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Haverhill’s Book Buddies program is recruiting volunteers for the next school year.
Matt Webel, an organizer with the reading support program, appeared before Haverhill City Council Tuesday, noting 290 adults have already signed up for this September, but the program needs twice that many.
Born out of the COVID-19 pandemic, Book Buddies matches one adult volunteer with a single third grader in one of seven Haverhill Public Schools. Adults purchase three books throughout the year for their buddies as well as a reading journal and then write personal notes to their assigned student. The books are then integrated into the classroom curriculum by the teachers, who have the students write thank you notes back. Webel explained the details to councilors, several of whom are Book Buddies,
“So, a Book Buddy purchases a book and writes a letter to a student and puts it in a zip lock bag. It is a developmentally appropriate book that’s aligned with the student’s interest. And that, along with a handwritten letter, is dropped off at one of four geographically strategic locations in Haverhill,” Webel explained.
Letters and books are screened by a team of Book Buddy volunteers and delivered to individual classrooms. Because the contact between the students and donors is through handwritten letters, the full names of the students are kept private, Webel noted.
Webel said, initially the program was created to provide resources to students who were stuck at home during the pandemic and did not own even one book. But the program proved so popular with students and teachers, it was continued and expanded to Haverhill’s 27 third grade classrooms. Some 575 students will receive books this year.
“Why do we do this? It’s because reading, as we know and as was said, is so important to every aspect of our lives. We know that students who are reading at grade level by third grade are more likely to have positive outcomes in life including graduate high school and secure employment. We also know that by the end of third grade the gap between readers who are strong and readers who are struggling is much harder to make up down the road,” Webel reported.
New this year are volunteers who are translating letters into a student’s first language if they are English as a second language learners so they can read letters in both English and their native tongue. Buddies come from all walks of life, Webel said. Among them are current and former teachers, teenagers, grandparents, retirees, some from out-of-state and several elected public officials.
Webel read a letter from a third-grade teacher at Silver Hill Elementary School who wrote the benefits of the program go beyond supporting reading and writing and critical thinking. She also said it shows students the kindness and caring of adults in their community.
While the program has a streamlined budget, a recent grant from the city’s Youth and Mental Health account will help pay for end of the year parties in all 27 classrooms to celebrate student achievement, postage stamps, gift cards for teachers and replacement books, Webel said.
The program is a joint project of Haverhill Promise and the Haverhill Public Library. Those interested in signing up are advised to go to HaverhillPromise.com.