A GROUP of Year 7 students at Culcheth High School are taking part in a reading initiative which connects them with older members of the local community.
They give up their time to contact senior citizens weekly by telephone and read to them.
Silver Stories is a charity-based project which aims to enrich the reading experience of young and old and helps the youngsters develop their reading accuracy and fluency. It also combats the loneliness and isolation that can be felt by some older people.
The students are the “Silver Readers” and the senior citizens the “Silver Listeners” and young and old both find the experience enjoyable. Readings are short extracts from books or poems and can range from Harry Potter to cake recipes!
Listeners provide feedback and encouragement to help the youngsters develop their reading skills.
They welcome the contact and thoroughly enjoy hearing from the students each week, often having a chat and finding out the youngsters’ reading interests – which the students love to share.
The listeners welcome the contact and thoroughly enjoy hearing from the children each week, often having a chat with them and finding out all about their reading interests – which the students love to share!
Darcy, Brigid, Alice and Erin (pictured) have been taking part in the programme for a number of weeks, reading from a variety of texts and genres.
A school spokesperson said: “It is truly delightful to see the students building confidence and engaging with their listeners in such a positive manner. One listener commented on how eloquent and well-spoken the readers are – and this makes the school really proud. This is truly the positive power of reading making a difference.”
