��m�HT��ݛ�K��B�6���QG�\CB�� �*�A�ORUõ��7�I|ot*g����!��~w�h1��� 1700 MacCorkle Avenue SE, Charleston, Thursday, Aug. 8 Volunteers are asked to commit to reading for a year, if possible. 1��� /I���;�݁n�l4��5���>vn�^+�ƍtYwy�bf3xv&�����Fl9�g�?Q���gQ Bond, who helped start the Read Aloud program in West Virginia more than 30 years ago, announced her retirement from the organization earlier this month. ��^e� /���\�d��. Most of those years, Mary Kay Bond has been at the helm of the organization. An important aspect, though, is ensuring kids are being read (or reading) the right books. Winds light and variable.. They need to be excited and invested in what they’re reading. CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Some willing readers are needed. You have permission to edit this article. There was a problem saving your notification. When a parent reads to a child at home, Bond said, she sees the child form positive associations with the activity. Slight chance of a rain shower. It was also a chance to educate parents on the opportunities they leave on the table if they opt not to read to their children. These finished book report projects will make a brilliant bulletin board display of your students' work. It’s an affirmation, she said, that this person means something to the child, and so does the reading itself. Read Aloud West Virginia, a nonprofit organization working to change the state's literary culture, is currently recruiting volunteers to regularly read to the Mountain State's students. “Kids seeing you do it — day in, day out, week in, week out — shows that it’s important and, more importantly, shows them that reading is enjoyable,” Miller said. Read Aloud West Virginia works to motivate children to want to read by placing volunteer readers in schools, providing access to books and other reading material, educating families and the general public and offering literacy resources to schools and teachers. The finished mountain story map project measures 32 inches in width and 10 inches in height. Presenting your child with vocabulary and spelling games — as educational as they claim to be — is not the same as sitting down and exploring a story with them. �>��� � xl/_rels/workbook.xml.rels �(� ���J�0����nӮ""��E��j}��L��m2㟾���ۅe���f���2���k�&�WP%�&��w “Medical literacy, financial literacy, these things that help you be successful. For children, being read to helps stimulate how the brain is going to develop, according to studies from the American Academy of Pediatrics. It wasn’t something that could be tested on. Cloudy. Mary Kay Bond (left) and Dawn Milller, both of Read Aloud West Virginia, talk to students of George C. Weimer Elementary in June. The study explains that they’re more likely to have higher literacy skills. Bond was a new mother at the time, and someone gifted her a handbook for the national Read Aloud program. Bond and a group of other mothers got together and watched a film about the program and how it could be implemented. Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. If you struggle to read, this is going to hold you back.”. Through her years serving the organization, she’s seen the change reading can have on children. More information is available at www.readaloudwv.org. Wednesday, Aug. 14, is the first day in Raleigh County. Through book drives and giveaways, the organization works to get books into the homes of children. Low 56F. That small act of allowing them to choose their own book, gives them a sense of agency in the activity, Bond said. Subscribe today. ]���(s|����m�{�1W��V��0�"���:/��9EI�4u�X)} \w�K�~g�{ M���^uw@��\N. ����ݻ�]�R��Hmm���_{�6�5�_����w}���U�֡���"\_]��׍ “Kids are like little mimics. Even with this evidence, though, the mission of Read Aloud hasn’t come without its struggles. RzK���M�js���H�lJK��Eؼ��١�Aa�ЦbSslm�q[�JqN�� E{������B����z���oKQ[�%����V�o�¹O�ɬ{��O�S���Ƙ�ԏ��X��� �_�kC8��n��.t�+��ԟ�Vl���O�i'�mJGS��|ɢh��NpW"j>�~�ġt8�|6��� 4:15 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. She’s heard stories from volunteers of this happening in grocery stores, movie theaters and community events. For more than 30 years, children in the Mountain State have benefited from Read Aloud West Virginia. “It’s having an effect and having it in a fun way that keeps me coming back,” said Miller. As the education system changes, Read Aloud has been challenged at times, especially as it has fought against the idea that high test scores should be the only goal of a classroom. Thank you for Reading! ޚ���[=� We strive to keep books in the hands and on the minds of West Virginia's children. If only one or two of those legs are working, she said, the child will be at a disadvantage. 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. “Now, it’s time to practice what I preach.”, Caity Coyne is a corps member with Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project. M�=�� � xl/sharedStrings.xml�X�r�ݧ*���,f���'�Ԕ��.