity Challenge runners (the last 13.1 miles of the course) to join us in one of the best marathons in the country.

If either of those distances is too daunting, you can join us in the LA Big 5K (that's just 3.1 miles) near Dodger Stadium the day before the marathon on Saturday, March 19, 2022.

You can share this Facebook group with any of your runner friends to encourage them to join our team!

If you or a runner you know is interested in becoming one of our fundraising runners or creating a fundraising team, please email Chris Martin at marathon@readingtokids.org!

IMPORTANT NOTE: To register to run on behalf of Reading to Kids, you MUST receive from us a special web address to use when registering on the Los Angeles Marathon website.

Team Reading to Kids 5K runners
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SUPPORT US WITH GROCERY STORE ESCRIP & AMAZONSMILE

Ralphs

Did you know you can support Reading to Kids just by shopping at the grocery store or using your credit card?

eScrip and Ralphs both have programs that are NO COST ways for you to donate to Reading to Kids.

All you have to do is call Ralphs or go online and register your grocery cards.  When you use those cards at a participating store or service provider, the store will donate a percentage of your purchases to Reading to Kids

Click here for simple instructions on how to sign up or renew! Or, you can call Ralphs Community Contribution Program at (800) 443-4438. Explain you want to register your Ralphs card number and your telephone number. Reading to Kids NPO# is BR278.

Note if you have previously signed up: You have to renew your registration each year on or after September 1st, so please renew again for this year!

Amazon Smile

Do you shop on Amazon.com? If you shop using AmazonSmile, they will donate 0.5% of your purchases to Reading to Kids!

Click here for easy directions on how to start using AmazonSmile!

_______________________________________________

Thanks, and please keep checking www.readingtokids.org to RSVP with us if we have open spots!

Sincerely,

Charlie Orchard & Talethe Collins
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

OCTOBER 2021
Reading Club RSVPs
School RSVPs Capacity
Alta Loma 3 6
Esperanza 1 7
Gratts 6 7
Los Angeles 3 5
MacArthur Park 3 6
Magnolia 2 7
Politi 2 5
White 3 6
TOTAL 23 49
OCTOBER 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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