- Why are Rochester’s Children at Risk?
- Why it will impact every citizen
- How can we address this crisis?
- What is Mercier Literacy For Children?
- The Alliance for Literacy
- How you can help
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The Alliance for Literacy
- Nazareth College
- Maggie Brooks, Monroe County Executive
In the News
Spring 2011 Newsletter
July 12, 2011
Click here to download the Spring 2011 Mercier Literacy for Children Newsletter.
Raffle Fundraiser for Literacy RESULTS!
February 18, 2011
1st Prize: Red Wings Baseball Suite Package - (Suite for 8 in April/May, up to four additional tickets may be purchased, 2 VIP parking passes, $100 food voucher): Winner - Michelle Oravec
2nd Prize: Autographed Drew Brees Football Package – (Autographed Drew Brees brown football, autographed 8x10 color Brees photo): Winner - Michael Donoghue
3rd Prize: $300 Wegmans gift card & Coca-Cola for a year (Coca-Cola prize is (1) case of 20 oz. bottles every month for a year!): Winner - Barbara Clark
4th Prize: (3) (1) hour golf lessons from Craig Harmon at Oak Hill Country Club + Arnold Palmer autographed photo: Winner - John Kelly
5th Prize: (4) reserved season tickets to (10) Razorsharks games: Winner - Alden Longwell
6th Prize: $200 Eastview Mall Gift Card: Winner - Francine Patella
Raffle Fundraiser for Literacy
January 1, 2011
Program Purpose: Since 2002, the Mercier Literacy for Children program has helped one thousand of Rochester city children in grades K-6 confront the challenge of struggling readers by providing a comprehensive language arts intervention process after school, on Saturdays and during the summer. Developed in collaboration with Nazareth College Graduate School of Literacy and under the guidance of Graduate Director Dr. Naomi Erdmann, this evidenced-based intervention system has a proven track record of helping students succeed. The program is nurturing, safe and provides a risk-free environment for students. Most importantly, 100% of the students have improved on the majority of assessments given during the summer program.
Fundraiser Goal: The raffle goal is to raise approximately $3,000 - $5,000 through ticket sales and sponsors to support a 2nd after-school reading program at School 46.
Tickets: Tickets are $10 each or 3 for $25. Please contact Pat Grover, Raffle Coordinator, at 585-426-3333 or email her at ccss2001@frontiernet.net to place your ticket order. Only 500 tickets will be sold. Checks should be made payable to Mercier Literacy and sent to Mercier Literacy Program, 99 Ridgeland Rd. Suite D, Rochester, NY 14623.
Drawing Date: February 18, 2011
Sponsors: Thank you to all of our sponsors who contributed to the Mercier Literacy for Children raffle prizes and donations! Thank you to ESL Federal Credit Union, Monroe Oxygen & Medical Equipment, Rochester Red Wings, Wegmans, Rochester RazorSharks, Coca-Cola Refreshments USA, George Mercier, Conolly Printing, Rochester Press-Radio Club members, Eastview Mall, CCSS, and Ignition Consulting.
1st Prize: Red Wings Baseball Suite Package - (Suite for 8 in April/May, up to four additional tickets may be purchased, 2 VIP parking passes, $100 food voucher)
2nd Prize: Autographed Drew Brees Football Package – (Autographed Drew Brees brown football, autographed 8x10 color Brees photo)
3rd Prize: $300 Wegmans gift card & Coca-Cola for a year (Coca-Cola prize is (1) case of 20 oz. bottles every month for a year!)
4th Prize: (3) (1) hour golf lessons from Craig Harmon at Oak Hill Country Club + Arnold Palmer autographed photo
5th Prize: (4) reserved season tickets to (10) Razorsharks games
6th Prize: $200 Eastview Mall Gift Card
Autumn 2010 Newsletter
November 16, 2010
Click here to download the Autumn 2010 Mercier Literacy for Children Newsletter.
County to give $50,000 to literacy program
Rochester Business Journal
July 30, 2010
Monroe County will contribute $50,000 through a grant from its department of human services to the Mercier Literacy Program for children in the city school district, with program founder George Mercier donating $25,000, officials announced Thursday.
