Latest / The Daily Writer / Tutoring Director Mary Click on Childhood Literacy and Changing Kids' Lives Through Mentoring

Transcript

Tutoring Director Mary Click on Childhood Literacy and Changing Kids' Lives Through Mentoring · The Daily Writer

• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Daily Rider Podcast, where we bring you tips and inspiration each day to help you build habits for writing success.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: For more resources, including your free Daily Rider Starter Kit, visit DailyRiderLife.com.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Do you remember back in the 1980s when sitcoms would advertise a very special episode where they promised you something dramatic would happen?
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: Tonight on a very special episode of Punky Brewster, you remember those days?
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I can't guarantee any drama, but I can promise you this is a very special episode of the Daily Rider Podcast.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_00: The reason is because today's topic of helping kids read is really close to my heart.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: Kids are our future, and I'm always excited to talk to and support people who are helping kids with reading, writing, and communication.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: My guest today is Mary Click.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: Mary is the National Intergenerational Tutoring Director for the OASIS Institute, a nonprofit educational organization that promotes healthy aging through lifelong learning, active lifestyles, and service.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: OASIS Intergenerational Tutoring has positively impacted over 525,000 children since its inception in 1989, and it's been implemented in more than 100 school districts across the country.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: The award-winning volunteer program pairs older adults with children in grades kindergarten through third grade to work one-on-one each week, not only as tutors, but also as mentors and positive role models.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: In her role with OASIS, Mary is responsible for developing resources to support the tutoring program in nine OASIS centers and independent sites in 20 cities.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: Mary collaborates closely with school district administrators, school district facilitators, and the OASIS Network tutoring staff to serve volunteer tutors participating in the program.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: She previously served as the Stateless tutoring manager and held other project management roles during her 15-year tenure at the OASIS Institute.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: So in our conversation today, Mary and I talk about the importance of childhood literacy, how schools have changed over the last few decades, how reading impacts kids in a lot of different ways, and how you can get involved as a tutor with Oasis.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: Now, before we get to this conversation, I want to tell you how I connected with Mary for this interview.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: So Mary and I have known each other a long time, probably, gosh, at least 15 years or so, because we're part of the same church here in the St.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: Louis area.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: But honestly, I hadn't ran into Mary in quite a long time.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: And when the Faith of Elvis book came out a few weeks ago, I was in Barnes and Noble to see if I could find the first print copy on the bookshelf.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: And I happened to run into Mary, who was looking for a book there that day.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I had no idea that she worked with Oasis, but after a little bit of chit-chat, we sort of caught up and I asked what she was up to these days, and she told me about her amazing work with Oasis.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: And to be honest with you, I mean, even though I loved being a part of the Elvis book, I immediately kind of lost interest in finding my print copy of the book on the shelf because what she's doing is so much more important than me finding my book that day.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I just was really engrossed in her work with Oasis and how she was impacted so many lives.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: So that's how this podcast interview came about.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I hope that you enjoyed as much as I enjoyed running into Mary that day and also having this amazing conversation.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: So here's my interview with Mary Click.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: Mary, it is great to have you on the Daily Rider podcast.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: I'm so thrilled that we connected uh recently in Barnes Noble and we were able to set this up.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_00: So thanks for taking time to chat with me.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um, it's great to be here.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for inviting me.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's so funny.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't remember when we met.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: Uh obviously it was a church.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's been years and years, should I say years ago or should I say years and years ago?
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um, maybe, maybe that'll reveal my inability to to think about time in a proper way, the older that I get.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: But I've known you for a long time.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: And it's so funny that I'd when we connected, you know, at church years ago, I never imagined that we would be chatting in this kind of context, which is a completely different thing.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm really excited about the work you're doing and really um looking forward to this conversation.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: So thanks again for doing this.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I really respect the work you're doing and glad to have you here.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_01: So I I'm really happy to be here.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_01: It was really funny when we ran into each other and you asked the question, um, so what are what are you doing now?
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_01: What what is your career field?
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I thought, oh no, are you sure you want to know?
