These stories were contributed by Minnesota Reading Corps members and sites. Get yet another perspective of the program by reading our blog. Or, Ask a Current Member a Question.

 
"A good change"

Today one of the 2nd grade teachers thanked me for working with her student. She said he's always so excited when he gets back to class and he wants to tell her how well he has done. He got his best score today and he was so proud of himself. His teacher said that she was seeing a good change in him because of my tutoring. 

A veteran teacher's perspective

I really enjoyed working with the children at Riverview. The staff there was awesome in accommodating the scheduling with MRC. Having been in the classroom for 38 years, I can truly appreciate the effectiveness of the interventions used in working with the children.

A thank you note

The kids at my site made cards and posters for people who have helped them during the year and put them up all over of the school. I was thinking to myself how nice they were as I made my way to my room. Once I arrived at my room, I had this huge poster on my door from some of the kids I have served. It made me feel good. Later that day each of the kids had personal card for me also!

Being part of an amazing school

As the son of two teachers, I have a lifelong passion for education, and although I did not major in education in college, Reading Corps afforded me the opportunity to get into a school, work with amazing kids, and feel like I'm really making a difference. Getting to know the kids and my fellow employees here at Hartley has allowed me to see what an amazing school this truly is. I am very hopeful that the ideals of this program, which align so well with the many other programs Hartley already has in place for closing the achievement gap, can continue, and follow the kids with whom I have worked as they continue to grow. I will never forget this year, the things I have learned, and the people I have met. Although it may be cliché to say, the students here have truly changed my life.

A boost in confidence

I began working with one of the 2nd grade students beyond our regularly scheduled intervention time several weeks ago. I read with her before school and after our intervention time. When we started reading together, she was so sheepish about anyone hearing her read. Today she asked me if she could read the story we were using to read to her entire class! By now her confidence had increased so much that she actually WANTED to read aloud in front of others. It was soooo gratifying!

"A huge impact"

I hope that all of you at the Corps truly know what a huge impact Reading Corps has on our students.  As an educator it is tremendous to be able to give support to students that we would not have been able to and to see the success!  We are so thankful for the opportunity to participate in the program.  Thank you!

Positive members create positive change

As we celebrated the gifts of Green School members who have given of their talent and time this year, it was meaningful to know that my investment in four of these members had multiplied the benefits to our students. Their interest and positive attitude may result in them returning next year. As I prepare reports for our primary reading teachers meeting, the progress of all the students is apparent. This could not have happened without the total effort of the team here at Green School. There is a drive to make all students reach their learning potential and develop critical thinking. I think anyone who makes an effort and follows the Reading Corps guidelines will improve their own lives as they open the door to reading to students.

The ability to be educated, the opportunity to dream

It is so very important that we are in the classrooms helping children to read. Being able to read is an essential part of life that will open up so many doors for these kids. It is a skill that they will take with them for the rest of their lives.  Being able to read means being able to be educated, and with an education these children will go out into society and create better lives for themselves, and the people around them.  It is also a skill that will give them the opportunity to dream and reach beyond their imaginations, which will only enhance their lives.

A surprise at parent-teacher conferences

Cliché’s aside, appearances, I've found, are misleading, especially in the third grade, or so it seems. For the past several weeks, I have been working with one third grade boy who, when it comes to his daily intervention, is less than enthusiastic. To say that he's shy too would be an understatement; he's shy, but with a sort of I-don't-want-to-do-this passive aggression, or at least that is what I was able to decipher from the few verbal mumblings he's given me between shoulder shrugs and long sighs. So when I saw his mother coming my way during parent-teacher conferences, I was a little scared. Surely she was going to have an issue with the program. Surely the boy, trailing behind her, was finally reaping his revenge for making him read that same passage a fifth time in Repeated Reading. When they got closer, a huge unprecedented smile rippled his cheeks as his mother asked if I was the one that read with him. Much to my surprise, she thanked me and said that the boy also wanted to thank me for all of the reading improvements and confidence he's gained. I stumbled through some response and was truly surprised. 

A little goes a long way

After serving at my site for about a month now, the most important thing to me about my experience is making a difference for these kids. I work at a school that has very low performing students on all fronts, and I know that if I can do even a little at getting their reading level up, I  can help them improve in every subject.

Third grade tough guy

One of my third grade boys pretends to be a “tough guy” and he acts like he's not invested. He always complained when I came to take him from class and refused to focus while we were working. But one day he realized how far he had come since we started. He finally saw how much progress he was making and things changed. He stopped complaining when I entered the room and he tried hard to accomplish the tasks I set forth for him. And then last month he actually asked if we could work together after school in addition to our work during the day. My jaw dropped and I was speechless. SUCCESS!!

Needed help for preschool teachers

From what I've seen, preschool teachers are maxed-out with all they have to do. Paperwork is overwhelming and there never seems to be enough hours in the day to fit in all they'd like to teach, especially if the class has students who are high-need and demand individualized attention. Being a member of my teaching team allows me to 'take over' with literacy activities not only at set times but any time there's a pause in the day; during transitions, out on the playground, while the teacher is greeting parents dropping off their children, etc. All of those minutes I can spend promoting literacy add up!

Mysterious breakthrough

One of my 2nd graders has never been that into what we are doing. He gets distracted and argues about the stories or about the mistakes that I have counted. I felt like I was fighting with him to do what we needed to do. I'd spoken on several occasions to his teacher and my internal coach because I didn't really know what to do with him.

Then, after a school break, he was suddenly cooperative. He even asked for a blank chart and some stories that he could practice on at home. I gave him several stories take home and he was very excited. He read really well that day, even correcting his mistakes before I could. I asked his teacher if she had talked to him about reading and his attitude. She replied that she hadn't done anything. She then went on to tell me that the student had shown her the practice readings and had asked if she would listen to him read. His teacher said that she didn't know what had happened, but to keep it up.