The literacy program helps city students learn to read. Some 70 children are involved this year.
County Executive Maggie Brooks presented the county’s check to children from city schools 9, 17 and 5 who are participating in the summer program.
“For the past eight years, the Mercier Literacy Program has delivered high-quality reading and writing instruction to our community’s youth,” Brooks said in a statement. “It is vital that our children do well in school, but, more importantly, stay in school.”
The program, founded in 2002, is the only community-based non-profit focused exclusively on child literacy, officials said. It is operated in partnership between Rochester City School 9 and Nazareth College.
“Reading is the key to success,” Mercier said in the statement. “There is nothing more important than learning how to read.”
Monroe County Supports Literacy Program
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
July 30, 2009
A growing program that helps Rochester School District students learn to read is getting a $50,000 boost from Monroe County.
Students, teachers and organizers from the Mercier Literacy for Children program, in its eighth year, were presented with the grant from the county's Department of Human Services at a ceremony Thursday at School 8. George Mercier, the program's founder, contributed an additional $25,000.
This summer, the program, operated through a partnership between School 9 and Nazareth College, has paired 70 children from three city schools with teachers for Camp-Read-A-Lot. And in the spring, students in another Mercier program interviewed family members and researched recipes to create a cookbook that was published in English and Spanish. For more information, go to www.mercierliteracyprogram.org.
Fostering a love of words
Messenger Post Newspapers
December 10, 2008
By Dan Goldman
LITERACY: Brighton's George Mercier started a program eight years ago - still going strong - that seeks to reduce the illiteracy rate among Rochester kids.
George Mercier knew students in the city of Rochester were struggling with reading and writing. He heard it from his friends who taught high school and saw it himself while serving on the board of directors at the YMCA of Greater Rochester.
The Brighton resident decided to do something; he started the Mercier Literacy Program in 2000.
"There are all sorts of other programs around where an adult will go to a kid's house and read to him for an hour," said Mercier, CEO of Mercier Realty. "That's not what we do."
The program takes place every Saturday and all summer at School No. 9 (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School) on North Clinton Avenue and four days a week after school in the Rochester Childfirst Network on South Avenue. It is for Rochester children, ages 3 to 12, from low-income families.
Each session is three hours long.
The program is run by Katie Paxton-Johnson of Rochester and Roseanne Kulikowski of Brighton. Both are certified teachers; Kulikowski has a master's degree in literacy and Paxton-Johnson has a master's in elementary education.
The rest of the teachers are state-certified in elementary education. Helping with the instruction are 10 volunteer graduates students from Nazareth College's graduate literacy program. Their involvement was set up with Naomi Erdmann, director of the graduate literacy program and a consultant for Mercier Literacy Program.
"We spend such limited amounts of time with students and try to maximize all learning done in that time by having qualified teachers who are all experienced in how to best meet the needs of the children," said Paxton-Johnson.
Another aspect that sets the program apart from other reading programs is the use of assessments. The staff gives assessments before and after to see what areas kids need to work on and to see if they have improved.
"It takes time," said Paxton-Johnson, "but George Mercier was kind enough to start this and pay out of his own pocket until he received grants."
Monroe County awarded $50,000 to the program in July; the Rochester Area Community Foundation awarded $25,000 in September specifically for the Rochester Childfirst Network, and other corporations and foundations have chipped in.
She said 100 percent of the students have showed an improvement in at least one assessment, and 97 percent have improved on all areas of instruction.
"There is a very happy attitude," said Mercier. "Teachers do a wonderful job of making reading fun, so it's not a chore. Therefore we get progress, because reading and writing is all they're doing in three hour segments."
The teachers send children home with a new book every week.
Kai Strange, an English language arts coach at School No. 9, saw the struggles of her students in learning to read last year.
"I worked with some first graders who were struggling, they weren't very motivated to read and didn't really want to pick up books," said Strange.
After some of her students went through the Mercier summer program, she's seen a change in their performance this year.
