Surveys, Potlucks, A Million Books, and more...

DECEMBER 2022

LAST CHANCE!

Seeds unintentionally went international during the pandemic thanks to the magic of the internet. As we look at our future, we want to know what YOUR opinions are about where Seeds should operate. Should we limit our focus to just Cleveland? Open another site? Limit any expansion just to Virtual?

Your opinion matters because YOU are the ones working with students every day. YOU are the ones making the very real difference in their lives. The survey is just 10 questions.

DEFININING "COMMUNITY" SURVEY

Back by popular demand, the Seeds' Winter Potluck returns to Seeds East & West. After two long pandemic years, we'll gather together for food and fun the day before winter break. Bring a dish or treat to share. Seeds will provide beverages.

MATH FORMULAS FOR GED TESTING

Did you know that students are allowed to use the math formula sheet for one portion of the GED math test?

This formula sheet provides a list of the formulas that students will need during that portion of the test. There are formulas for algebra, geometry, and the data analysis portions of the test. Tutors can help students better prepare for the test by:

using the formula sheet when working with students to solve math problems,
helping students understand terms (area), and the notations used to represent the terms (i.e. l x w equals length times width).
helping students understand the concepts behind the formulas, and
helping students determine which formula that they need for a given problem.

You can view the formula sheet here and ask your Site Coordinator for the handout "Using the Formulas Sheet."

HOLIDAY SHOPPING?

If you're shopping online this holiday season, there are two ways to help Seeds.

AMAZON SMILE: If you choose Seeds of Literacy from the charity list using Amazon Smile, we receive a percentage.
WISH LISTS: Seeds of Literacy has our own Wish Lists to ensure our tutors and students have everything they need for success (including lots of caffeine in our coffee stations!)

SEVERE WEATHER:

Check if Seeds is Open

Email
TV News
Social Media
Website Popup

THE VIRTUAL CLASSROOM REMAINS OPEN UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED.

Above all, we want you to remain safe. If we are open but you aren't comfortable commuting in, we can always use help in the Virtual Classroom!

CLEVELAND READS:

1 MILLION BOOKS CAMPAIGN

Saturday, December 17 @ Public Auditorium (500 W. Lakeside Ave.) from 12pm - 3pm

SAVE THE DATE!

Staff members from Seeds of Literacy have been part of a multi-organizational planning committee for a new initiative in 2023. Literacy in the Hood, WKYC, the Library system, and more are all part of the committee.

Mayor Bibb has challenged Clevelanders to collectively read 1 million books in 2023! The Cleveland Reads campaign kicks off with a public PARTY and YOU are invited:

entertainment
raffles
authors
family-friendly activities
book give-aways
and more.

The event will build excitement for the initiative and more details about how to track your reading progress will be released. We hope you'll attend, and encourage our students to read more in 2023.

**Transportation to Public Auditorium will be provided to and from five Cleveland Public Library locations: Carnegie West, Glenville, Hough, Rice and Rockport. Buses will depart from the branches at 11:30am and return all riders to their pickup location by 3:30pm.**

VIRTUAL TUTORS

TODD'S TUTOR TIP: Graphing & Functions in a Virtual Setting

Graphing and functions in the virtual classroom has proven to be one of the most challenging math skills to tutor. Zoom annotations can only do so much (even when practiced), and it is nearly impossible to have a student show their work. At the same time, graphing and functions has become a bottleneck skill for many of our students and the need for it is only increasing. There are online graphing programs that can help. Geoalgebra has an interactive graph that can draw points, lines, and even express slope-intercept form. It also has a simplified interactive coordinate grid that can be very useful. Desmos has a similar program with a slightly different layout. A simple Google search will reveal that teaching graphing virtually is a universal problem, and people have tried creating solutions for it. If you have any other programs or techniques that you use to teach graphing and functions, please let your Site Coordinators know so they can spread the word.

ZOOMSIDE CHATS: Upcoming: Friday, December 2 at 11am

Click here to view the PREVIOUS ZOOMSIDE CHAT.

TUTORS NEEDED IN THE EVENING 6pm-8pm ET

VIRTUAL STUDY HALLS

Our urgent plea for evening tutors continues. Please, please pick up an additional evening shift if you have the availability. We have had to turn students away nightly and that's not a pattern we wish to continue.

One solution we are considering in the meantime is hosting "Virtual Study Halls" to keep students working toward their goals in Zoom. Students who are not matched with a tutor would be in a breakout room working independently with a tutor on hand to answer questions. It is NOT the one-to-one tutoring they come to us to receive, but it at least keeps them from being turned away. If you are a tutor who is comfortable with answering questions about language arts and mathematics, and you are interested in serving in the "virtual study hall", please let your Site Coordinator know.

FLUENCY TUTORS MONDAYS

We still need more fluency tutors on Mondays for half-hour sessions during orientation. Tutors needed: