Help build the Storytellers community
The Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program matches early elementary students with trained volunteer mentors to inspire joyful experiences with literacy while building strong reading skills. Help us provide 1:1 literacy mentorship to even more students in the 2024-25 school year by sharing about Storytellers with your personal and professional connections through social media, email, and other conversations. We encourage you to refer your friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors, (anyone who may be interested!) If you have volunteered as a mentor before, consider sharing what you enjoyed throughout your experience!
Storytellers Mentor Recruitment Toolkit
Follow @bfk_athens on social media for the latest updates:
Share on social media
Share why you give your time to Storytellers as a Literacy Mentor using the hashtag #BecomeAStoryteller
Facebook/Instagram
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The best hour of my week is volunteering with @bfk_athens Literacy Mentor Program. It is so much fun to read and play literacy games with my mentee! I encourage everyone to join me this year. #BecomeAStoryteller https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
Volunteering with @bfk_athens Literacy Mentor Program has been such an impactful experience. I invite all of my friends and family to join me in mentoring an elementary student in our local community! Learn more about it and sign up to volunteer: https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
The earlier we support local workforce development in our community, the higher the possibility of an astounding impact. I am putting action to this belief by volunteering with the @bfk_athens Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program. Volunteering 1 hour of your week can make remarkable impacts in the lives of young students in our community. Students matched with mentors show 3.4 times the growth in reading proficiency for the year compared to their non-matched peers. Join me today! #BecomeAStoryteller https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
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I volunteer with @bfk_athens Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program because [fill in your reason]. If you or anyone you know would be interested, visit their website to learn more and sign up. https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
Every child deserves the opportunity to build strong reading skills (& have fun doing it!) I decided to do my part in creating a more equitable future for us all by volunteering with the @bfk_athens Literacy Mentor Program. With a commitment of just an hour a week, it’s easy to make a difference. Sign up to be a literacy mentor for students in our community here: https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
Twitter/X
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The hour I get to read with a student is the highlight of my week. Trust me, you’ll love making a difference as much as I do! Learn more or sign up here. #BecomeAStoryteller https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
I volunteer with the Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program because [fill in your reason]. If you or anyone you know would be interested, visit their website to learn more & sign up. https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
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The hour I spend volunteering with the Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program always makes the rest of my day brighter. I encourage everyone to learn more about becoming a Storytellers Literacy Mentor and consider signing up to volunteer: https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
I look forward to seeing my Storytellers mentee every week! If you’re interested in making a impact and supporting a child in our community boost their literacy skills, I highly encourage you to check out Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program: https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
This past year, I was a Literacy Mentor through the Storytellers Program! As program expands to provide even more students with early reading support, we need more volunteers to join us! Visit their website to learn more about how you can make an impact and sign up. https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers.
What do you get when you mix a tutoring program with a mentoring program? A targeted mentoring approach that is even more effective than either traditional model I leverage this approach as a volunteer with the Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program to create a supportive relationship with local elementary students to bolster their reading skills in the classroom. Join me!
https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers
Send an email
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Friend/Colleague Email Template
I hope you are well! I am a volunteer with Storytellers, a literacy mentor program that recruits and supports community members to be paired with an early elementary student who is currently reading below grade level Through weekly visits at the school, mentors build a relationship with their paired mentee(s) to inspire joy with reading and support their academic growth!
We are looking for Literacy Mentors to volunteer throughout the 2024-2025 school year.
[Explain why you’re emailing, if there’s a reason, e.g., I know you have a passion for education, and this is a great way to make a big difference in a child’s life with a small amount of time, you are connected in the Fowler Drive community, love Get Comfortable/Creature Comforts, want to be a teacher, etc.]
Mentors visit with students in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade for 30 minutes or one hour each week. The Storytellers program provides fun interactive activities that coordinate with the books provided in the mentor area at the school. My favorite activity is [Share your favorite to do with your student…]
A background in literacy isn’t required as in-depth training and ongoing support from a Program Coordinator is provided. 96% of Literacy Mentors reported that they observed their mentees grow in their literacy skills since the beginning of the school year!
[Give personal details about your own experience, e.g. I volunteer on Tuesdays from 8:30-9:30 at Howard B. Stroud Elementary, and the process is very easy. I work with a 3rd-grade boy who is precious and loves to learn about Sharks!]
Is this volunteer opportunity something you’re interested in?
If you have 30 minutes to an hour to share each week then I highly encourage you to sign-up here: https://bit.ly/LitMentors or visit their website to learn more: https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers.
Many thanks,
[Name]
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Partner Organization Email Template
Hi [Name],
I hope you are well! I am a volunteer with Storytellers, a literacy mentor program that recruits and supports community members to be paired with an early elementary student who is currently reading below grade level Through weekly visits at the school, mentors build a relationship with their paired mentee(s) to inspire joy with reading and support their academic growth!
We are looking for Literacy Mentors to volunteer throughout the 2024-2025 school year.
[Explain why you’re emailing, if there’s a reason, e.g. I know your organization values volunteerism and community involvement, or I know you are working on getting involved in the workforce development happening here in Athens, or I know you have been looking for ways to support the community, or I know you have been looking for ways to continue supporting students at [School Name] etc.]
Mentors visit with students in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade for 30 minutes or one hour each week. The Storytellers program provides fun interactive activities that coordinate with the books provided in the mentor area at the school. A background in literacy isn’t required as there is in-depth training and ongoing support from a Program Coordinator. 96% of Literacy Mentors reported that they observed their mentees grow in their literacy skills since the beginning of the school year!
Is this something that would interest your [employees/congregation/group]? If so, I’ll connect you to someone on the Storytellers team.
Best Regards,
[Name]
Send a text
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Hello! Storytellers, the program I volunteer with as a Literacy Mentor, is looking for more mentors to support the program and I thought you’d be a great fit. You can learn more about Literacy Mentoring or sign up here: https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers.
Hi! I volunteer for the Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program where I spend an hour a week mentoring a [1st, 2nd, 3rd] grade student[s] in our community to help boost their reading skills and academic confidence. It’s a blast to build excitement around reading, and I thought you might also be interested. You can learn more about the program or sign up here:https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers.
Include a blurb in your newsletter
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Research shows that reading with a child for 30 minutes a day astronomically aids in reading proficiency. Let’s help make this happen for even more kids in our community!
The Storytellers Literacy Mentor Program focuses on creating excitement around reading through literacy games connected to books and forming supportive relationships to help increase the 3rd-grade reading proficiency rate in Athens Clarke County. The Storytellers Program can equip community members of all different backgrounds to be a Literacy mentor by providing training, on-site support, and easy-to-use activities that set volunteers up for success.
Students matched with mentors show 3.4 times the growth in reading proficiency for the year compared to their non-matched peers! (more details on the evaluation found on our website) If this sounds like something you want to be a part of, then learn more and sign up at https://www.booksforkeeps.org/programs/storytellers.
Share videos about the program's impact
11-Alive - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4WPPNXCqXY
Creature Impact Award - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88arzSq6VnQ
Printable Flyer:
Download here
The mission of Books for Keeps is to inspire joyful experiences around literacy that can be forever associated with learning. We do this by expanding book access for readers of all ages, developing early reading resources for families, and supporting students with literacy mentorship.