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_01: Because uh I I can tell you a lot of things about Oasis and um probably more than you ever wanted to know.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_01: But it was nice of you to ask and um learn more about our organization.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I I thought it was, and legitimately, what I was thinking and feeling that day is I went into Barnes Noble to to see if they had uh the Faith of Elvis book in stock.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: And so I was kind of looking at it, and as soon as I started talking to you, I was like, oh my gosh.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I think I mentioned this is far more interesting to me than just seeing if my book is in the store.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, obviously I'm interested in that, but but seriously, I'm really, really interested in this.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm I'm excited we get to talk about the cool work that you do because it's so just so amazing.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: So maybe let's start here.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: Can you give us a rundown of what is the OASIS Institute and what kind of work does OASIS do?
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_01: Sure, I'd be happy to.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_01: So um, OASIS is um an organization that is a pioneer in healthy aging.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_01: And so this is our 40th anniversary.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we've helped thousands of older adults across the country satisfy their curiosity, take charge of their health, and discover the joy of giving back in their communities.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um, OASIS programs reach a broad audience in more than 200 communities through nine education centers and a national network of over 800 partners in 33 states.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_01: It was found in St.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_01: Louis in 1982 and has served approximately 587,000 older adults.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: And so we have uh lifelong learning classes, uh technology classes, health classes, and then opportunities for volunteerism.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: So this actually started as something that was directed toward older adults, and then the the tutoring portion that developed later on, then, correct?
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_01: Correct.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_01: So it started with a grant and an idea by our founder, Marilyn Mann.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um she was um she was visiting um nursing homes or older adult facilities um as part of her uh position.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_01: And um she just became disraught at what she saw.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_01: She saw older adults um wasting away, basically.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_01: Um she saw them maybe doing simple craft projects or bingo.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_01: And these were people who were uh still a very sound mind, had much to give left to society, and um had much to learn, she felt.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_01: So she uh started talking to people she knew and um received a grant, um, a federal grant, and um received space in um Macy's stores, which were then um May Company stores, and began um asking for speakers and um begin the lifelong learning portion of the program.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: And it grew very quickly from there, starting in 1982.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um then later on um in um I guess the summer of 88, 87, 88, um she was approached by an organization that was having uh summer school classes or summer classes for students and asked her to send volunteers to read to students and uh work with them to um just to help them um because I think at that time um educators were realizing that uh learning loss was a real thing in the summer, so summer slide, as you all hear about.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_01: So she started doing that, she had a group of volunteers.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_01: What they discovered is the materials they had prepared and the books they were reading were not working with the students because the students were much farther behind than anyone ever realized.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_01: So that inspired her to meet with other educators and design the Oasis Tutoring Program.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: And so that came to fruition in 1989.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, that it is fascinating how one person can have such a massive impact just through an idea of something.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_00: And I just absolutely love this.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I often read this um this book.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's called Um What Do You Do with an Idea?
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_01: And it uh sort of speaks well to the program as of how it grew.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_01: And it talks in that book, what what do you do with an idea?
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: And um you think about it, you grow it, you try things, and then suddenly it starts to grow and become something really impactful and really important, is basically the premise of that book.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_01: And um I I love that book.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_01: We get a we get a little lump in our throat when we read that book and think about our tutoring program.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_00: So wow.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_00: So talk to me about the importance of of childhood literacy.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_00: So this is not something, it's kind of coming at the same issue from a different angle.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_00: So obviously, this podcast is for writers.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_00: We talk about writing habits and writing business and publishing and those kinds of things.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_00: But then if we come at it from the other sort of side of things, you know, when we talk about writing, we're typically talking about writing for adults.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: We're writing nonfiction books.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: Some, you know, some people listening to this are writing fiction.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_00: We're creating courses and podcasting, those kinds of things.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: But all of those things assume that people know how to read and that they want to read.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_00: So I think it's so fascinating that you're on the show today.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: We're talking and we're we're having this conversation about the other side of it, which is, well, what if kids can't read or they can't read as well as they should, or what if they don't want to read?
