The Newsletter of Project L.O.V.E. Winter 2001 P.O. Box 2000 Charlottetown PE C1A 7N8
Telephone & facsimile 368-4695. E-mail: love@isn.net Home Page: www.nald.ca/lovehmpg.htm
Project L.O.V.E. is a member of the P.E.I. Literacy Alliance. Support for Project L.O.V.E. comes from the National Literacy Secretariat and PEI Department of Education. Project L.O.V.E. is a Registered Charity, No. 88820 6237 RR0001

Project L.O.V.E. stands for Let Older Volunteers Educate, and is our elementary school project. BOAST stands for Bringing Older Adults and Students Together, and we find BOAST volunteers in high schools.

In 29 schools across PEI, more than 200 very committed (mainly retired) older volunteers help students with their school work in various areas. In the elementary program, help is usually in that most important area, reading.

L.O.V.E. Volunteers go to their school once a week, spending between an hour and a whole morning or afternoon in the school.

They usually help one student at a time, listening and coaching them with words, reading aloud to model good pronunciation and expression for them, helping with classroom projects or to get caught up on missed assignments.

BOAST Volunteers are more flexible - some visit the school once a week, while others work on short-term projects, which may involve more visits over a shorter period of time. The volunteer work is usually focussed on specific areas of expertise of the volunteer.

Teachers whose students work with the Project L.O.V.E. volunteers all agree: Their students benefit greatly from this help, gaining self-confidence through the interest shown in them by the volunteers.

The year 2001 has been declared the "Year of Volunteers" by the United Nations. There will be a great many special events to honour people just like you - who give your time, energy and expertise to help others without recompense.

Project L.O.V.E. has been invited by the provincial government to take part in its celebration of volunteers in this special year. There will be a series of short videos produced about volunteers at work all over PEI, and one of our volunteers will be featured. The videos will be used in a series of television spots to highlight the volunteer contribution of Islanders. Please watch for your representative volunteer later in the year - and if anyone has a burning desire to appear on television, please call the office! There will also be regional celebrations to which volunteers will be invited, and we hope you will be able to participate.

Thank you for volunteering in this special year, and we will celebrate your wonderful contribution to the well-being of young Islanders all year!

. There are some interesting quizzes and stories, as well as merchandise including pins, T-shirts etc. which must be paid for, and lovely posters, which are free.

Volunteers who attended the "Straight From The Heart!" Seminar in November found the sessions which they attended to be very informative and useful.

Sessions on Reading Recovery, Learning Disabilities, Maintaining Students' Attention and Family Literacy, as well as inspirational words from Sen. Catherine Callbeck and Hon. Marion Reid were enjoyed by all.

Proceedings of the Seminar are being compiled into a booklet which will be sent to all volunteers, both those who attended the seminar and those who weren't able to do so.

Many thanks to all for your participation

In January Fortune Consolidated School joined Project L.O.V.E. Fortune is a Grade 1 to 4 school, and teachers are looking forward to having that special one-to-one relationship for their students who need extra practice and help with reading.

Principal Greg MacNevin hopes to find volunteers who would be willing to work with the grades 5 to 8 students at Rollo Bay Consolidated School nearby.

Early in February Souris Consolidated School joined Fortune in starting a new Project L.O.V.E. as well. Volunteers will be working with grades 1 to 3 or 4 students, depending upon numbers of volunteers.

Please - be careful out there! Visits to schools in the past few weeks have revealed that sidewalks are treacherous - not to mention the hazards of icicles, snowy parking lots and roofs.

Please, when you're going into the school, take your time and be very careful. Don't be afraid to admonish students if they're not taking proper care or putting you into danger of slipping - or worse, falling. The students are supposed to learn from you, and one thing they could learn is polite behavior.

If you do have an accident, remember that both the Eastern and Western School Boards have liability coverage for volunteers on school property. Please call the LOVE office if you have any questions about this.

Another hazard in winter is flu season. If you are concerned that you might be in danger of contracting the latest bug, consider taking the week off and waiting until the epidemic dies down a bit. We don't want you to put yourself in danger! Just please be sure to let your Captain or your school know if you're not going to be in that day.

A new Handbook has been developed by Health Canada and others for older adults who want to increase their levels of physical activity.

In a very user-friendly format, information is provided on the three activity groups: Endurance, Flexibility, and Strength and Balance. There are great suggestions on starting exercise programs by building up one's level of activity gradually, and choosing activities which are compatible with your lifestyle and interests.

A pull-out section in the middle allows one to keep track of activities to build up to the suggested 30 to 60 minutes of physical activity every day.

Free copies of the booklet are available (in English or French) by calling the following toll-free number: 1-888-334-9769.

Remember: Volunteering is a pay rate - not a job description!