America Learns Network Superstars

February 2010: “I Don’t Like Writing” Has Met its Match: Stephen Merritt

2010-02-25T17:54:00.000-08:00

Background YOU KNOW THE SITUATION. One of the most common challenges faced by tutors, mentors, and others in the youth development space revolves around engagement. How do I engage my student in a learning opportunity when it seems like the student doesn’t want to learn? NOW, APPLY THAT ISSUE TO TEACHING WRITING.

January 2010: Stephanie Avalos, Nicole Eugenio & Letty Cejo Found an Innovative Way to Motivate Students to Behave and Become Engaged in After School Activities

2010-01-27T15:03:00.000-08:00

Background IMAGINE THIS SCENARIO: You’re tutoring a bunch of 6th, 7th and 8th graders afterschool One of the students misbehaves all of the time You and your fellow tutors all have walkie talkies - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - YOUR CHALLENGE

December 2009: Annette Hilger, Making Breakfast Cereal a Part of a Healthy Tutoring Session

2009-12-28T15:47:00.001-08:00

Background Breakfast cereal. It can be a part of a healthy breakfast. Thanks to Annette Hilger, it can now be a part of a healthy tutoring session. Annette Hilger is a coach with IUPUI’s America Reads*America Counts program (a Federal Work-Study tutoring program for children in grades K-9). Annette, a freshman Pre-Physical

Special Edition: The Year's Most Meaningful "Cyber Monday" Special!

2009-11-30T10:01:00.000-08:00

In honor of Cyber Monday, we're not just highlighting one strategy today. We're highlighting 52! You'll find each of these strategies in our award-winning book for families, family literacy programs, and pre-schools, Bonding While Learning. While the book retails for $16.95, it's totally free to download and print through December 11th.

October 2009: Megan Conners, THE Superlatives Superstar

2009-10-25T23:38:00.001-07:00

Background For the first time, we’re not only introducing our latest America Learns Network Superstar in writing, but also via video. Below, you’ll have an opportunity to meet Megan Conners. The 23 year old AmeriCorps NCCC alumnus just began serving as an adult literacy and ESL tutor through Literacy AmeriCorps Palm Beach

September 2009: Four September Superstars. Four Awesome Strategies.

2009-09-15T10:17:00.001-07:00

Background A core component of our work involves tracking and responding to the specific goals and challenges being tackled by the tutors, mentors, coaches and new teachers we serve. This month, we want to share three of the top ten challenges that tend to top the list every September, along with some of the strategies that individuals we

Major Upgrades & New Team Members this Summer!

2009-06-26T00:48:00.000-07:00

Dear Network Superstars visitors, This summer, we’re taking a brief hiatus from publicly celebrating the amazing teachers, tutors, mentors and coaches we serve. Here’s why: We’re adding a substantial number of first-of-its-kind features to our flagship service, the America Learns Performance Measurement & Learning Network. We’re recruiting and training a number of new team members

May 2009: Brandy Peterson & Lianna Wood, Recognition & Encouragement Superstars

2009-05-20T12:17:00.001-07:00

Background Check out this video about GFC!

Surprise! Girls For A Change Finds that the America Learns Network Helps to Maintain Program Quality and Integrity During Staff Transitions

2009-04-06T23:00:00.001-07:00

Our Second Program Staff Member Superstar! Meghan (in purple) with a few GFC girls Meet Meghan Arrigo, the Western Regional Program Director of Girls For A Change. When Meghan found herself needing to take on the management of about 50 volunteers, she discovered a surprise bonus with the

March 2009: Casey Cebulski, City of Lakes AmeriCorps Member and Activity Planning Superstar

2009-03-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

Background When we read Casey Cebulski’s Cave Monster strategy, we were blown away by the thought behind it. Check this Out. Casey is a City of Lakes AmeriCorps member. He works with third and fourth graders at Andersen Elementary in Minneapolis, MN. Several weeks ago,

Program Staff Superstar! Amanda Resch on Motivating 100% of City Year Chicago Corps Members to Complete Regular Service Logs

2009-03-17T20:50:00.000-07:00

Background THE FIRST EVER! Every so often, we’ll post interviews with and tips from program directors and program coordinators who are using the America Learns Performance Measurement & Learning Network. These Program Staff Superstars have either found

Nameless No More!

