This'll give me something to do: Volunteering

[gategrrl]

While surging the LA Public Library system, I noticed they had a button on the menu for Adult Illiteracy.

I signed up as a tutor. Oh, I've done this sort of thing before in the early 90's, before I went off to Korea, but that ESL, more or less, for a couple of years. The LAPL says all volunteers need 7 hours of training in the Laubach method, which I've had, but I'm sure I'll go through it again. It's been so long. 

Literacy is something I think is important. I can't imagine a life without words on the printed page. I know that in today's world, you CAN "get by" without being able to read (and write, which is another skill set). After all, there are movies aplenty, tons of TV shows, news (such as it is) and you can get by without reading almost a single thing these days. Except a resume. Or a job application. Or someone's love note. Or your kids' prize essay in third grade.

AND, I just sent an email to an organization that reads textbooks and books onto CDs for dyslexic and blind folks. We'll see how that goes. I don't think my voice is especially pleasing for a CD, but maybe I can do something else.f

Comments

[nialla]

I can't imagine a life without words on the printed page.

I can't remember not being able to read, and I could never imagine what it would be like to be lost in a sea of words I couldn't understand.

The closest I've ever come to getting the feel of what it like was during a trip to France. I have some very basic French skills, just enough to read signs and not get lost on the Metro, but that's about it. My friend and I were both having little freakouts now and again about how we felt like were were illiterate.

We even had friends with us who could speak French (one was even a native speaker), and we still had freakouts. I think what was really bothering us is we were both very indepdent women who read constantly, and to have that suddenly taken away was very scary.

Interesting about the organization that reads textbooks onto CD. I've got two "library kids" who are dyslexic (one mildly, one severely), and another who's legally blind. They're all high school age, and the blind one gets a lot of help from the State Library and other programs, but they often leave out the dyslexic kids or ones with other learning disabilities. Sometimes all they need is something "read" to them, and they can grasp what it says, while the written word can frustrate them.

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

This http://www.rfbd.org/LA organization is located all over the country. Have you heard of them?

[nialla]

Haven't heard of them specifically, but in Texas, most of that is handled directly by the State Library. My patrons mention things they're getting, but I don't act as an intermediary as I would with interlibrary loans.