In an effort to ensure more children are reading at grade level by the end of third grade, United Way of Broward County launched ReadingPals – a three-year initiative focused on engaging, training and deploying volunteer “reading pals” in our community. Terry learned of this program through his employer, AutoNation, Inc., and something about the idea of working with children in this capacity appealed to him.
“My parents always read to me as a child,” said Terry. “I never really thought about the impact it had until I was much older, but now I am happy to do the same for other children.”
Terry met with Serenity weekly and would spend an hour reading her books. Gradually, Terry could not only see Serenity’s reading and comprehension skills improve, but her confidence grew as well. It wasn’t long before Serenity had “Five Little Monkeys” completely memorized.
Thanks to United Way of Broward County’s ReadingPals initiative and volunteer “reading pals” like Terry, children will improve their reading comprehension skills and read at the correct grade level. When it comes to ReadingPals, it only takes one hour a week to make a positive impact in a child’s life.
