February 6, 2007

Million Mentor March

One of my clients at the incubator shared information with me about the Million Mentor March. The idea is for adults to take the time to mentor (help) just one child learn reading skills at an early age. There are five critical skills children must learn in order to be proficient readers by the end of the third grade.

The Million Mentor March intends to improve school readiness of preschoolers and facilitate academic achievement among elementary school children using a simple, effective and inexpensive resource to promote language and literacy growth.

The eZ Book Club House (use referral code: ZUL200) features unique interactive books that help children gain early literacy skills by giving them the opportunity to explore sound and the meaning of words which appear on the computer screen.

If you have know a child aged 2-7, then you are encouraged to use www.zulemabooks.com (referral code: ZUL200) to register them for the eZ Book Club House. Membership in the eZ Book Club House is FREE and children receive their own personalized library, plus a FREE library starter book. Membership also entitles access to FREE games, music and coloring pages to make reading fun.

Another way you can help your mentee is by talking with parents and guardians. They need to understand that literacy is more than a child’s ability to read and speak words. There are five basic reading skills a child must learn very early in life in order to read at a level of proficiency to function in the fourth grade: Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, Vocabulary, Fluency and Comprehension.

The eZ Book Club House has five different reading programs to help children become strong readers. To learn more about these programs and the five critical skills, visit the Library section at www.zulemabooks.com.

Anyhow, I signed up today as a mentor. A million mentors starts with one. We need 999,999 more. Tell a friend about the Million Mentor March and have them register online. If each one teaches one, imagine the impact we can make!
I remember back when I was a kid ... we had a public library (Pio Pico Library) a few blocks from our house. One of the best things about being a kid was having my own library card. We used to keep track of the books we read. I think we even got prizes if we read so many books over the summer months. Now everything is online. Here is a chance for our children to have an online library with diverse books and subject matter ideal for their age group. I hope you will take a moment to check it out. Let me know what you think...

3 comments:

Fredric said...

not to be too quaint, but when i was younger, i hated reading. i only remember enjoying books in a series like mystery novels.

is this common among adolescents? why do you think that is? are there other alternatives to teaching the same skills?

Unknown said...

Hi Frederic --> my younger brother wasn't big on reading when he was younger. When I was in high school and he was in middle school I gave him a paperback called "Looking Out for #1" by a guy named Ringer. My brother enjoyed that book quite a bit. He eventually became a Navy JAG and a lawyer with his own practice.

I do remember mystery novel series back in the day. This will date me ... but, they were HARDY BOYS series!

I'm not an educator ... so I cannot tell you about the other alternatives. Perhaps someone will see your comment and provide some insights.

Evelyn said...

I share your love of books and libraries. I have three girls who also love books because I have been reading ot them since birth. This book club sounds fabulous. I may share it with my daughter's pre-Kindergarten class.

Great blog, and thanks for the link to the quilting site. I used to be a quilter also, but knitting seems to have taken over my life. Maybe it's because I can knit and read at the same time. . .

Blessings,