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_00: So we're kind of getting really to the root of the whole thing and ensuring that people want to read in the first place, because if we don't have readers, there's no reason to be writing, in a sense.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_00: So talk talk to us about this whole issue of childhood literacy and why this is such a critical thing.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: Because it's not something that I have thought about a lot, but really before we we've connected about this.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm really intrigued.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it is it is so important.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: And so, you know, what we find is uh you ask people um if they like to read, and if you tell they tell you no, and you keep talking with them about their experiences of maybe how they learn to read or what their attitude was in school, um, it's always quite different than mine because it was so positive.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_01: And um, we find that if you don't teach a child to um enjoy reading and enjoy learning, um they're they're going to struggle.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: They're going to struggle if they're not reading well.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_01: And they're going to struggle in many ways.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, as children are learning to read before, you know, in grades K through three, they're learning to read, they're learning all the basics of reading, and after that, they're reading to learn.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_01: So reading sets the foundation for success later on in life.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: And if a tutor can work with them and show them how to enjoy reading, how to how to laugh and uh study characters and relate it to their own life and um write about them and have imagination and think about what would be the next chapter if I continued writing this book or what is going to happen, learn to predict what is going to happen, you know, and the components of literacy.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_01: And um it it can change.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_01: It can change their attitude and their desire to learn for the rest of their um academic education.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: Do you find it's hard for adults who have not really read as kids or they had they weren't excited about reading as kids or excited about books?
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_00: Is it really hard for adults then to become excited about that later in life if they haven't had that good foundation?
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_01: I I think that um just in my observation, if they haven't enjoyed reading um or been read to and um had that wonderful experience, they they may not enjoy it and um they may not have the fullness of great literature in their life and help them um thinking thinking through or um sometimes even escaping um and going into a book with their own imagination.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_01: And so, you know, a book can be your best friend when you um are maybe isolated at home or when you um have an illness or something like that.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, totally.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: I I loved reading as a kid and and have always been very into books, but it always kind of surprises me when I talk to people who are like, well, I don't really read, or I'm not really into books or things like that.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's a little sad and and honestly really heartbreaking to me to hear that.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: But I think those habits are formed in childhood.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_00: So it's really it's a sad thing because I think, man, that those people didn't really have anybody in their life as when they were kids who championed reading.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: At least that's my perception, and everybody's different and and all that.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm so glad for the work that that you're doing with Oasis, as well as the tutors, because you're instilling that love of reading into kids and just helping them to do it better.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: I just think that's it's such an important quality for us to have in life is the love and the ability to read.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_01: So, and it's you know, it's not difficult really to instill that for one person to instill that into another.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, we we tell our tutors, uh, really the qual the requirements for being an Oasis tutor are just to love reading yourself, to care about children and want to share that joy with them.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it doesn't take much more than that to do that.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, we we read a lot of books in preparation for tutor training or with tutors in training.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_01: And it's really fun for me when I'm the guest reader at a at a tutor meeting at a district and I'm reading the book and I'm reading aloud and I'm doing my very best, you know, to model what I want them to do with the student, and I'm using all expression and inflection in my voice, and um it's really fun to look at the look at the group and see that I've got them, that they are into the story just as much as I am.
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_01: It's so much, it's so much fun.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_01: And then when you can stop and demonstrate prediction or um ask about a vocabulary word or something like that, and it's it's just comes so naturally to people who like to read that and then the story, and then you can see everyone's face go, oh, you know, and they're sometimes they're making audible noises with you, and it's wonderful.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: Wonderful, it's a wonderful experience.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: So do you think there are different dynamics at work in schools today than there were, let's say, you know, 30 years ago, you know, 40 years ago, like when like when I was a kid in grade school, um, reading was just something that we all kind of took for granted and that we all did.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: Are how how are schools different today in your experience than they were, let's say, a few decades ago?
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_00: Is it harder for kids to learn to read?
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: Are there different things going on with teachers or with culture or or something like that that impacts kids' ability or their desire to read?
