Leading to Reading Volunteers

About the service

Leading to Reading is a literacy-based service that assists children in Grades 1-6 who are struggling with reading.

Through the assistance of adult and teen volunteers, the Leading to Reading service strives to turn reading and learning into a fun and positive experience. The service relies heavily on the assistance of volunteers. Volunteers admitted to the service are paired off with a child who they meet with once a week, for an hour, at the library. Under the supervision and guidance of Leading to Reading staff, the volunteer assists the child with further developing their reading skills.

Volunteering with this service can be an extremely rewarding experience for both the volunteer and the child they work with. Helping children to gain experience and confidence in their reading ability will have a far reaching and lifelong impact on the child. It will also provide volunteers with a sense of achievement that they have helped their community. Volunteering with Leading to Reading is about giving your skills, time and energy freely and with enthusiasm.

Please note that volunteer hours gained by volunteering with this service qualify towards the forty hours community service graduation requirement for Ontario High School students.

What the Volunteer Does

As a Leading to Reading Volunteer you will be required to:

• meet with your assigned child at the library for a one hour weekly scheduled session
• motivate and encourage them to read
• read together, as well as play reading-related games and activities
• help improve their reading skills
• take notes on each weekly session
• report to service staff as well as parents/guardians about the child's progress

Volunteer Requirements

To qualify as a volunteer with the Leading to Reading service the following qualifications are required:

• speak and write English fluently
• relate and communicate well with children
• work independently
• act as a mature role model for reading
• upon acceptance as a volunteer with the service, training will be provided. It is mandatory that all volunteers attend the training session
• volunteers must complete and submit a valid Vulnerable Sector Check (VSC) form before starting (paid for by TPL)
• fully vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine series and are able to show a proof of vaccination upon request

Volunteer Benefits

• Volunteer references and confirmation of hours can be provided upon request
• Volunteers may make personal photocopies at the staff rate
• Non-resident fees are waived for current volunteers with six months or more of active service

Time and Place

The Volunteer and child meet for a maximum of 1 hour once a week at a dedicated library space during service hours under the supervision of library staff.

Locations and Hours

COVID-19 Impacts

All Toronto Public Library volunteers are required to be fully vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine series, and will be required to show proof of vaccination before they can begin. For more information, please review TPL’s mandatory vaccination policy which is available on our website.