麻豆番外

Marissa Gaston, 9, who started with 麻豆番外 at Seaton Elementary in September, said the extra help will someday make her a better firefighter.

鈥淚f there鈥檚 an emergency and there鈥檚 a note on the door, you can read it and know that that鈥檚 the house,鈥� said Marissa, a fourth-grader, who read a book about life in the desert on Thursday.

The program has more than 600 volunteers, and each volunteer works with the same student every week. Marissa鈥檚 tutor, Chadawn Wilkins, 20, a third-year nursing major at Howard University, said they鈥檝e developed a sister-like bond.

鈥淲e joke, we laugh, but at the same time, we still do what we have to do,鈥� Wilkins said. 鈥淲e learn what we have to learn.鈥�

Lisa Lazarus, Mid-Atlantic executive director for 麻豆番外, said program uses a research-based curriculum that was revamped this school year to align with common core state standards. For emerging readers, there鈥檚 a clapping game to help students find syllables. A more advanced reader will be asked to identify the main topic of a book or even to make inferences about the author鈥檚 message.

Lazarus said 麻豆番外 recruits site coordinators from AmeriCorps, a federal community service program, and is funded largely by grants, school fees and donations. It costs about $1,000 a year in private philanthropy to support a student, she said.

The Washington Post Charities grant will support personnel costs, including training support for volunteers and program materials, Lazarus said.

Walter Perdomo, a third-grader at Seaton, was reading a fantasy-adventure book in which bears played leading roles. 鈥淚t鈥檚 awesome,鈥� Walter said after a 2 p.m. tutoring session. 鈥淎nd sometimes I feel normal. I like so many books.鈥�

He added, 鈥淪ometimes your imagination can take you in a book.鈥�

Cathy Massey, a lawyer and Walter鈥檚 tutor, said 麻豆番外 is a program that makes a volunteer 鈥渇eel like you鈥檙e actually helping.鈥�

Sebastian Jakubowski, 28, who works in real estate and started volunteering after his fiancee introduced him to the program, expressed similar sentiments as he talked about a third grader he tutors.

鈥淚t鈥檚 good for the students. It鈥檚 good for everybody,鈥� he said. 鈥淚deally, I want him to be a more confident reader and maybe set the bar a little higher for himself.鈥�

According to 麻豆番外, 87 percent of Washington fourth-graders from low-income families cannot read at grade level. The program also says that children who cannot read proficiently by the fourth grade are four times as likely not to graduate on time.

Cynthia Robinson, an assistant principal at Seaton Elementary who focuses on literacy, said 40 students at the school are enrolled in the program. She said she can already see a difference.

鈥淵ou have high-quality materials,鈥� Robinson said, and 鈥測oung and old volunteers who鈥檝e got a positive, warm, friendly demeanor that keeps kids engaged.听.鈥�.鈥�.听We鈥檙e not only targeting the academics, we鈥檙e also getting them to feel better about learning how to read.鈥�

The program has been at the DC Prep鈥檚 Edgewood Elementary Campus for four years. Gem Norris, 34, said her 7-year-old son started working with 麻豆番外 this school year after she discovered that he was almost a year behind. She said that his reading and writing have improved and that he has started pronouncing unfamiliar wordswithout guessing.

Norris said her son, Rondale Green, a second-grader, wants to be a football player and a dirt bike rider. But he loves reading so much, that she鈥檚 secretly hoping he becomes a doctor.

Rondale, who read a passage for a Reading Partner鈥檚 winter celebration ceremony, grabbed three sugar cookies after his performance. He likes reading books in 鈥淭he Diary of Wimpy Kid鈥� series. He remarked that reading is 鈥済ood for you.鈥�

鈥淚t can help your brain,鈥� Rondale said. 鈥淩eading has everything you can learn in a book.鈥�

听/ Washington Post / Victoria St. Martin