"They are more interested. They see themselves as readers."
Find out more call 424-3333 or go to 99 Ridgeland Road, Suite D, Rochester 14623.
SUBMITTED PHOTO Roseanne Kulikowski, left, helps a group with reading at the Mercier Literacy Program at the Rochester Childfirst Network. The program, started by George Mercier, offers reading and writing instruction for children.
Copyright, 2008, Messenger Post Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.
Literacy program gains support for expansion
http://www.rbj.net/article.asp?aID=176404
By NATE DOUGHERTY
Rochester Business Journal
November 7, 2008
After years of sole financial support from its founder, the Mercier Literacy Program has begun to garner outside support as well as county funding and is seeking more as program organizers plan to expand the reading and writing program to more parts of the city.
The program was founded in 2000 by George Mercier, the president of Mercier Realty Inc. After Mercier heard stories from friends who taught in Rochester city schools about high school students who struggled to read, he decided to start an organization that reinforces reading skills at a younger age.
"I know if you can read you can do most anything, so that's why I started it," Mercier said. "If you catch them when they're still young and they can read, they're on their way."
Mercier, who said he was disturbed by low graduation rates in the city school district and the disparity in reading comprehension scores between urban and suburban school districts, started the agency by investing his own money.
In July, Monroe County pledged a $50,000 grant through its department of human resources, which Mercier matched with a $25,000 donation.
The organization this month received a $25,000 grant from the Rochester Area Community Foundation. The money will go toward expanding its program at School No. 9 on Saturdays and daily during the summer and at the Rochester Child First Network, where 40 children age 5 through 12 receive group and individual instruction four days a week after school. All the teachers who work in the program have master's degrees, and many are certified in both elementary education and special education or literacy.
Mercier said he is hopeful that as Jean-Claude Brizard, city school district superintendent, has encouraged businesspeople in the city to give more funding to improve literacy, donors will see the hands-on success the program has had. For the last two years the program has focused on improving its results and put less emphasis on fundraising, Mercier said. But to grow, it must reach out to new donors.
Katherine Paxton-Johnson, program co-director, said there are plans to expand the program to another classroom location and another day care in the city by next summer.
"We want to concentrate on the areas in the city with the highest crime rates, poverty rates, dropout rates and teen pregnancy rates," Paxton-Johnson said. "Those are ideally the kids we would like to target and work with."
Though the program initially focused on helping children become more comfortable with reading, Mercier wanted to include a way to measure how well it was working. In partnership with Nazareth College of Rochester the program began using baseline assessments such as comprehension, engagement and fluency.
"At first this was just kind of something that would service kids for a few months here and there but there wasn't a formal assessment conducted, so there wasn't a lot of proof in its success," Paxton-Johnson said. "As a businessman, George wanted there to be proof of how it was helping the students, that his money was going to something that was working."
The results have been positive so far. During the summer program in 2007, there was a 100 percent retention rate. All students maintained their reading levels and 97 percent increased their reading levels. The summer program comes at a critical time for students, as a study by Johns Hopkins University showed a 65 percent achievement gap between poor and affluent Baltimore students can be explained by unequal summer learning experiences. The study found poor, urban children lose an average of 2.5 months in reading over the summer, while suburban students make slight gains.
Naomi Erdmann, director of graduate literacy programs at Nazareth and a consultant to the Mercier Literacy Program, said encouraging better reading habits and attitudes is as important as raising comprehension. Those in the program also work closely with teachers on ways to enhance the language arts experience for students in the program and help give books and writing supplies to make reading and writing more engaging within their own classrooms.
"One of things I see as most significant is the way they can change children's attitudes toward reading and writing, so they see themselves more as readers and writers," Erdmann said. "Research shows that progress in reading and writing needs to be tangible. Students need to see they're growing but they also need the desire to learn in order to take the risk, and reading aloud or telling teachers about what they've read can be a big risk for them."
11/07/2008 (C) Rochester Business Journal
Learn to read on Saturdays
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
Oct 31, 2008
Erica Bryant, Staff writer
For many young people, weekend mornings mean television. The Mercier Literacy Program is offering a free Saturday school for city families who want it to mean books.
