A school in Illinois, has come up with an interactive idea of getting kids to read in pairs. It is called the Reading Buddies program. This program was established in 1999 by a parent of a student at the Naperville School. Here, fourth and fifth grade students from the Mill Street school are paired up with students from
North Central College (NCC). Then the pair to read an assigned book.
This program works on one to one pairing and if the numbers of students don’t match up then it is arranged amongst the NCC students to take on more than one student. The NCC students are future teachers. Each year it begins with four students going to NCC to get acquainted with their reading buddies.
It goes on three weeks where the students might communicate with their partners through message posting on the web or through chat. The teachers of both the schools use Mosaic of thought by Susan Zimmerman as a strategy for the children. This also acts as a guidance for the students and their buddies. The NCC students are helping these kids with literacy issues.
At the end of three weeks the NCC students come over to the school and all the students reading the same book work on their final projects. They may put up skits, plays, games or art works, related to the book. Over the years, the authorities have been impressed by the authentic writing they receive at the end of each project. This is because the NCC students are more like friends than teachers and act as an audience for the students. It is nice to see the students connect instantly with their buddies.
Sometimes, coordinating the schedules can be difficult but so far the project has been a success.