It
has been said that the best way to learn is to teach. What exactly will you
learn: about the subject at hand, about the learning process, about yourself?
Probably all three. And don’t forget the warm fuzzies: that glow you get from
giving back to the constantly recycling education pool.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย If you look, you’ll find more than
enough opportunities to pass on your experience and skills. For all the things
people want and need to learn, there has to be someone to teach them. Take an
inventory of all the things you know how to do, and you just might be
surprised. It doesn’t have to be a big production with lesson plans and
chalkboards — or it can be, if that’s what you want.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย A good place to find volunteer
tutoring opportunities is through the Community Wishbook
(www.communitywishbook.com, wishbook@aol.com, 225-4226) where nonprofits list
all the things and services their big, kind hearts desire. Or, if you have a
passion, say playing the accordion, you can try offering your special talent to
organizations you think might be lacking in it. Following is a short list of
organizations and the types of tutoring opportunities out there.
Compeer pairs
up volunteers with mentally ill children and adults. In addition to one-on-one
mentoring, which usually involves fun outings like sporting events or movies,
Compeer also has a program called Skillbuilders, where community members can
come in and teach a life skill. It’s a temporary commitment of about six weeks,
and you can teach anything: how to cook a meal, balance a checkbook, change a
tire.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย “A lot of times people don’t have
the day-to-day skills to succeed,” says Sue Tessoni, director of internal
operations at the Rochester Compeer office. What volunteers with Compeer give
to the clients, Tessoni explains, “is what we get from our friends.”
What you can teach at Compeer: any life
skill. Training: orientation Commitment: one hour a week for six
weeks. Requirements: volunteers need
to be 21 years old. Contact: 259
Monroe Avenue, 546-8280, www.compeer.org.
Think of all
the things you read during the course of your day, and imagine if all that text was
substituted with code. How would you do your job, drive a car, fill out a form,
or take medication? As a tutor with Literacy Volunteers of America, you can be
assured that you are helping teach a crucial skill. While it may seem like a
daunting task to teach someone to read, or to teach English as a Second Language,
according to Melissa Woodhams, case coordinator at Literacy Volunteers’
Rochester office, most tutors are not professional teachers.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Nor do ESL teachers have to be
bilingual. In the interest of conducting lessons completely in English, “it
actually works out better if someone doesn’t speak the person’s original
language,” she says. “ESL tutors are usually people who like to travel, and can
understand the vulnerability one feels not speaking the language.”
What you can
teach with Literacy Volunteers: basic reading or English as a Second
Language. Training: a thorough
28-hour training period that covers learning styles, how to make a lesson plan,
and how to track progress. Commitment:
two hours a week for one year. Requirements:
tutors must be 18 years old and have their high school diploma or GED
equivalency. Contact: 249 Highland
Avenue, 473-3030, www.literacyrochester.org.
The goal at
Wilson Commencement Park is to help low-income single parents become
self-sufficient. To help with that goal, volunteers can either work one-on-one
with kids in the facility’s Early Learning Center, or they can work with adults
in evening education programs or as mentors. The approach, says Josette
Campana, volunteer coordinator, “is very hands-on, very grassroots. You have,
so give to someone who may not.” You can mentor residents and give advice on
getting and keeping a job. Or you can volunteer to teach an evening education
program on anything from parenting skills, to making good choices in relationships,
to conflict resolution.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย “It’s a way to show ‘I made it, so
can you,'” Campana says. “It gives the family a sense of hope and ‘wow,
somebody cares.’ It’s momentum and motivation.”
What you can
teach at Wilson Commencement Park: parenting, financial, job, or general
life skills. Commitment: ongoing for
mentors, temporary for evening education tutors. Requirements: none. Contact:
251 Joseph Avenue, 263-7930, www.wilsoncommencementpark.org.
Nena Siverd,
employment specialist at the Veterans Outreach Center, is putting together a
mentoring program for the veterans and their families that her office serves.
Right now she is in need of volunteers who can teach basic math, blueprint
reading, and computer skills. In the future she envisions her fledgling program
expanding, with volunteers teaching English and business skills to individuals
or small groups.
What you can
teach at Veterans Outreach: math, blueprint reading, computers. Commitment: ongoing. Requirements:
none. Contact: 427 South Avenue,
546-4250.
“If someone
really has something to teach,” says Karen Platt, “that’s something we never have enough
of.” Platt is operations manager at Operation Friendship, a social clubhouse
for adults with mental illness. The club is open seven days a week, serving
breakfast, lunch, and, Monday through Thursday, dinner. Over 500 members come
and go, socialize or don’t, but there is always the opportunity for them to
participate in recreational and social activities or vocational workshops. And
guess who leads those programs? You got it: volunteer tutors.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย People can lead any kind of group or
one-on-one session, and teach whatever knowledge, skill, or experience they’d
like. One woman recently started teaching the club’s first yoga class, and it’s
catching on with the members.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย “As long as someone is comfortable
coming in and working in a diverse population and being open-minded,” they can
teach something, Platt says.
What you can
teach at Operation Friendship: whatever you have to offer. Training: an orientation and some
reading to take home. Commitment:
variable. Requirements: willingness
and an open mind. Contact: 160 Mount
Hope Avenue, 473-9027.
At the Boys
and Girls Club of Rochester you have to go through the tutoring center to
get to the basketball court. Or to the foosball, or to the arts projects. For
any club member between the ages of 6 and 12, the first stop after school is
for homework.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย “If they said they didn’t get any
homework or they already finished it, we give them something to do,” says Bobbi
Mindy, assistant executive director. Most volunteers in the tutoring center are
college students or retirees. But the only requirement is “the personality to
come in and work with kids,” Mindy says, “and patience. Patience is what we ask
for above all.”
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย The tutoring center — which is in
the process of getting a new library for their reading program — is in need
of volunteers every day after school, but especially on Fridays, when kids can
sign up for one-on-one tutoring time. Mindy says that it is mostly teens who
sign up for the individual slots, for help on a particular subject or
assignment. Algebra wasn’t that hard, was it?
What you can
teach at the Boys and Girls Club: school subjects for kids and teens. Training: orientation. Commitment: ongoing. Requirements: willingness and patience
to work with kids, and “consistency,” says Mindy. “If someone says they’re
going to volunteer every Monday, the kids look for that person on Monday.” Contact:500 Genesee Street, 328-3077.
Last year the
tutoring center at East House helped 530 adults recovering from mental
illness and chemical dependency. By the end of the year, 40 percent of those
adults were working and 32 percent were in school or training. You can be a
part of this success.
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย “Our saying is ‘You’ll find hope at
East House,'” says Arlene Bullers, director of development and community
relations, “anyone who wants to be a part of that philosophy would be welcome.”
What you can
teach at East House: reading, math, computers. Training: brief training so people “know what to expect.” Commitment: one hour a week for as long
as you like. Requirements: 18 years
old and “a caring heart.” Contact:
53 Canterbury Road, 473-3360, voc@easthouse.org.
This article appears in Aug 13-19, 2003.
