The L.O.V.E. Letter ~ No. 15

The Newsletter of Project L.O.V.E. ~ Fall 2003 ~ PO Box 2000 Charlottetown PE C1A 7N8
Telephone 368-4695 Fax 368-3269. Toll Free 1-866-741-5683 Email: peivol@isn.net Home Page: www.nald.ca/peivol

BOASTing about this thing called L.O.V.E.!

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 intermediate and high schools.

In 34 schools across PEI, more than 250 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.

Many Ways to say: “ Very Good!”

If a child lives with encouragement, he learns confidence.
If a child lives with praise, she learns to appreciate.
If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself.
If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, she learns to find love in the world.

We have all seen how children blossom when they receive positive feedback from someone they respect.

Here are a few phrases you can use when you think you might be over-using the “very good!” line:

• You’re on the right track now!
• Outstanding!
• Terrific!
• I’m very proud of you.
• You figured that out fast.
• That’s the best ever.
• You’re really improving.
• You are very good at that.
• Keep it up!
• Good thinking!
• You got it right!
• I appreciate your hard work.
• You’re clever!
• One more time and you’ll have it.
• You did a lot of work today!
• Super Duper!
• That’s better than ever.
• You’re really learning a lot!
• That’s the way!

Great Resources for Literacy Tutors

In the United States the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory and Bank Street College of Education have partnered in a program called LEARNS.

One of the products of this partnership is a terrific newsletter called “the tutor”. Each issue offers information on a single topic; for example, Winter 2000 is about “Motivating Reluctant Adolescent Readers”, and Winter 2002 has “Tutoring our Youngest Readers”.

All the back issues are on the web at this address: www.nwrel.org/learns/tutor/. You will also find other valuable tutoring resources at this site.

If anyone is interested in either of the two issues of “the tutor” mentioned above, we have copies at the LOVE office and can mail them out to you. Call 368-4695 or toll-free 1-866-741-5683.