At Everybody Wins! Iowa, we’re mindful of the impact that reading aloud to children has and the benefits it can bring. Through weekly interaction with students, our Power Read mentors have the opportunity to explore literature and support their thinking.
Jim Trelease, the author of The Read Aloud Handbook wrote that reading aloud to children is the single most important factor in improving children’s literacy skills. Start reading aloud to a child early and keep on reading even when they are independent readers.
There are a plethora of benefits of reading aloud to a child, to name a few:
- Builds Vocabulary
- Able to Make Personal Connections
- Hear the English Language Structure
- Models Fluent Reading
- Learns New Information
- Hears Book Talk
- Introductions to New Characters, Genres, Texts
- Motivates Children to Read on Own
- Provides the Child with a Reading Model
- Strengthens the Child’s Imagination
- Presents Reading as a Source of Pleasure, Form of Entertainment
In Central Iowa, nearly 1 in 5 fourth grade students are not reading on grade level. But, through our Power Read program, you can help change that! Consider signing up to volunteer as a reading mentor in one of our dozens of locations throughout Central Iowa. View the program schedule here to find a program to suite your needs.
Interested prospects should fill out our volunteer application or contact Anna, our Volunteer Outreach Manager, at 515-242-8462 or volunteer@everybodywinsiowa.org.
