Education Programs

Tutoring

TutoringThe New Haven Reads tutoring program is free, highly structured, based in the science of reading, and delivers best practices to over 400 students. Our students work one-on-one with a trained tutor to work on the student’s literacy needs for at least one hour weekly. Volunteers receive orientation training, and we offer further training opportunities to deepen their knowledge. We also offer tutoring and summer enrichment clubs in our six-week summer session. Our Education team and Site Directors provide support to parents through parent engagement, IEP process counseling, attending PPT meetings, and ongoing collaboration.

Parents

If you would like to add your child to our Waitlist, please fill out and submit our Waitlist Application. Please note that a copy of your child’s most recent report card is required to join the Waitlist.

You may also fill out the PDF version of the Waitlist Application and return it to our Book Bank location at 45 Bristol St in New Haven, CT.

Volunteers

Our tutoring program is successful thanks to the dedicated support of over 350 weekly volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering with the tutoring program, we invite you to find out more.

Pre-K & Kindergarten

New Haven Reads equips our youngest readers with early learning experiences to build their literacy skills and prepare them for success in school. Certified teachers lead small classes two times per week at three of our tutoring locations. Pre-K students work on acquiring basic literacy skills, and Kindergarten students focus on phonemic awareness, phonics, and sight word recognition. During the summer, current students may attend our five-week Summer Literacy Camp, which meets daily from 9 AM -12 PM. All activities are aligned with the Kindergarten and First Grade Common Core Standards.

Parents

To join the Waitlist for the Pre-K/Kindergarten program, please fill out and submit our Waitlist Application. Please note that your child must be at least three years old to join the Pre-K Waitlist.

You may also fill out the PDF version of the Waitlist Application and return it to our Book Bank location at 45 Bristol St in New Haven, CT.

Book Bank

Book BankThe New Haven Reads Book Bank increases access to books through redistributing over 115,000 gently used, donated books for free back into the community each year. First-time visitors to the Book Bank will find hundreds of children’s and adult books sorted into categories and shelved in both our main front room and the larger back room. Visitors are limited to five children’s board books per day (per child); there is no limit on other books.

Hours:
Monday: 1pm-7pm
Tuesday: 1pm-7pm
Wednesday: 1pm-7pm
Thursday: 12pm-6pm
Friday: 12pm-6pm
Saturday: 10am-2pm

We are currently accepting donations by appointment.

Please note that these hours are subject to frequent change according to our program’s calendar. It is always best to call ahead or check our Facebook page for any closures or changes. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Please click the following links for more information about:

Teachers

The Book Bank has an entire Education section which includes resources on topics ranging from classroom discipline to fall activities templates and how to build a syllabus. Right under it, the Textbooks/Workbook section often has blank workbooks for various grade levels. We also invite teachers annually to our Teacher Open House to take free books for their classroom libraries.

Field Trips

The Book Bank hosts class field trips for school groups to help students build their home libraries by giving each child five free books and promoting literacy skills and engagement with story time.

These trips last 45 minutes and are available on a first-come, first-serve basis for one class at a time. We offer field trips for Pre-K through fifth grade.

Please use our calendar to book your trip! You can browse the calendar for available dates, and sign up for your selected date through the link in the calendar.

Book Orders

New Haven Reads provides thousands of free books for local events, organizations, and schools. If you would like to request a book order, please fill out this form. Our volunteers will then prep the order and notify you via email when they are ready for pickup. All book orders are capped at 300 books total.* Please request only what you need, up to the limits below.

  • Minimum 25 books per order. Maximum 300 books per order
  • Fiction picture books limited to 100 per order
  • Board Books will be added at the discretion of the Book Bank Director

*Larger orders (more than 300 books) may be requested and filled at the discretion of the Book Bank Director, and must be approved ahead of time. To inquire about a larger order, please email books@newhavenreads.org.

Please note – we cannot fulfill specific level or title book order requests. If you need leveled books for a classroom library, or are looking for a specific book, you may visit us at 45 Bristol Street anytime we are open to hand-select books.