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I, you know, I I think that um reading is an emphasis in schools.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um and especially in the K through third grade, teachers are setting aside time for read alouds for book discussions.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I see principals um having uh book talks on their on the intercom and doing really fun things like making up their own raps for the books or um um finding them on YouTube and all kinds of things.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_01: Like they make their schools look a mess with all the um with all the characters and celebrating characters, and I think that's really wonderful.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um and um I think that we learn more and more about how students learn to read.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think teachers are continually attending seminars and workshops so that they learn how the brain learns to read and how you connect that with the emotional part of a person as well.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: And so um I I think it's all just a continual process.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_01: I think we're we're doing a little better, actually.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_00: And that that is an important outcome of all this, isn't it?
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_00: Is things like socialization skills, mental health, um, kids being able to relate with their peers more, improving maybe their family dynamic or their attitude.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_00: What are the other outcomes that happen in a kid's life?
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not just about their reading skills, that that impacts other areas of their life as well.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_01: So um, you know, as when a child accomplishes something, even if it's a small thing, it it begins to build their confidence and their motivation to continue to try.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_01: Continuing to try is such a big deal because um when we fail as people, we we tend to stop and we tend to say, oh, I hate reading, I hate math, or you know, things like that.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: And so um we need to find capsules of success to keep children motivated.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_01: And and that is what tutors do.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: They they capitalize on their successes and that motivates them to keep going.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they also um they also work through their social emotional issues.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, children need a lot of support these days.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: There are so many things that impact the child's.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we all do.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, um, you know, we're all recovering from the pandemic and that isolation and that changes in learning.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_01: And children need um that support.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_01: So Oasis tutors are working with them um in literacy building, but also in mentoring.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_01: And um they're they're supporting their um life skills as they learn to make good decisions.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, for a child, that may be whether they decide not to scream out when they're angry, or it may be that they, you know, stay in line like they're supposed to, or if someone says something mean, they don't say something in back, or it may mean that they go the do the extra thing and do the extra project because they're motivated to do that in their class, or they decide to read on their own because it was so much fun with their tutor.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_01: And they have a book at home now, they check out the library book, or they talk about something fun at school, or maybe they just show up at school because um they may have a history of absences, but if they know their tutor is coming that day, somehow they figure out that that's the day they're going to be at school that week, if not any other days, they will show up more on their tutor day.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_01: Wow.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: So, what does that actually look like?
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_00: The the tutoring experience.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_00: So someone is part of the program, an older adult, they come in and they they're tutoring.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: Can you walk us through what that looks like in practice?
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_01: Sure.
• 19:29
  SPEAKER_01: So, first of all, when we receive an inquiry from um a volunteer, a potential volunteer, we talk with them about our program and then we ask them to attend uh a training.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_01: And during that training, they learn about um our process of tutoring.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_01: We have a six-step literacy process that we ask them to use during the training, and we talk about how a student learns, we talk about um what to do if a student isn't very talkative, uh, we talk about um choosing appropriate books, we talk about cultural competency, we uh train in mentoring and social emotional learning, and um we start building communities of tutoring per school district.
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_01: So once they're trained, um they are um assigned to a student, and the student receives permission or the school does from the parent, and they the tutor goes to school um prepared with um their book to read and their uh lesson that day.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_01: So the teacher never has to prepare anything extra for this experience, and they meet with the child anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on what the pullout is allowed during the school day.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um they sit in a place where they are seen by um other school staff, so everyone feels safe.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_01: And the tutor has had a um complete background and fingerprint check also, and so they've cleared the security and volunteer registration with the school district.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_01: They sit with the child, they talk with them about whatever they would like to talk about.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_01: Uh they talk with them about maybe it's their baseball game the day before or their ballet lesson or or their family.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, children often share a lot of things that you don't ask them to share.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_01: So they just they listen and um they read together.
