What Is Literacy Council of Northern Virginia?
All of the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia’s programs are geared to help adults who read below the sixth grade level. Through one-on-one and classroom instruction, LCNV-trained volunteers and paid instructors teach a personalized curriculum that helps adults improve their employment opportunities, become citizens, acquire consumer skills, and increase their involvement in their children’s education.
Program Highlights
All of LCNV’s programs are geared to help adults who read below the sixth grade level. Through one-on-one and classroom instruction, LCNV-trained volunteers and paid instructors teach a personalized curriculum that helps adults improve their employment opportunities, become citizens, acquire consumer skills, and increase their involvement in their children’s education.
Tutoring Programs:
The BASIC ADULT LITERACY (BAL) TUTORING PROGRAM works with adults who speak and understand English but are beginning readers and writers.
The ENGLISH FOR SPEAKERS OF OTHER LANGUAGES (ESOL) TUTORING PROGRAM works with adults who speak English at a low level; it teaches reading, writing, listening comprehension, and speaking to these adults.
Classroom Programs:
The ESOL LEARNING CENTERS (ESOLC) is a classroom program that serves low-income immigrant adults, providing a curriculum that focuses on American culture and life skills important to the workplace, community, and family. Each semester has a different curricular focus based on students’ real world needs: Civics and Community; Workplace, Jobs and Lifelong Learning; and Health, Nutrition, and Safety. Helping a parent (and other caregivers) acquire literacy skills is the first step to eradicate the tide of disadvantage that they and their children are likely to face.
The FAMILY LEARNING PROGRAM (FLP) provides ESOL instruction for parents (or adults who live with children) in a supportive classroom environment, while their children participate in literacy-related activities and receive homework help in a separate classroom. At least twice a month, the children join the adult classroom for PACT (Parent and Child Together Time) activities. The Family Learning Program also encourages family literacy and parental involvement in education through workshops, book give-a-ways, and fieldtrips.
How You Can Get Involved
The two main ways you can help The Liberty Council of Northern Virginia is by volunteering as a tutor or teacher. The tutors intensive trainings four times a year so they are able to help immigrants speak, understand, read, and write in English.
Teachers work with a class of 8-12 students as well as develop lesson plans; keep records of student attendance and homework; and spend 2 hours planning and prepping for each 2-hour class. There are also opportunities to volunteer as a class aides (assisting a class once or twice a week), and substitute teaching.