Book Buddies Reaching More Third-Graders Each Year

By Mike LaBella | mlabella@eagletribune.com | Jan 27, 2024

For full Eagle Tribune article, click here.

Walnut Square third graders, from left, Jadeline Balbuena Mercedes and Maxwell Marsan are in the Book Buddies program.

HAVERHILL — Recognizing there is trouble in the land of reading, a Book Buddies program that launched three years ago in Haverhill continues to expand with the goal of getting more kids excited about reading.

The program brings together adult volunteers who become pen pals with third-graders and also purchase their young Book Buddies developmentally appropriate books.

The program is a partnership between Haverhill Book Buddies and Haverhill Promise.

Parent Matthew Webel, whose three children attend Hunking School in Bradford, introduced the program three years ago during the height of the COVID pandemic.

”As pastor of Haverhill Commons Church, I was feeling the pressure of the pandemic and wanted to do what we could to make the community a better place and help kids who were suffering academically as a result of the pandemic,” he said.

After consulting with teachers who suggested it would be helpful for children to have greater access to books, Webel recalled taking part in a book buddies program in Salem, Mass., where he used to live.

”I reached out to the organizers for materials and brought the model to Haverhill,” he said. “I had a third-grade buddy in Salem and I wanted to give residents of Haverhill an opportunity to build relationships and support kids and nurture a love of reading.”

He launched the program in 2021 at Silver Hill Elementary School and recruited 80 adults to become Book Buddies with 80 third-graders.

”The kids loved it,” he said. “At the end of the year, I met with teachers who told me that for some of the kids, their book buddy was the highlight of their school year. Since that time, many teachers turn book buddy days into a celebration where children express excitement about taking home books that are theirs to keep and also look forward to corresponding with their book buddies and sharing their interests and hobbies.”

Book Buddies volunteer Erin Padilla, director of Creative Haverhill, said the program doesn’t place heavy demands on its volunteers, which makes it ideal for people who work or are involved in other endeavors but still want to give back to their community.

”All we have to do is write three letters over the entire school year and buy three books, both of which have a high impact on kids,” she said. “The program managers connect you with a student, the same one you’ll have all year, and they tell you all you need to know about the child including their interests and reading level. I’m buying books online, which fits my busy life.”

As noted on the program’s website, “Book Buddies transfers a love of reading to 8- and 9-year-olds at a critical time in their journey towards becoming lifelong readers and lets students know that someone in our community cares about their literary journey.”

Jessica Kallin, executive director of Haverhill Promise, said she was able to secure grants to expand the book buddies program from two elementary schools to five: Silver Hill, Golden Hill, Tilton, Pentucket Lake and Walnut Square. About 400 third-graders now have book buddies.

”We picked Grade 3 because they are starting to read and write and writing letters is part of the curriculum,” Kallin said. “Haverhill Promise is a grade level reading campaign and our goal is to have all third graders reading at grade level by the end of the school year.”

She said that in Haverhill, most third-graders are not reading at grade level.

”Based on statewide assessments, 71% of them were not meeting expectations and not reading on grade level,” Kallin said. “As to why, there are many reasons, ranging from not having English as a first language to not having access to books at home.”

Kallin said the project snowballed and that next year it is poised to expand to seven schools, meaning, all third-graders in the district will have a book buddy.

Volunteers are asked to engage with their Book Buddies three times during the school year by writing letters based on letter-writing guidance the program provides, and they purchase a book of interest for their young book buddies.

”We gather the letters and a trained group of volunteers screen them,” Kallin said. “The letters will start out with the name and a brief bio of the adult volunteer, who will ask their young Book Buddies questions about what they like and if they have a hobby, what they thought of the first book and what they do for fun. One child who is my book buddy drew a picture of his dog and sent that to me.”

In turn, children write back and several months later they do the same thing so that the child knows their adult book buddy by first name.

”Our adult volunteers are not informed as to what school, only that it’s a third-grader at a school,” Kallin said. “When you’re paired with someone, we have the teachers send their information to us and the input from teachers shows us what level each child is reading at to help choose appropriate books.”

As to what impact the program has on reading in the district, Kallin said pre- and post-reading tests and assessments are done by schools periodically.

”We’re hoping to have a report on reading scores by the end of the school year,” she said. “At this time, we know it’s having a positive effect on their confidence, but we don’t have reading scores yet.”

For more information about the program or how you can volunteer, visit online at haverhillbookbuddies.org.

Golden Hill Elementary School third graders Owen Hardy, left, and Maribel Garcia, right, are in the Haverhill Book Buddies program.