Just announced!
We’re hosting our second annual fundraiser book fair this fall. Please stay tuned for details. We are already collecting gently used books. Contact Jane to inquire about dropping off books for the fair or to ask about sponsorship opportunities.
It was our pleasure to attend Severna Park Tutoring & Educational Advocacy’s National Reading Month community event! We had a word with the O’s Oriole Bird, he loves reading too.
We appeared at the Park Books & LitCoLab National Reading Month event on March 19 with an information booth and samples of our materials in all subjects from 10:30 am until 2 pm. The day at Park Books included a children’s read-in, AACPS teacher storytimes, face painting, and balloon art.
We held a Tutor Roundtable discussion on Zoom on February 23. Thank you to all who joined us to share ideas and solutions. Please email Wendy if you would like to receive the resources handout that we created after the event. The document briefly describes websites, tools, reading materials, and ProLiteracy training opportunities that tutors may want to access. Also included is a helpful comparison of the NEDP and the GED for students and tutors considering high school diploma preparation programs.
Our March 26, 2022 Tutor Training Workshop for new tutors is filled. Feel free to email Jane to inquire about the waiting list. If you didn’t sign up in time, please consider attending our fall training session.
Our thanks to ProLiteracy for its recent support of our ESL program. The grant we received means that we can better serve Anne Arundel County adults who are working to improve their English language skills. ProLiteracy is an international organization that has been empowering adults through literacy for more than 60 years. The AACLC is a member, and we rely on ProLiteracy for training opportunities, student coursework materials, and more.
Take Advantage of Additional Training Opportunities on ProLiteracy’s website
Tutors, did you know that you can access ProLiteracy’s online training modules for further tutor training? These are available at
proliteracy.org under Professional Development and
Tutor Training. The Literacy Council has a ProLiteracy membership, and tutors can set up an account to access training using our membership number at no charge. Please contact
Jane with any questions about this training.
This newly published brief explains the science behind motivation and how to use and sustain it in adult learning so that students may succeed.
From the brief: “Familiarity with different theories of motivation can help adult educators create the needed positive learning environment, engaging instructional tasks, and supportive relationships with learners.”
According to the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, 130 million adults in the U.S. lack proficiency in literacy. Explore the relationship of literacy to health, income, and education at the Foundation’s updated Gap Map: https://map.barbarabush.org/, where visitors can also see literacy scores in Anne Arundel County and surrounding areas.
What does adult literacy look like in Maryland?
20% of adults have low literacy, and Maryland ranks 28 out of 50 states in adult literacy rates, where 1 is best — with fewer adults dealing with low literacy (New Hampshire) — and the 50th state has the most adults living with low literacy (Texas). Adults in Pennsylvania and Virginia have slightly better adult literacy scores than in Maryland. The ramifications of low literacy flow into all areas of life, including health, household income, and outcomes for children. See Maryland’s “
Adult Literacy Gap Snapshot” for more information.
(source: Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy)
In January, we received a thoughtful and generous gift from the employees of Sandy Spring Bank. Through a special workplace giving program, employees were recently invited to donate to the Literacy Council, and they very kindly did, helping to fund our programs. Thank you, Sandy Spring Bank!