Coach Michelle's perspective on Team Read

The first time I saw the words about the program Team Read was at a booth in my High School in Tukwila, and as an incoming freshman I was very intrigued to see what it was about. So like any curious person I approached the booth and learned that I as a high school student can earn a minimum wage paycheck by tutoring 2nd to 3rd grade students. Selfishly I joined Team read to earn a paycheck, and not by its prominent goal: developing 2nd-3rd grade students literacy and critical thinking skills.

My shallow thinking completely changed when I got matched up with my reader who changed my purpose of what kind of coach I wanted to be. Growing up bilingual I struggled to balance out both languages: Spanish and english. Similarly, my reader was going through the same struggles as the younger me did. I wanted to be the coach that can be there for my reader at all times when they are going through boulders and in their achievements. So I put in all my hard work and strength to raise her level from a level F to a level K, and by the end of the year my reader was at a level K. 

Each day at Team Read I would always learn a new value of how to help my reader become to the best of their reading critical ability; especially in the literacy crisis we’re currently facing. I want to lower the rates of students reading at a lower level than their grade and make an opposite change for my small community in Tukwila

If I was a 2nd grader before and found the opportunity of Team Read it would've helped me so much to achieve greatness as a bilingual student. Which is why I’m happy for the newer generation of elementary children obtaining a resource of this program, and taking a great advantage of it. With your help you will continue to help low-income students who are struggling in their literacy skills, and reverse that change. With your help we can expand Team Read to many more low-income schools throughout the Pacific Northwest that have plummeted literacy rates

Thank you,

Coach Michelle