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Reading Buddy Times
An eNewsletter for Volunteers & Friends of SAYL
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Happy February, SAYL Reading Buddies!
We have had a busy January! During the past month we worked to replace Service Learning university students who volunteered for the fall semester and match existing students who have still not received a Reading Buddy. We recruited, trained and matched over 100 Reading Buddies in the last few weeks, and I am happy to announce that we have matched 95% of the students recommended and in target for our program.
At the start of the spring semester, we welcomed two new Corporate Reading Buddy Partners: OCI Solar Power and Port San Antonio. We also added three new program sites: East Terrell Hills in NEISD, J.T. Brackenridge and Kelly Elementary in SAISD. We are thrilled about our new partnerships! They have allowed us to serve more students and are getting us closer to our goal of matching every at-risk 2nd grade student in San Antonio reading with a trained and caring adult who can instill in their students a love of reading.
We have several events planned for the next few months so please stay tuned. Thank you again for your commitment to serve the children of San Antonio.
Sincerely,
Christina M. Martinez-Rodriguez
Executive Director
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Movie Night in the Park - Friday, February 28
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Grande Communications and City Council District 1 will be hosting Movie Night in the Park Friday, February 28 to benefit San Antonio Youth Literacy.
Friday, February 28 at San Pedro Park
1315 San Pedro Ave., San Antonio, TX 78212
Story Time starts at 6:00 pm
Reading Buddy & Assistant Chief of Police Geraldine Garcia will be reading The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss
Feature Film starts at 6:30 pm
The San Antonio Food Truck Association is proud to support this event! Several trucks will be onsite and 10% of their food sales will be donated to SAYL!
Plus, the local Dunkin' Donuts from the 5105 Walzem Road franchise will be donating hot chocolate, donut holes, and coffee for the event.
Hope to see you there!
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Upcoming School Holidays & Testing Days
Monday, February 17 - School is On!
Due to the bad weather day in January, school will now be in session on Monday, February 17
February 18-24 - Testing Days
Schools will be conducting testing over the next two weeks. We will inform you via email if any of the testing will interfere with your sessions. Not all the testing will include the 2nd grade students, but the schools ask that you are mindful of the testing and to be understanding of the potential schedule changes.
March 10-14 - Spring Break
All schools are closed!
Reading Buddy Updates & Reminders
The spring semester is a time for field trips and testing. We will do our best to inform you about any conflicts with your tutoring sessions, and also feel free to ask your school for a monthly calendar that will have activities and/or testing days that interfere with your sessions.
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A special thanks goes to two foundations that have supported SAYL in the past and have continued that support with their recent gifts!
Both the Bennack-Polan Foundation and the Greehey Family Foundation graciously awarded $10,000 each to San Antonio Youth Literacy for support of our SAYL Reading Buddy Program. Both organizations understand the importance of strong literacy skills in our community, and that our Reading Buddy Program addresses this need through direct support of struggling readers. The accompanying letters from both organizations indicate they wished to thank SAYL, and especially our volunteers, for the work we are doing to address the literacy needs of our community's youth. SAYL in turn would like to thank both the Bennack-Poland and the Greehey Family Foundations for their continued support and belief in our mission!
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Volunteers Needed
for Story Time
SAYL is looking for a few folks to help out with story time during Free Tuesdays at the Witte Museum. We are partnering with H-E-B to bring story time to the Witte from 3-5pm on the 3rd Tuesdays now through May. Volunteers can help with just one story time or all four! If you are interested in volunteering please email [email protected].
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Stay Connected with SAYL!
 
San Antonio Youth Literacy [email protected] | www.sayl.org 1616 E. Commerce, Building 2
San Antonio, TX 78205
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Volunteer and Site Director of the Month!
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Volunteer of the Month
Sam Owens
Our Volunteer of the Month is Sam Owens, a CPS Energy Utility Worker who started tutoring at Arnold Elementary this fall. "When they asked for volunteers, I signed-up and I am glad I did." Owens' Reading Buddy also really enjoys the time they spend together, "When I read with Sam, he helps me when I have questions." Both Owens and his student have seen great progress in his reading abilities, "He started at a D level, but now he is reading H level books!" Owens has recently been transferred to the Eastside Service Center and will soon begin tutoring at Gates Elementary. He still makes the trip out to Arnold Elementary, however, to see his student every week until he gets assigned a new Reading Buddy. As a sixth grader, Owens was reading at a 5th grade level but was never aware of it. It wasn't until a substitute teacher took the initiative to work with him that he began to improve his literacy skills. Owens sees his student as a reflection on himself; he believes that if his student is on level in the next few months that he will have many more opportunities because, "Everything revolves around reading."
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Site Director of the Month
Clarissa Davis
Our Site Director of the month for February is Clarissa Davis, a 3rd Grade teacher at Wilson Elementary. "My principal asked me to head up the SAYL partnership at Wilson, and I'm so glad she did because it's such a great partnership with our community. Reading to children is important because it instills a life long love and passion for literacy. As a teacher, one of the biggest rewards is seeing how excited my students get when they hear a good book read aloud. Modeling fluency and 'getting into the character' is not only fun and engaging, but it helps my students to do the same when they read independently or with a buddy. Also, getting students to think critically about what they read and taking time to discuss and reflect positions them for life-long learning. SAYL is really a win-win for both the children and their special reading buddies. Volunteering with children is such a rewarding experience that both the students and the volunteers look forward to on a weekly basis."
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Copyright � 2014. All Rights Reserved.
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