Imagine life without reading. What if you could not fill out a job application, read the notes from your child’s teacher or understand the instructions on a prescription medicine label? One out of six adults in Tulsa County cannot read well enough to do these tasks.
September is Literacy Awareness Month. You can help Tulsa City-County Library’s Ruth G. Hardman Adult Literacy Service promote literacy in our community by:
· Tutoring an adult literacy student or English as a second language (ESL) student.
· Referring a friend, co-worker, relative, employee or any adult with reading difficulties to the library’s literacy service.
· Making a donation today or leaving a gift in your will for tomorrow to help ensure the future of the literacy service.
Currently, the library’s literacy service has nearly 50 adults waiting for a reading tutor; several of them are ESL students.
You are eligible to serve as a tutor if you are 18 or older and have graduated from high school. Each trained volunteer is matched with an adult learner to provide one-on-one tutoring once or twice a week. Volunteers are asked to make a one-year commitment to tutor. If you’re interested in tutoring an adult, the following training workshops are scheduled in September and October:
- Basic Literacy Tutor Training – Sept. 11, 13, 18, 20; 5:45-8:45 p.m.; Central Library, Fourth Street and Denver Avenue. Registration deadline is Aug. 28.
- ESL Literacy Tutor Training – Oct. 23, 25, 30; 5:45-8:45 p.m.; Central Library, Fourth Street and Denver Avenue. Registration deadline is Sept. 18.
- Basic Literacy Tutor Training – Oct. 20, 27; 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Central Library, Fourth Street and Denver Avenue. Registration deadline is Oct. 8.
Tutors must complete all sessions of the chosen workshop. Preregistration is required. To register for a workshop, call 918-549-7400 or visit www.tulsalibrary.org/literacy.