The school began using the program immediately afterward. Ponderosa s remaining seven teachers are slated to attend the Basic Leader Training Course in October, and, Ingersoll points out, additional volunteers are encouraged to attend. Ingersoll says she noticed a positive chemistry developing at the February training. The course established new relationships among the parents and a new dimension between teachers and parents. The benefits of this volunteer-teacher cooperation are manifest to both parties.
Volunteers value the opportunity to be a positive force in their children s education.
Especially reading good literature. Larissa Swanson, a volunteer who helped convince other parents and teachers to adopt Junior Great Books, seconds this notion. Teachers and volunteers at Ponderosa have worked out a system to make sure children get the maximum benefit from Junior Great Books. Teachers read the story with students and conduct interpretive activities, then volunteers come in to lead discussion. For example, with her fifth graders, Denise Manno leads students in a prereading activity called a Text Opener in which students focus on an important theme in the story.