Rochester students in kindergarten through fourth grade have been invited to join a Saturday literacy program located at School 9 on Clinton Avenue. Participating children are assessed to determine their literacy needs and then spend 9 a.m. to noon engaged in reading and writing activities that are designed to improve their skills.
Saturday school lasts throughout the school year and provides students with one free book each week.
"They get really excited," Mercier Literacy Program Director of Community Relations Kerrie Merz said of the weekly book giveaways. "They bring the books home to read to younger siblings and (love of reading) spreads."
Concern about low graduation rates and the achievement gap between suburban and city students prompted Rochester resident George Mercier to start the non-profit Mercier Literacy Program in 2002. "There's nothing more important than learning how to read," he said. "It's like food."
Saturday School served 70 students last year and some busing is available.
For more on the Mercier Literacy Program, call (585) 424-3333.
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News Beat
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
Oct 23, 2008
Reading program gets a cash boost
The Rochester Area Community Foundation is giving $25,000 during this school year for an after-school literacy program for area school children. Under the program, state-certified teachers from the Mercier Literacy Program will do small-group reading and writing instruction four days a week at the nonprofit Rochester Childfirst Network in Rochester's South Wedge.
The Mercier Literacy Program, started by real estate agent George Mercier, is helping equip the Childfirst Network with books and other literacy teaching supplies as well as training network staff on how to do reading and writing instruction.
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More elementary pupils spend summer in class
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
Jul 17, 2008
Erica Bryant, Staff writer
Twenty years ago, 5-year-old Jattiyr Sirman would probably have been considered too young for summer school. Today he's one of thousands of elementary school children who are spending this summer in class, some to catch up and others to get ahead.
With more being expected of younger students, many districts are expanding summer school offerings at the elementary level.
The Rochester School District this summer has added an Early Kindergarten Program to help students such as Jattiyr get ready for kindergarten. The Pittsford Central School District's Summer Enrichment Catalog includes such courses as "Figuring out First Grade" and "Soaring into Second" for 6 and 7 year olds. The number of elementary school students participating in the Greece Central School District's summer school programs increased from 463 last summer to 775 currently.
Monroe County School Boards executive director Jody Siegle says that this trend of sending younger pupils to summer school is seen across the county.
She says that increased testing at earlier ages means that student weaknesses need to be addressed sooner than they would have been in the past.
"It's much easier to build and strengthen a student's learning when they are younger, than to try to help them with remediation later."
But while many educators and child advocates praise the trend, others contend that it promotes academic overload.
Getting ahead
Students in the Rochester School District's Summer Early Kindergarten Program spend their mornings learning social and language skills that they will need when they start kindergarten this fall.
Children work on counting, for example, and reading, sharing and impulse control. The district easily filled the 162 slots it had planned for the program and had to expand to 200. Even then, some parents were turned away.
Hope Sirman is glad her son Jattiyr got a spot in the program at School 45. "I enrolled him so he can get a head start," she said. "He can never learn too much."
Jattiyr agrees that the program is a good idea and says he likes playing, painting and reading books. "I'm getting ready to go to kindergarten," he said.
In Pittsford, young students can take summer courses including "Figuring out First Grade" and "Soaring into Second" to get ready for what they will face in September.
"The focus will be on strengthening academic skills and preparing for the expectations of first grade," says a description of the program for first-graders-to-be.
In Brighton, about 100 students have signed up for an elementary school program called "Camp-Read-Alot," which is in its second summer.
"We saw an increasing need of providing students with ongoing intellectual and academic stimulation," said Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Debby Baker. "Research shows us there is a summer lag."
The Fairport school district also offers an intensive reading program, which Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Gerald Bucklin describes as enrichment intended for students who struggle. Five years ago, it attracted 137 students. This year there are 220. Children enter the program because of a parental request or teacher recommendation.
"We find that by keeping them academically active in the summer, they don't experience nearly the level of academic drop that they would have," he said.