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_01: The tutor um has prepared a book for them to read, and um, the tutor may read it all, or the child may read parts of it with them.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they talk about the book, they write about the book or the character or the words, so they're working with words, um, they may talk about all the rhyming words, or depending on the level the student is on, they may talk about all the words and start with a certain letter.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_01: And they have a journal, they write them in, they may write an additional story, um, they may write their vocabulary words in a separate book, and then when they learn them, they'll flip them over and they have mastered that and they keep track of that all year long.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they may play a game or a comprehension game.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: word search game um they may they may be wiggly and they may the tutor may ask them to stand up and do and do jumping jacks while they give her answers to the questions about the book for comprehensions you know things like that they may they may read a book about math and so they may have to do some walking for measurement or something like that and then um they as the year goes on they review their lessons and keep gaining in knowledge and then um they go back to their classroom and and so the tutor either works with another student or um goes home and prepares for the next week.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not really that big of a commitment.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: It's just you know what a an hour or something a week.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah it's up to an hour a week that you're actually um at the school building um of course um you know it depends on how much you love this tutors grow to love this uh so much that they may spend um several hours preparing we you know we tell them to have a couple of a couple of plans of what they plan to do because that day when you come to to meet with a student you may have a great book picked out it may be a book the child's had an interest in or say it's dolphins or something like that and you're ready you've got the dolphin book you've got the facts you've got the KWL chart you've got it all ready it's gonna be a great lesson and the student comes to you and you can tell it is not a good day.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_01: They've had for some reason they've had something that has upset them and they needed someone to talk about it.
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_01: And you're the person and it may be something small in your adult mind but to them it's a big deal.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_01: And so maybe they forgot their lunch and they got in trouble or they um forgot something or their brother was mean to them when they when they were getting out of the car or or they didn't do as well in their test or they're anxious about something they need to do later.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_01: So the tutor needs to talk take time and talk about that first.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_01: But we always read to the student because um children do not hear enough reading aloud and we always try to write because we want to develop um people who like to write and who um who learn that they need to ex can express themselves both orally and in the written word.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_00: I love that is such a I mean my goodness that's such a critical skill in life just the ability and the desire to express yourself verbally and in writing like it's I know that it sounds kind of crazy.
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like I keep going on about this but like what you're doing is such a fundamental foundational skill for people that I just really love this.
• 24:49
  SPEAKER_00: Plus the whole concept of connecting generations which which that is a whole nother really cool element of this so what has been some of the some of the responses uh and there's probably millions of stories of course but but can you share with us maybe a couple of stories or examples of how this program has practically impacted students and some of the outcomes in their lives that this has had or tutors as well.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_01: I have so many stories it's hard to narrow it down like how how much time do we have yeah so um so we take a survey every year an annual survey and we survey um administrators we survey um district staff that um help us uh manage the program in the buildings and we survey teachers and we survey our tutors and so they provide us with um their aha moments or their impact stories and um I read all of them from across the country and it's awesome to read them.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_01: And um we also hear from administrators and um I have a local administrator in St.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_01: Louis who um last year invited tutors back not all districts did because of the pandemic and um determined that OASI tutors were essential to the success of their students and it wasn't a choice for him he told me he wanted them back and he invited OASIS tutors and mental health counselors on the campuses in that district and that was it.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_01: And that was amazing and it really showed the impact that um the tutors are having in that district but I do have these stories and I have one that is really really funny because it speaks to how tutors develop this rapport with their student and the fun things you can do.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: And it's a this tutor told me that he had a a very quiet second grader and um on April Fool's day um he told them that he brought him some breakfast and so the child smiled just a little bit and when he came to the desk um the tutor had a huge plate of bacon sausage fried egg donut and orange juice all plastic food.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_01: He broke into a huge grin and said that was the funniest joke ever and he was very excited about the rest of the lesson so she really connected with this or he really connected with the student by doing something funny and um really broke that broke open that conversation from that moment and I love that.