San Antonio Youth Literacy has a vision that every child in South Texas enters third grade reading at level. But we are a long way from that vision. While SAYL has helped thousands of students, we still have thousands more in need of help. We appreciate the financial support we receive through major donations and grants, but we need more. It is my vision as Chair of the Board of Directors to have 1000 supporters making monthly donations to SAYL by the year 2020. No donation is too small. Imagine what SAYL could do with a tribe of 1000 supporters donating just $25 per month. It’s easy – go to SAYL.org and click the DONATE button. You can schedule a monthly donation in any amount. Or go through your bank to schedule a monthly payment. A monthly donation is a painless way to make a real difference in the lives of children in San Antonio. Join the SAYL tribe!
Upcoming Events
Shop for a Cause
Thursday, December 6 – 5:30-8:30p
Alex & Ani at North Star Mall
Stop by Alex & Ani at North Star and shop for a cause! 15% of proceeds of purchases made between 5:30p.m. and 8:30p.m. will benefit SAYL! Alex and Ani is a popular retailer specializing in jewelry designed to connect you to every single part of your soul’s destiny. Each piece is crafted with keeping the mind, body and spirit positively aligned.
Come do some holiday shopping while enjoying refreshments and small snacks. Unable to attend? No problem! Alex & Ani can take phone orders…210-348-8377.
Reading Buddy Insider
Learning a New Word with the Whiteboard & Piggy Bank
A shared concern of many Reading Buddies is when their student misreads the same word on multiple occasions, sometimes even on the next page. For these new or challenging words students may need a lot of repetition with a word before retaining it in their long-term memory. Your best tool for this situation is the whiteboard. Use the whiteboard during your session to give students a chance to read the word, say it, write it, and think of a sentence using the word. Below is a systematic way you can use the whiteboard to give your student lots of practice manipulating a new word to better retain it for future use. Read the full tip here >>>
Book Buddies News
November saw over 100 volunteer hours donated by our terrific Book Buddies.
By mid-month volunteers had emptied four huge Gaylord cartons, each holding up to 2,000 books! At this rate we’ll have them all emptied and boxed up for distribution by the end of January. We couldn’t do this without our faithful and very efficient volunteers. Groups volunteering in November included the Valero Vanguard, Reagan High School chapter of the National Honor Society, UTSA Voices, along with many new and longtime friends who come to swell the ranks on a regular basis – THANK YOU! You are literally our most valuable assets. Read more >>>
Volunteer Spotlight
Vivian Holder
Congratulations to our Reading Buddy of the Month – Vivian Holder! This is Vivian’s first year as a Reading Buddy, and she is currently tutoring at Madison Elementary in SAISD. Vivian has a history with Madison. The CFO of her company, Shannon Braymen had started a drawing for a free bicycle for students with perfect attendance. She and Shannon have now been able to expand the bicycle program for every student who has perfect attendance at Madison will receive a free bicycle. Read more >>>
School Spotlight
De Zavala Elementary
Our School Spotlight of the Month goes to De Zavala Elementary in SAISD. We are so proud and grateful for all that De Zavala has done for its Reading Buddies and students. The wonderful Site Director, Geri Rasmussen, has been a delight to the program and very helpful with our buddies. She makes all the volunteers feel welcome and important when they walk into her Library. Read more >>
Thank You Golf Tournament Sponsors
Thank you to CPS Energy for hosting our first annual golf tournament on Friday, November 9! Even with the chilly and windy day, nineteen teams participated in the tournament at the Canyons Course at TPC San Antonio. Teams were then treated to lunch courtesy of CPSE along with a silent auction, and helped raise over $20,000 for SAYL! Thank you to all the teams and sponsors who participated! See a full list of our sponsors here.
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