Opportunities

Reading Helper (Primary School)Coram Beanstalk is a national literacy charity - Creating readers with brighter futures

Reading Helpers are adult volunteers living or working within a 5 mile radius of a school that has asked for our help. You need to commit to at least an afternoon a week for a whole year during term-time, and as we invest in your training we'd appreciate it if you could stay longer.    The role isn't about listening to children read, but creating a relaxed session that allows children to work alongside you to discover the joy of books.

You will need to enjoy reading, have patience, sense of humour, able to use initiative, reliable, confident in a busy school environment.

Flexible/ working pattern: You need to commit to a minimum of one consistent afternoon weekly (Mon-Fri) throughout the school year.

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Organisation

Coram Beanstalk

Coram Beanstalk

Coram Beanstalk believes life changes when you choose reading.

Coram Beanstalk is a national children's reading charity with over 50 years' experience in creating readers through our one-to-one, in-person reading support. We know, and evidence shows that when children not only can read but choose to read, it has a more profound impact on a child’s academic success than their socio-economic background. In addition, readers also benefit from improved well-being and better life chances.

To become a reader, children need to explore what reading means to them by sharing and talking about a wide variety of brilliant books. Through consistent time and attention, they can discover their reading identity.

Coram Beanstalk has the knowledge and experience to mobilise and equip communities to deliver help to children in schools who need extra support to become readers.

So, we enthuse and enable people to put best practice, based on half a century of experience and the latest evidence, into action:

  • Our volunteers – who provide consistent support to children who have fallen behind and need more intensive or longer-term help to change their attitude to reading and build their reading skills, ability and confidence.
  • School schemes and peer mentoring programmes – which bring the motivation of the wider school community, and of older students, to help ensure that children at risk of falling behind or becoming reluctant to read stay on track.
  • Professionals and wider community groups – who want to understand how a reading for pleasure approach can enhance their own practice.
  • Parents, grandparents and others who help children with their reading at home – who want to get even better at doing it.

And we do this from early years, through primary education and into early secondary, by helping children develop their key pre-reading skills, as they are learning to read and as they go on to become effective readers who, rather than disengaging because other uses of their time seem more attractive, continue to choose to read independently because they know it brings value to their lives.