=,ٖd+�D^��@�@��U�f>l�$�Rn��N%Yt�E �q�9}��s�ő�W�|��� 2�͔�?��6�� �ɤ��>����ӕ�A��zE��ŅO*�؊V�֕2��/|�Hf� “That’s incumbent on every adult to share those stories. ��W2 k�b.CAN�hK�/��t�'2-�닅���.�JP��Ž*�k+r��� For more than 30 years, children in the Mountain State have benefited from Read Aloud West Virginia. The root word in both is ‘literacy.’ If you’ve got that capability to master that, you can retool your skills. Click here to stay informed and subscribe to The Charleston Gazette-Mail. I include within that family not only the family you live with, but really this whole community around a child,” Bond said. Bond stepped down from her role with the program earlier this month. Earlier this month, though, Bond announced her retirement as executive director. As screen time and technology start to define the younger generations, she worries about the effect on pleasure reading and literature. The BB&T West Virginia Foundation has awarded Read Aloud a $2,500 grant to support book distribution programs throughout the state. “When a community volunteer comes into a classroom and reads, that person is becoming a part of the child’s classroom and, in a way, their life. �j��h�'@��Pȓ��Aw�2�l�ae>p�3�f�|�]���h4$c�S՜]����q1�~�]�5�e�2n���]��}�ol��� Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Bond said this extends past reading fiction and nonfiction books to helping them, in adulthood, better understand other subjects — things that can help them be more resilient and self-sustaining as they grow. The name was fitting, though. “A reader should be lively and involve the children in the storytelling.”. “We have about 205 schools around the state enrolled in our program which means that a volunteer from their community has gone through our orientation and believes in reading aloud to kids,” said Dawn Miller, operations manager for Read Aloud West Virginia. She explains the process using the metaphor of a three-legged stool, where family, educators and the community at-large balance each other to provide a strong base for a child to thrive. Reach her at caity.coyne@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-7939 or follow. Winds light and variable. In other words, Bond said, allowing them to have a say in what is read. But the benefits — you can’t deny the benefits.”. As word spread, libraries involved had friends living around the state. “Of course, we know anyone who volunteers probably knows to read, but there are techniques that make this a worthwhile endeavor, and we want to make sure we can pass those on,” Bond said. If you have a subscription, please Most of those years, Mary Kay Bond has been at … �}D�g"$�4��F�Y��.2#���5�9��鳔�Y]b��d��@��%�s�"�ݚ0�tB��)���[����ȓ��� �� PK ! Charleston, W.Va. R��r�؂7�+�T� }�)"φ���Dn��1 In the meantime, Bond will be focusing on ensuring that her grandchildren — ages 2, nine-months and two-months — are thriving in her own, personal at-home Read Aloud program. Read Aloud Executive Director Mary Kay Bond noted the donation is both a show of support for Read Aloud and a clear indicator of the company’s dedication to the well-being of West Virginia’s communities. Prior to going to work for Read Aloud, Miller was a volunteer reader for 27 years. BB&T has provided similar financial support for several years now, and we are grateful for the role they continue to play in helping Read Aloud maintain and expand its book distribution programs. There’s never been any research that negates the work of reading a printed book with a child — so why stop now? Please purchase a subscription to continue reading. “Why would we all like the same book?”. �Ix�B�M�؞{�u�ֵMV�x��~� ��k��\|O?�g� )���r�����`� � W;�EE^�Ģ�Za�8���X+��Xʠ��*A>�zO����QJ���`�����5o�̌��v]�ʅ Some clouds early will give way to generally clear conditions overnight. “I still remain invested in the organization, I always will be, but I know that it will succeed under the new leadership. When children are read to at a younger age, they have a wider vocabulary and comprehensive skills. “The beginning of the school year’s the perfect time (for orientation) because then it gets everybody ready so, when the teacher says, ‘Ok, we’ve gotten our routines down and we’re ready for our reader,’ the reader can just step in to that weekly routine,” Miller said. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular articles. Those planning to attend this week’s orientations were asked to register by sending an email to Marsha Hoyer at mhoyer@readaloudwv.org. Please purchase a subscription to continue reading. Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading. “Face it, we don’t all like the same vegetables, we don’t all like the same music,” Bond said. They’ll see them in public, and say, ‘That’s my reader!’ ”. She still works as a volunteer trainer for the organization, but, as the founder of Read Aloud West Virginia, she is excited to see what comes for the organization in the future.