Portland Observer, February 27, 1965, Page 3
METROPOLITAN
brouybi to you
every week
by
Pen pals improve reading skills
by Robert Lotbtan
The pen pals in Faye Lewison's
reading and w ritin g im provem ent
class at W oodlawn School can hardly
wait for I heir mail to come.
They receive up to five letters a
week each from adults who write to
them about their jobs and the com
m unity. The pen pals program is a
window on the w orld fo r the ch il
dren: some have gotten letters from
as far away as England and India.
Lewison says reading skills improve
because the children are motivated to
read their letters. " T h e y work hard
to sound out the words and are quick
ly adding to the ones they already
know,” she said. Because they answer
each letter, the students' w riting is
also improving.
They learn about the community by
asking questions o f the adults — a
lawyer, a computer operator, execu
tives, a landscaper, an Olympic wres
tling coach, a photographer and
others. The students also take field
trips to visit the adults at w ork, and
the adults visit the school.
“ I t ’ s really a good program be
cause it's bringing a lot o f people
from the community into the schools,
said Lesley U nthank director o f the
Peninsula Park Com m unity Center.
She visited her pen pal at W oodlawn
recently. " I t lets the kids know what
kind o f jobs are out there, and it helps
their writing, too,” she added.
Roy Pittman, recreation director at
Peninsula Park, wrote to his pen pal,
nine-year-old M a rk Laupe, about
how he coached an Olympic wrestling
team. “ M ark explains to me what he
likes, when he’s having a good day,
and when he's progressing," said Pitt
man. " G e ttin g a letter from M a rk
really makes my day because it brings
me back to reality. I t ’s amazing what
a nine-year-old can do in a le tte r."
They have lunch together at the school
and P ittm an helps M a rk w ith his
grammar
“ For some o f these kids, it's their
first positive base with an adult," said
Lewison.
The pen pal idea came to her while
sitting around the breakfast table with
friends. She wanted to try a new ap
proach to teaching reading and w rit
ing to children having trouble, some
thing that would get them excited and
m otivated. " W e really need to find
some innovative ways to learn ," she
said.
N o w , some o f the children d o n ’ t
want to leave when it’s time to go to
another class, and other students who
had poked fun now want to be pen
pals. T h e program is taking over
the school, said Lewison.
■■■
Youngster« in Fay Lewison'« class gat help w ith their letters to their
pen pels from W oodlaw n teacher« (l-r) Judith Lilly. Faya Lewison and
(Photo: Richard J. Brown)
Lesley Unthank, a pen pal.
" I never realized all the things we
would learn through th is ," she said.
“ These kids and adults have just been
sharing life.”
One o f the adults wrote to her pen
pal. Heidi Long, a fifth grader, using
Chinese characters to explain her
dog’s name.
"Dear M a rc ia ," begins Heidi's re
turn letter. " Y o u r Chinese w riting
was nice. I am barely over my cold.
How is your dog? W hat is the name
o f your company? W hen you get to
San Francisco, please w rite to me.
M y favorite pel is a rabbit. When will
I get to see you?"
A young boy was actually m o ti
vated to learn to read and w rite be
cause he was so excited about get
ting letters fro m C a lifo rn ia , said
Lewison. " T h e y want to read other
kids* letters, too,” she said.
Adults have sent pictures and post
cards. Another took the class to the
Christmas Day Trail Blazer game with
promotional tickets. The children are
learning to type w ith a typew riter
donated by an executive, and when
they found out that one o f the adult
pen pals w orked fo r M c D o n a ld ’s,
"th ere was dead silence” for a m o
ment, said Lew iston. A package of
cookies and balloons resulted
One student called the postmaster
to ask a question about the mail, and
the children are learning to compute
simple math problems as they figure
postage, said Lewison.
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