Author Archive

Name: Jacey Riley
Hometown: New Haven, CT
College and Major: UCONN, A double major in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences and Sociology
Tutoring Site: Science Park
Club: Movie Club and Drama
Favorite Childhood Book: I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson

While going through my sophomore year of college, I realized that I was interested in pursuing a
career path in speech pathology. Despite pursuing different classes and volunteer opportunities I never found anything close that would give me an experience similar to a speech pathologist’s career. I searched through various volunteer opportunities, talked with different mentors, and even explore different resources, but nothing came close to the career path of speech pathology until I found New Haven Reads. New Haven Promise sent me a list of different internships that I could apply to for the summer, but once I saw New Haven Reads I knew that’s what I wanted to do.

Despite knowing the organization, I didn’t quite know the specifics and how much everyone truly does
here. During our first few training sessions, so much information was punched in and we experienced a bird’s eye view of everything New Haven Reads truly does. Upon seeing that, I fell in love. I knew from simply attending the training sessions I was going to experience so much joy and excitement from attending my internship every day. Every day, through every tutor and club session, you truly cannot predict what kind of day you will have and exactly how the session will go. Throughout my first few tutoring sessions, I’ve had a whirlwind of different experiences that have shaped my experience as an intern.

Every Wednesday, a young girl comes in with her brother ready to be tutored. In comparison to her brother, she is a woman of few words and has a more timid demeanor. Initially, I was nervous to be her tutor because I didn’t want to make her nervous or overwhelm her in any way. I can tell she noticed my nervousness and we both expressed a lot of patience with each other. That patience showed brightly during the Lexia and workbook portion of the tutoring hour. Throughout watching how she interacted with the work and seeing how the gears turn in her mind, I realized different techniques I can use to help her improve! While our sessions are still an ongoing process and were still trying various techniques, I can tell she’s a smart girl with a bright future!

While I am still in the early stages of my internship, what I have done so far I genuinely enjoyed! I’ve begun to make connections with some of the children, I have a great site staff, been provided with many literacy tools, and all in all, I’m in an environment that encourages me to be great. I am grateful to the KeyBank Foundation and Ms. Hayley for providing me with the opportunity to pursue this internship, and I can’t wait to see how the rest of the summer goes!

Name: Gianna Cooper
Hometown: Orange, CT
College and Major: Quinnipiac University, Psychology
Tutoring Site: Science Park
Club: Arts & Crafts & All About Me
Favorite Childhood Book: Junie B. Jones series by Barbara Parks

When it came time to think about my summer work plans I knew I wanted to find
something impactful and inspiring. My friend shared her experience in volunteering through
New Haven Reads and thought the organization would be the perfect fit for me. Working with
children has always been a passion of mine but it was through this internship that I was given the opportunity to expand my knowledge and make a real difference in the lives of young learners. As an avid book lover myself, I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to spark an interest in books and creativity for future readers.

From day one I was greeted by the staff with open arms and an abundance of advice from
experienced volunteers and educators. I was given new skills and techniques for teaching all
different types of students. This was especially helpful when I was tutoring a young girl with
high energy, in one of my first weeks at NHR. Recognizing this hyperactivity is important, but
displaying patience while trying out different strategies to allow the student to focus, is the key
to a productive session! For this student, I noticed that she loved to color, so I encouraged her to
use that creativity to color the pictures in the workbook after completing the given instructions.
For read-aloud, I thought it would be more beneficial to alternate reading and then use the
whiteboard to talk about what’s happening in the story. This not only helped with comprehension but allowed her liveliness to be used in voicing the expression of characters, drawing them on the whiteboard, and discussing what’s happening in the story in a more animated way.

Since these students struggle with reading, I’ve learned that it’s important to highlight their strengths and let them feel comfortable with making mistakes. I am so grateful to be a part of such an important mission and be a part of a child’s reading journey. So far, after my three weeks here I have gained the confidence to think on my feet and adapt while trying to find new ways to help a student learn and fall in love with reading. Thank you to the United Way and New Haven Reads for this amazing opportunity!