Parent reading volunteers

[SoldMeDownTheRiver]

Hi, i've heard on here (and from TV and books etc) that most primary schools in the UK have parents that volunteer to help kids with reading. I'm currently living in the US with my two primary age DDs and there's nothing like that here (although they're always asking parents to volunteer for various things) so i was thinking of suggesting starting a group of parents to do that. Could someone let me know how it works?
Like how often do parents go in?
How many parents at a time?
How long do they stay?
How long do they spend with each kid?
What age are the kids?
Anything else you can think of.
Im sure it's different in different schools so would like to hear lots of examples. Thanks!

I volunteer to read in my DCs school. I did once a fortnight in my younger son's Reception class and the other fortnight in my elder son's Y3 class. I'm hoping to continue it each year as long as their teachers are happy. The school arranged a DBS check as you have to have one if you are to be left alone with the children. That way you can read in the little seating areas in the corridors. I approached the school to offer and checked with the teachers that they'd like a hand. Then I had to get references, get a DBS check and have an interview with the head and go through all the safeguarding basics, confidentiality etc.

In reception there were about 5 parents who read- the teacher did ask for volunteers so that all the children got a chance to read regularly. I had a little group of regulars and it was fantastic to see them grow. The teacher was so grateful and gave us all a bunch of flowers at the end of term.

In year three I might have been the only volunteer- they're less cute and parents are back to working longer hours often. In year three I read with the strugglers, who are quite behind the rest of the class. They are the more difficult ones to deal with, but 1:1 they can be wonderful once they know you will be strict! It was fantastic to see the improvements in them.

I've go so much out of it and my DCs love seeing me in school.

I'd approach the school and say you'd like to volunteer to read, I'm sure the teacher will be able to use you! You might read individually with the strugglers or run a little guided reading group.

Read with my daughters reception class last year so 4-5yos. Half an hour twice a week, the last half hour of the day. Our classes are split into house groups so I’d take one house group each time and work my way through the kids, and ending up with my own. Teacher is the first point of contact and the reading was allocated by the TA and happened in the open plan library area next to the classroom. I loved it and am about to sign up for this year too. Parent helpers need to be CRB checked.

Technically I go into school to listen to children read but due to the scheme they have that has sort of been extended so I am now a basic TA. I should say that I am a qualified TA I just volunteer though, for love of it.

We have a reading scheme that means all children from grade 2 onward have 30 minutes reading time every day. They all have a particular slot and access to the library.

So I listen to a child read for 5 minutes but I ask them questions to check they understand what they are reading, ask them about a word they have just read, the genre/feel/vocabulary used etc Ask them to predict where they think the plot is going or why a particular character feels that way etc. I work with grade 4 children, and all of them.

During the week each child is listened to by either a TA -teaching assistant, or the teacher. When they finish the book they sit a computerised test to check that they have understood what they have read.

The teacher has a master list that they tick off so hopefully everyone is heard that week.

I love reading. We have 90 children in the year group and I have yet to come across one child who doesn't like reading aloud.

Wish there was an edit button, meant to say it would be best if done first thing in the morning as parents are there to drop off their own children. I TA because the reading slot is much later in the morning so I help in class with maths/geography/history/tech, whatever I am needed for.

So I listen to a child read for 5 minutes but I ask them questions to check they understand what they are reading, ask them about a word they have just read, the genre/feel/vocabulary used etc Ask them to predict where they think the plot is going or why a particular character feels that way etc.
Yes, similar here. Sometimes the teacher asks me to check specific things, or we just chat around the reading.

Our school have some volunteer slots for an hour after drop off and some for an hour before pickup, so it's convenient for parents to fit in.

we just chat around the reading we meaning me and child, not teacher, that wasn't clear when I read it back.

Thanks everyone!
I've just sent an email to a teacher that coordinates a reading programme for kids that need extra help so i'll see what she says.

I hope she takes you up on it, Sold.

Thanks Leeds2!

I hate to say this but untrained adults hearing children read can do more harm than good. I'm a teacher and my school won't let parents hear readers until they have had basic phonics training. If you can find a trained teacher to hear readers theye are worth their weight in gold. Some might say it isn't rocket science teaching kids to read but reading is now taught with a phonics based system that not all adults understand.

THEY are worth their weight in gold.

That's a good point sorting, some kind of training may be necessary for volunteers, assuming the school do good phonics in the first place (is that a given in the US?) and haven't already trained parents.

Given the pressure to read with our own kids every day, I think school have to be either assuming it does more good than harm, or assuming that we do know phonics. There are training events for parents, and lots of material sent home with the children in reception, so no excuse not to really. I got the impression the teacher was checking out my methods with kids who were already secure on phonics before I was let loose with the lower ability groups.

In fact, I suspect I may use phonics more consistently than some of the teachers - the material sent home (freshly updated) included advice to encourage guessing from the pictures Thankfully DC were fluent readers before they joined.

I was a reading helper when our child started school, and did one morning a week for five years. The class teacher gave helpers guidance in the early stages. Eventually I went on to be Teaching Assistant in a different school, and also taught recorder for ten years, and coached children on percussion for the Christmas production.

Seventeen years later one of my first 'readers' turned up in another school, when she was in her final year of Teacher Training : our roles were reversed as SHE needed to direct ME in the classroom!