The mission of the Reading Buddies program at Boulder Public Library is to help children discover the power and joy of reading. Buff Buddies meet with their elementary school “reading buddy” in one-on-one tutorials once a week at the library and create a book that they present together in a celebration at the end of the semester. Read Buff Buddy blogs about this program here and here.
Volunteers for this program attend a mandatory training session at the beginning of the semester to learn what they need to know in order to be a good “Big Buddy.” Throughout the semester, Buff Buddies meet one-on-one with their “Little Buddy” for approximately one hour a week to read books together. The job of a Big Buddy is to inspire interest, excitement, and confidence in reading. Some children in the program come from families in which English is not the primary language. Your reading buddy will be excited to have opportunity to learn from a University of Colorado college student!
As the semester progresses, Buff Buddies work on a “Buddy Book” with their reading buddy. These books are written and illustrated by the Little Buddy, with guided help from the Big Buddy. At the last session of the semester, all of the Little Buddies together with their Big Buddy partners meet to read their books aloud to parents and family members. These presentations are often very moving: Children in the program take great pride in presenting their work.
Specific meeting times will be announced early in the semester, but they typically occur one day a week between 4:30 and 6:00 pm at the main Boulder Public Library at 1001 Arapahoe Avenue. We encourage you to view some of the Buddy Books that our volunteers have created with their reading buddies. We hope that you will consider joining this inspirational program!