2009-03-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much to those of you who participated in the effort to name the superhero who now represents the America Learns Network Superstars. The winning name by far was… The Illuminator. The name was originally suggested by long-time Network member Val Harris at Project READ. Project READ is an adult literacy tutoring

February 2009: Sarah Belanger, Verbs & Nouns Superstar

2009-02-16T21:39:00.000-08:00

Background Meet Sarah Belanger, and get ready to move! Sarah is a junior at the University of Michigan. She’s been tutoring for the past two years with the University’s America Reads Tutoring Corps as a work/study student. As she tried to help her students grasp the differences between verbs and nouns, she found that simply

Meet _________. Oh, wait. He doesn’t have a name yet!

2009-01-28T17:06:00.001-08:00

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been interviewing superheroes who were hoping to represent our America Learns Network Superstars on this site and in the community. As you can imagine, given how amazing our Network members are, we had quite a number of superheroes try out for the spot. Heck, even Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman showed up!

January 2009: Crystal Carmona, Our “So Long” Superstar

2009-01-12T14:58:00.001-08:00

Key Terms Burrito: A rolled sandwich found in Mexican cuisine. Girls For A Change (girlsforachange.org): A phenomenal organization empowering thousands of teen girls to create and lead social change. GFC has used the America Learns Network since August 2008. Burrito Hugging: The January 2009 America Learns

November 2008: Eldon Peters, Our “Think Fast” Superstar

2008-11-03T00:00:00.000-08:00

Background Leaders constantly make quick decisions with imperfect or scarce amounts of information. Doctors, politicians, police, entrepreneurs and parents confront these challenges daily. How can tutors and mentors provide the children they're serving with a safe place to practice and develop these essential skills? Just ask Eldon

October 2008: Patrick Tenbrink, Math Word Problem Superstar

2008-10-01T13:40:00.000-07:00

Background Picture a fourth grader. You're helping her with math homework one day and she is presented with a word problem. She reads it and tells you that she doesn't understand it. She begins to feel bored. Her focus disappears. You're feeling confused because the student knows how to solve this type of problem. You should ask

September 2008, Special Edition: Labels, Shmabels

2008-09-01T15:42:00.000-07:00

Background This month's strategy was actually submitted to the Network back in 2004 by an America Reads Federal Work/Study tutor at the University of Utah in 2004. The tutor does a phenomenal job driving home the positive impact that a tutor or mentor can make in a young person's life. We encourage a number of the organizations we serve to share this

July 2008, Special Edition: Cyberbullying Toolkit for Tutors & Mentors

2008-07-01T16:30:00.000-07:00

Background Since our first pilot of the America Learns Performance Measurement & Learning Network in 2003, we’ve found that children regularly share concerns with their volunteer tutors and mentors that they do not tell anybody else. Given the rise of cyber harassment (1 in 10 U.S. teens have been bullied online or via their cell phones), it’s

June 2008: Lis David, Your Spelling Adventure Tour Guide

2008-06-01T16:50:00.000-07:00

Background Meet Lis David, a corps member with City Year Chicago and the author of the June 2008 America Learns Strategy of the Month. Called Adventures in Spelling, the strategy offers tutors, mentors and student teachers a needed alternative to traditional forms of word study and review. We loved playing the game Lis created, and we're sure

May 2008: Robert Boehler, Coin Value Master

2008-05-01T17:29:00.000-07:00

Background If you've ever been a volunteer reading tutor, there's a good chance that your student has presented you with a math question. Despite any guidance you received during trainings to tell your student's teacher or the student herself that you're just there for reading, it's awfully tough to tell your student, "Sorry, can't help.

April 2008: Amber Jones, Map Maker Extraordinaire

2008-04-01T11:10:00.000-07:00

Background All of us know that tutoring and mentoring relationships don't happen in a bubble. This month's Strategy of the Month author gives us a way to prevent any sense of a bubble from forming. Meet Amber Jones, a coach with IUPUI's America Reads and America Counts Programs. An undergrad Social Work major, Amber took a strategy out of a

March 2008: Part 2 of the Adult Literacy Double Feature

2008-03-01T12:16:00.000-08:00

Background Since October 2003, we've highlighted strategies for 52 straight months via our Strategy of the Month e-newsletter. This month marks the first time we're highlighting two strategies at once (to see the other strategy for this month, click here). It's also the first time that we're recognizing strategies from an adult literacy program.

March 2008: Part 1 of the Adult Literacy Double Feature

2008-03-01T12:09:00.000-08:00

February 2008: Holly Simon, PowerPoint Superstar

2008-02-01T16:21:00.000-08:00

Background This is one PowerPoint presentation you won't sleep through. Holly Simon is a freshman at the University of Michigan, and is one of the few first-year students that earned the right to participate in the University's America Reads Tutoring Corps program. Holly developed an incredibly engaging PowerPoint deck for her