The WriterCoach Connection program is starting up again at four Berkeley schools (along with schools in Oakland, El Cerrito, Albany, and, as of this year, Richmond), and volunteers are needed.
You don’t have to be a writer or teacher to volunteer. WriterCoach Connection warmly welcome parents, college students, working and retired people, and community members of all backgrounds, ethnicities and walks of life.
WriterCoach Connection is a volunteer-based program that recruits and trains local volunteers to work one on one with students in both middle and high schools to develop writing and literacy skills. Its program has shown to be consistently effective in improving writing skills and its surveys and data confirm this. (Read more about the program’s results on its website.)
Coaches strengthen writing skills with individual feedback, challenge students to think more deeply, and encourage them, building their confidence. “It’s the most satisfying work I’ve done in the schools,” says one writing coach. And teachers say, “the writing improves dramatically.”
WriterCoach Connection provides volunteers with excellent training and mentoring. If you can make a commitment of only 1.5 hours per week, 2-3 times per month, you can enjoy the satisfaction of making a difference for Berkeley middle and high school students.
Volunteer trainings are happening now, with writer coaching set to begin very soon.
To learn more or sign up, visit WriterCoach Connection or call the organization’s Berkeley Volunteer Coordinator, Mona Kafoury at 510-704-0538.
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