"They suggested this way of working which is actually called Pause, Prompt, Praise. They gave us some training in this way of working and then we really wanted to make sure it was going to work for our kids."
The best way was to have volunteers working one-on-one with students who needed the help.
"We called on our teachers, we called on our senior students, and we also called on our community for volunteers and we've had a really great response from all three of those groups.
"What we found is that students can improve their reading levels significantly, often by two curriculum levels, over a relatively short period of time with this one on one support.
"Senior students working with juniors is particularly successful, but also the community being involved has really paid off as well because it helped us make connections with our community and those people who are wanting to support us."
Polly says often the issue is with comprehension rather than reading, and there is now a little writing involved in the programme.
With the programme being run again this year, Polly is keen to hear from anyone who is willing to help out.
"It's not hard, it's fairly straight forward, but there is training at the start, so we are asking people to contact us."
She says volunteers should like working with young people, have some patience, enjoy reading and "just want to help people and give something back to the community".
"Developing positive relationships is particularly important."
She says students tend to grow in confidence because the one-on-one time is different to the normal classroom environment.
The amount of time spent with students will be determined by how much time each volunteer has available.
"They might come for a morning or might come for a few hours or they might come a couple of times [a week] - it just really depends on their availability and what they're willing to contribute."
• Anyone who might be able to help can call the school on 573 9769 or email polly.thinrabb@tepuke.school.nz