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_01: I had um another tutor tell me that she'd been working with a student for a couple of years which sometimes happens um if the um child and the teacher feel that that would be beneficial to have that one-on-one continue the next grade or two then we allow that to happen but the student came and they'd they'd written several things and he wasn't really um crazy about writing he was a good reader already and so um he came that day and said you know when I grow up I think I'd like to be a scammer and she thought does he know what that means and she said okay well let's just let's just uh read this book together and go on and so so for several months they worked quite a bit on writing and he grew to love writing and at the end of their at the end of the school year he looked at her and he said I think I've changed my mind I think maybe when I grow up I'll be a writer instead so we were really happy about that but um you know they often they often say um just wonderful things to their tutors too they say things like um they I have a student who brought a uh tiny memo pad in the shape of an eyeball that he bought at the school supply store and suggested they write notes to each other each week he and the tutor he said he wanted to go first and so he wrote a note and it's and left it with her and the note said I like it when you come I love all the games and all the things we do.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_01: Wow that's awesome so for a child to tell you that that's a big deal and it's just um you know the tutors the tutors just light up when they they meet with their student because so many times um families are separated and an older adult will not have opportunity to be with their grandchildren or with younger people and this gives the opportunity because children enrich our lives and a conversation with the child is just the best about anything because you know they share that new imagination or that joy or they ask you a million questions but it's it's just enjoyable to be to be the one that they trust to answer those questions to practice um to make mistakes and um learn and you learn with them.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_01: And tutors often tell me I think I'm learning more than than I'm teaching.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_01: Now I don't think that's absolutely true but you know as a teacher that's how you feel and um of course if you're preparing you're learning before you're teaching your your student and um that's how they feel there they're receiving so much joy and learning from this than they think they ever give but um the child is receiving so much more and we have stories of stories of um former students who have come back to look for their tutor and thank them and invite them to their graduation or their wedding parents who write letters and ask us to give them to their tutors things like that because they have such an impact on a critical time in their life.
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_00: Wow that is so powerful that's really really powerful.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_01: So Mary what are some ways that people can get involved in your tutoring program so um we have uh tutoring programs across the country and um people can get involved uh by going to our website oasisnet.org slash tutoring you can volunteer there through an inquiry form or you can call our tutor voicemail line and that number is 314959506.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: Awesome thank you this has been not just enlightening but really inspiring and really educational no pun intended because this is an education thing I just think the work you're doing is great and the work that Oasis is doing is is really great.
• 31:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's so foundational for our success as humans, as writers, as people who want to serve other people and hopefully leave something behind for other people in the future.
• 31:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's just really amazing.
• 31:27
  SPEAKER_00: So I appreciate you coming on the Daily Writer show and talking about this.
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_00: It's been great.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_01: It's my pleasure thank you.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_00: Well I hope that you not only enjoyed my conversation with Mary Click, I really hope that this impacted you on a level deeper than just learning about what Oasis and Mary are doing to help childhood literacy.
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that this really impressed upon you the importance of helping kids read.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_00: Because as I mentioned at the top of this episode, kids are our future and as authors and as writers we can write all the books in the world but you know in in a couple decades if there's nobody around to read those books then it's kind of pointless, isn't it?
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_00: So we've got to not just think about the books that we're writing for our audience now.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_00: We've also got to think about what we can do on a broader level to impact our society and help kids to love reading and also love writing and communication.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_00: So that's why I love to do these episodes a lot of times here on the show that don't just talk about how to make money as writers and how to do book marketing and how to finish your book and and those kinds of things that impact us today, but also things that are going to impact the world in terms of reading and writing generations from now.
• 32:35
  SPEAKER_00: So I really appreciate you listening and I so appreciate Mary taking the time to be a guest on this episode.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_00: Again I hope this really impacted you and I hope that you will check out oasis.net slash tutoring and consider how you might be able to get involved in their tutoring program if you have Oasis in your area.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_00: Before we go I want to let you know that today's episode is sponsored by Indie Author University featuring the bookmarketing mastery course.
• 33:01
  SPEAKER_00: If you're tired of being disappointed by your book sales and you want to sell more books faster, easier and with more fun than ever, make sure to sign up today.
• 33:09
  SPEAKER_00: Bookmarketing Mastery is created by my friend and business coach Honoree Corter, who has sold over four million books.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: So needless to say she knows her stuff.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_00: This brand new course is fantastic and I'm taking it myself and I've begun to apply what I'm learning.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_00: To sign up for Bookmarketing Mastery visit dailyriderlife.com slash bookmarketingmastery and use the code dailywriter that's the code daily writer it's all one word to get 10% off.
• 33:38
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening and I'll see you tomorrow.