In the Greece Central School District, summer school is offered to first- through fifth-graders who are in need of academic intervention, and this year the district restructured its elementary school offerings to allow students to concentrate on the subjects where they need the most work.
The district has also added summer school staff to provide opportunities for students with disabilities or behavioral issues.
The Mercier Literacy Program, a nonprofit organization that helps students with language skills, stepped in to help relieve demand for summer reading programs at School 45. It is running a summer school reading initiative for about 100 elementary school kids. Last year the program included 52.
"The need is great," said Katie Paxton-Johnson, the Mercier Literacy Program director.
Too young?
Not everyone thinks that summer should be used to get a jump on the next school year.
Aaron Cooper, a Chicago-based clinical psychologist, says that remediation or enrichment programs are reasonable but the majority of kids shouldn't be funneled into programs that are just an extension of the school year.
"Parents are pulling children onto a treadmill," said Cooper, who wrote the book I Just Want My Kids To Be Happy: Why You Shouldn't Say It, Why You Shouldn't Think It, What You Should Embrace Instead. "Summer is a time for play."
But Jeff Smink, the policy director of the National Center for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins University, says that summer enrichment and remediation programs are important, especially for disadvantaged children.
"A lot of schools are starting to realize that we can't close this achievement gap if we are ignoring what kids are doing for two months of the year," he said. "The key is keeping kids engaged over summer months."
At School 45, teachers are even getting into costume to make summer school more fun. About 700 students in first through fifth grades are participating in the Voyager literacy program, which treats children as time travelers. Third-graders, for example, are "sent back" to the Roman Empire.
On a typical day, activities might include searching for messages and clues left by other time travelers and reading them, an approach that teacher Bryan Brooks says helps keep kids engaged.
"The kids are not just sitting down and getting stuff fed to them," said Brooks, who dressed up in a toga to get his students in the spirit of ancient Rome. He noted that the typical summer school program sees a drop off in participation, while students in the Voyager program have maintained good attendance. "I think the kids are really into it."
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Thumbs up, down
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
May 17, 2008
Thumbs up - For students and faculty of the Rochester School for the Deaf for participating in a project to remove graffiti from a building on Smith Street and Saratoga Avenue. Paul Holahan, commissioner of environmental services, helped the students with the project, which fulfills their Participation in Government requirements.
Thumbs up - For the children who participate in the Mercier Literacy Program at School 9 and celebrated the special women in their lives by reading tributes and presenting them with flowers they potted. These hard-working kids, ages 5 through 12, come into school every Saturday to work with teachers to improve their reading and writing skills, giving them a better chance at staying in school and succeeding. Congratulations!
-Posted by kamerz on May 15
Teachers boost literacy on summer break
Messenger Post Newspapers
September 20, 2007
When children feel successful at reading and writing and are proud of their progress, they begin to foster a lifelong love of learning. To help students and families with this ongoing effort, the Mercier Literacy Program held its 2007 summer session at the YMCA's Lewis Street Center, marking the seventh consecutive year for the program.
Master teachers in literacy, special education and early childhood taught more than 60 city children, ranging in age from 3 to 7. Located in the Rochester's Children's Zone - an area designated to protect city children from crime and violence - the teachers at the Mercier Literacy Program developed a program to increase emerging literacy skills, in a positive environment conducive to learning.
Graduate students from Nazareth College volunteered their time to help make sure students received small group instruction. Many of the teachers in the Mercier Literacy Program live or teach in schools in Webster, Brighton, Penfield, Henrietta and Hilton, making the program a communitywide effort spanning a number of suburbs.
The children in the Mercier Literacy Program learn in a focused, individualized setting, with teachers providing formal assessments throughout the program to measure their progress. Thanks to the time and talent of these area teachers, the skills the children develop will help them prepare for the classroom.
Teachers and volunteers received such a positive response from the children; they not only improved their literacy skills, but also their attitude toward reading and writing. It is a source of great pride for the entire Rochester community to know that many friends and neighbors have contributed to helping young learners develop essential skills they will bring with them to the new school year.
