If you are interested in improving your English skills, make plans to attend the English Language Learners enrollment session presented by the Literacy Center of West Michigan. The program will take place at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 3, at the Kelloggsville Branch of Kent District Library. Any adult who wants to learn English or improve their skills is invited to attend.
Attendees will learn about and can sign up for a free, 15-week community English class that will take place at the Kelloggsville Branch of KDL. The class will meet from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, March 10 – June 18. Anyone interested in taking the class should attend the enrollment session.
“Our goal in holding an English class at the Kelloggsville Branch is to provide English literacy instruction to adults in a context that is immediately relevant to their lives,” said Chad Patton, Director of Customized Workplace English for the Literacy Center of West Michigan. “We are excited to help adults in this community reach their literacy goals, and we think that this partnership with Kent District Library only makes sense.”
The Literacy Center of West Michigan is searching for volunteers to teach reading and writing skills to adults in the Kent County area. Volunteers offer one-on-one reading help to adults asking for assistance in reading or English as a Second language (ESL.)
Information sessions for volunteers are going to be held on Thursday Jan. 4 at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 9, at 10 a.m., Wednesday, Jan. 17, at 10 a.m., and Friday, Jan. 26, at 2 p.m. All of these sessions will last one hour and be held at 1120 Monroe Ave., N.W. Suite 240 – Grand Rapids, MI. To register, please call 459-5151, ext. 10, or email info.literacycenterwm.org.
The Literacy Center is a non-profit, United Way agency devoted to reducing illiteracy in the community. According to the 2003 National Assessment for Adult Literacy, up to 14.6% of adults in Kent County lack reading and writing skills used in every day life.
Esperanza Mercado wants her children — kindergartner Coral, first-grader Yra, and fourth-grader Adrian — to have big goals. “I want them to get their master’s degrees,” she said.
“I didn’t get much education,” she said while attending an English literacy class at North Godwin Elementary School. Mercado’s formal education ended in sixth grade. An immigrant from Mexico, she moved to the United States more than 20 years ago.
She’s attending the intermediate-level class, offered by the Literacy Center of West Michigan and led by Americorps instructors, for two hours twice a week to improve her English-speaking and reading skills. At North and West Godwin elementary schools, where more than 40 percent of families are English-language learners, basic and intermediate classes are offered all school year long. Grand Rapids Public Schools also offers the program.
Mercado already speaks basic English, but wants to build confidence.
Parents study the usage of ‘will go’ and ‘am going to go’ during class
“I want to be able to communicate with people who speak English,” she explained. “I want to help my kids with their homework, attend meetings with no helper interpreting. I want to be capable to speak without someone else to help me.”
The fact classes are held at school is ideal, said Sarah Schantz, North Godwin Kent School Services Network community school coordinator.
“Having it here makes it a lot easier,” Schantz said. “It’s right after school starts. Parents stay for class after dropping off students. Having them here gives them the extra opportunity to stay after class and help out with things that they like to.”
The class helps parents connect in other ways too. It’s for all non-native English speakers, not just Spanish-speaking.
“It helps them be able to communicate with us, with their students, with helping them with homework,” ” Schantz said.
Helping Students Read Proficiently
Marti Hernandez, director of the Family Literacy Program at the Literacy Center of West Michigan, said the program serves a huge need as the Hispanic population continues to grow.
Americorps instructor Kari Moss teaches English
The program’s aims are tied to third-grade literacy, helping parents help their children be fluent readers by then, said Hernandez, a former principal at Burton Middle School. “Our goal is to help the parents learn English so they can be more involved in their child’s education, and be more informed on what’s going on in their child’s school and what the goals are for their child,” Hernandez said.
“It also helps them with employability,” she added. “You need to have some sort of English in order to get a job and to just survive.”
Parents also learn the importance of promoting literacy in the home. Monthly Family Activity Nights are offered for families.
“I am so pleased to see so many of my parents participating in our English Literacy classes,” said North Godwin Principal Mary Lang. “They are so committed to learning the language so they are able to better support their children through their educational process.”
Participant Maria Nunoz, mom to kindergartener Gadiel, sixth-grader Adan and seventh-grader Lorenzo, said she’s continuing to study English so she can better help them in school.
“I help Gadiel with homework, and the alphabet pronunciation,” she said.
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