Write After School

Our Write After School program currently takes place in our Park Slope Center! Students can come 1-2 days a week for writing and literacy support. The volunteer shift takes place from Mon/Wed 3:30–5:30pm, Tues/Thurs 4:00-6:00pm.

Mondays (Grades 1-5) & Tuesdays (Grades 6-8): In this session, volunteers will help facilitate a book club. Students and volunteers will read a story or chapter of a book out loud, followed by a discussion.

Wednesdays (Grades 1-5) & Thursdays (Grades 6-8): In this session, volunteers will support students as they explore the mechanics of writing and specific, rotating genres.

A few highlights about the Write After School program:

• Work with the same groups of students every week! Students commit to coming for at least a year, so it won't be long before you recognize every face in the room (and know their favorite YouTuber, Fortnite original song, TV show character, etc.)

• Support students in their communities! Although students come to our program from around Brooklyn, the Write After School program is community-driven. Students' parents and guardians are very involved with the program and many of our students go to the same schools, churches, and some are even siblings, cousins, and family friends of one another!

• Be a part of the transformation from student to young author—two times a year! We publish our students' writing into dual-language chapbooks (Spanish + English) and invite all families, volunteers, and students to the book release parties. Nothing is more joyful than watching a student experience their writing in print for the first time and then getting to share that experience with their community. 

Write After School takes place during the school year. To hear updates about this program, make sure that you are subscribed to our volunteer newsletter. If you want to volunteer for this program, sign up here.

While a student is writing: 826 believes that writing skills are a fundamental building block of future success, so volunteers should take extra time to go over writing assignments. This can include reading logs, research papers, and even math word problems. 

i. Review instructions. Volunteers should get started by asking students to explain the instructions or rubric provided with the assignment. 

ii. Reading it out loud. Having students read their draft aloud is an excellent first revision step for all ages. 

iii. Socratic method. Volunteers should lead the revision process by asking questions about the draft, while striving to keep the writing in the student’s voice and without giving them the answers. If a student writes independently, there’s always room for engagement afterward.