Privately funded efforts like the Mercier Literacy Program can continue to build a foundation for a positive attitude and enthusiastic approach to reading and writing. With professionals dedicated to teaching and assessing early learning, volunteers willing to devote their time and energy to help students, and a concerned community committed to improving literacy, efforts like the Mercier Literacy Program will make a difference in Rochester. Katie Paxton-Johnson Rosanne Kulikowski
Co-directors Mercier Literacy Program
Copyright, 2007, Messenger Post Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.
Bridge gaps that put our children at risk
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
June 20, 2007
KIDS AND SUMMER
Katie Paxton-Johnson and Rosanne Kulikowski, Guest essayists
Memories of summer reading enjoyment can last a lifetime, particularly for students who might experience the creativity and excitement of discovering a new book - the wizardry of Harry Potter or the enchantment of the Chronicles of Narnia.
But what happens when young Rochesterians on summer vacation do not have access to even the most basic tools for reading enjoyment - a quiet, supportive environment, help with reading strategies, access to age- and ability-appropriate books? How do they keep up with their school reading and not fall behind?
It is critical for the Rochester community to support urban literacy, to ensure that today's students do not miss out on the opportunity to become tomorrow's leaders.
The Mercier Literacy Program reports that 100 percent of students who participated in the summer program last year maintained current skill levels or improved on at least one assessment; and 97 percent improved, based on state standardized tests.
Eager to learn and grow during the summer season, more than 60 children will be enrolled in Mercier's 2007 summer program, which holds its kickoff on July 9 at the YMCA's Lewis Street Center.
It doesn't take a wizard like Harry Potter to discover that literacy is critical to success at school, in the workplace and in communities. "Summer slide" - forgetting what has been learned during the school year - is a reality for many students. The challenges of summer slide are particularly worrisome for urban students.
One of the goals of the Mercier Literacy Program is to help prevent summer slide by working with children at their level and moving them forward. Equally important is the effort to change attitudes toward reading so students see themselves as successful and reading becomes enjoyable for them.
Studies show that, on average, students lose the equivalent of one month of instruction during the summer, but low-income students lose up to three months of instruction.
The program at the Lewis Street Center will offer one-on-one and small group instruction, providing urban children with a strong foundation in literacy. In today's communities, it is more important than ever to collaborate and encourage bright young minds to learn and grow. If the experience of students in the Mercier Literacy Program is any indication, the program at the Lewis Street Center is a model for other community reading efforts.
Paxton-Johnson and Kulikowski are directors, Mercier Literacy Program.
For more information about the Mercier Literacy Program, call (585) 424-3333.
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Literacy program opens doors with power of words
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
January 30, 2007
BY MARK HARE
They had already put in a full day at school, but the students were ready to take a crack at producing a riddle poem.
Teachers Katie Paxton-Johnson and Rosanne Kulikowski handed out copies of a sample and then read it aloud. Here's part of it: "It's quick and it's quiet; It's soft and it's light; It's free - you can't buy it; It just comes in white ... It makes quite a show."
"What is it?" Miss Katie asks. "Snow," the class of fourteen 7- to 9-year-olds replies - robustly.
Next came the guidance. "When you write a riddle poem, it doesn't all have to rhyme," says Miss Katie, "but you have to give clues." One clue, says Miss Rosanne, "might be a last word that rhymes with the answer - like 'know' and 'snow.' So if you pick a word like 'orange,' it might be hard to rhyme with it."
For the next hour, the students and the teachers work on their riddle poems, exploring the interplay or words and the fun of telling a story,
These kids are one of three groups that gather four afternoons a week. They are residents or former residents of Wilson Commencement Park, a transitional housing development for single parents on Joseph Avenue.
The program was launched six years ago by George Mercier, a Realtor who has been interested in literacy education for years.
"A lot of people want to give money for college scholarships," Mercier told me. "But I want to help these kids. If they don't learn to read now, they won't ever go to college."
