Village Readers Family Education

The Village Readers Family Education program in Delray Beach provides literacy and language instruction for adults and their elementary school-age children. English language learning adult students attend classes in the evening to develop skills to prepare them for further education and enhanced employment opportunities. Their children receive individualized reading instruction in the afternoon and attend an evening children’s program with educational enrichment activities during the hours that their parents attend class. Once a month, parents and their children come together for Parent and Child Together (PACT) time, reinforcing the idea that learning involves the whole family. The program also offers monthly parenting skills workshops for our adult students to learn how they can best support their children.

CLICK HERE to download the flyer

For more information or to register for English (ESOL) classes, please call 561-501-3196 or email smayers@literacypbc.org.


Community Impact

  • 116 adults and 36 children participated in the evening program.

  • 25 children received 12 hours or more of afternoon tutoring in reading and comprehension.

  • 96% of the children tutored made significant improvements in reading.

  • 78% of adults tested demonstrated significant learning gains in their English language skills.

  • 701 books were distributed.

Testimonials

Luder is proud of both his Flight of Freedom award and his daughters Shmederlie, Ruth
and Myderline.

When Luder moved to the United States in 2019 with his three daughters, he recalls having to make a doctor’s appointment for one of them. “I couldn’t understand anything. I panicked and had to hand the phone to my cousin. I felt disappointment in myself. I wanted to communicate, but I couldn’t.” That experience brought Luder to the Village Readers Family Education program. He knew he wanted to improve his English skills, and as a family literacy program, Village Readers would also provide tutoring and literacy enrichment for his daughters. With their mom still in Haiti, Luder has taken a much more active role in the girls’ lives, and he describes being able to learn together as a gift.

The family’s hard work and dedication to their education is paying off. This year, Luder’s teacher nominated him for the Flight for Freedom Award, honoring an adult student in the state of Florida who has demonstrated exceptional accomplishment in improvement of literacy or leadership skills within literacy. Selected as the winner, Luder traveled to Orlando and gave a speech at a state-wide conference. In describing how Village Readers has impacted his life, he said, “There are so many ways my life is better. I have a better, more stable job, my kids are doing well in school, I understand when people talk to me, and I could make a million doctors’ appointments, no problem!”

Looking ahead, Luder is considering continuing his education and learning a professional trade, but ultimately, his goal is to send his daughters to a university. They are certainly on the right track. All three girls are reading on grade level and excelling in school – Myderline, a sophomore in high school, Shmaderlie in fourth grade, and Ruth in kindergarten. Luder is a proud father, thrilled with their progress and grateful to play an active role in their learning.