Paxton-Johnson and Kulikowski are master teachers and the program's directors. The program is a partnership with Wilson Commencement Park, which also supplies classroom teachers and aides - and space for the classes. Naomi Erdmann, director of the Nazareth College graduate program in literacy education, does pro bono consulting for the program, and many of her graduate students volunteer as tutors.
"Many parents are intimidated by the school system," says Paxton-Johnson, "but helping students to read is not that difficult. Read with them. Talk to them. Encourage writing - even to write a letter or write a list." The Mercier program plans to offer workshops for parents. Mercier himself has given books to the boys and girls (titles the students themselves ask for) and is working to raise $100,000 to expand the program to other sites come summer.
The key to success is to engage the young reader. "It's not just reading and slogging through," Kulikowski says. "You have to have a conversation (about the material); you have to understand it; you have to have a relationship to the author." Then, you can become a lifelong reader and writer, with an appreciation for the power of language in everyday life.
This literacy program is about more than reading quietly; it's about language in all its forms and powers - including sharing your work with the class.
"As a speaker, what kinds of things should you do?" asked Paxton-Johnson. "Read loud and proud," said several voices.
"Do we wiggle?"
"Noooo," came the response.
"Do we make eye contact?"
"Yesss," said the group. They were ready.
"It's the color of the sky; it's the color of your eyes; it's the color of a pie," said Alondra Haws, 7, a budding bard. The answer - "blue."
"It lives under your house," said Romiro Santiago, 8. "It has a long tail; it eats your food." The answer - "it's a rat."
Alas, rats are part of their experience. But literacy can change that. And that's the idea.
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Caption: For the next hour, the students and the teachers work on their riddle poems, exploring the interplay or words and the fun of telling a story, These kids are one of three groups that gather four afternoons a week. Naomi Erdmann, director of the Nazareth College graduate program in literacy education, does pro bono consulting for the program, and many of her graduate students volunteer as tutors.
Books are summer fun for kids at Wilson Park
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - Rochester, N.Y.
Jul 8, 2006
Victoria E. Freile, Staff writer
Moments after 80-year-old George Mercier gave 8-year-old Sienah Bishop a new book Friday morning, she hunkered down and started to read a tale about fortune tellers.
"This is so nice," said Sienah, of Rochester, one of 46 school-age children enrolled in Wilson Commencement Park's Summer Ventures Literacy Camp. "Nobody ever did anything like that for me before."
Mercier, a real estate investor from Brighton who funded a literacy program for children at the camp, handed each child a free book.
Through the program, which launched last week, children spend three hours each weekday working with a team of 15 certified teachers from the George Mercier Literacy Program, a graduate program at Nazareth College, and Wilson Commencement Park teachers, said Sean Tracy-Hamilton, director of Wilson Commencement Park's Early Learning Center.
The Park, on Joseph Avenue, is a nonprofit organization that provides transitional low-income housing for single parents and their children, support services for residents and families, and child care.
The goal of the camp is to help children, 5 to 12, maintain reading and writing skills they learned during the school year, and to spark an interest in literacy.
"The sooner a child can read, the greater the learning capacity," said Mercier. "Reading is such a foundation. Children that read and continue to read are more successful in school and in life."
Last month, Mercier approached Wilson Commencement Park's executive director, Iris Banister, and offered to fund a literacy program for urban children. He later donated approximately $30,000, which funded teachers' salaries, new books for the students to use in class, and supplies for students to use at home, said program co-director Katie Paxton-Johnson.
Mahogany McIntyre, 12, of Rochester thinks her literacy skills have already improved.
"We do a lot of activities and read during the day," she said. "It's like summer school, except we're learning so we have a good base for next year. It's helping me a lot."
Sienah said the camp was "better than school."
"It's fun, and when you go back to school you'll be reading even better and you'll be smarter," she said.
Summer Ventures Literacy Camp has room for 12 more children; enrollment is free for Wilson Commencement Park residents but is also open to city children for a weekly fee. Some forms of aid are accepted. The camp is slated to run through August.
Banister said she's pleased to see a community member reach out to help and provide extra support for so many students.
"His gift is truly making a difference," she said.
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