Retired Couple Finds Joy In First Grade

Mr. Primrose Listens As A Student Reads a Decodable To Him

I first met John and Jo Primrose late this last summer, as they wheeled a handcart full of hundreds of little “decodable” books for our first graders at Sacajawea Elementary.  I was new to Sacajawea but they were obviously not.  It was their place.  They had folded and stapled these little booklets over the summer so that our teachers could focus on the more critical tasks of planning for successful instruction.  

Mr. Primrose laughed as he informed me that they had started in kindergarten but had never gotten past the 1st grade.   That much is true.  They have been volunteering regularly at Sacajawea for about six years.  Their youngest grandkid is in 5th grade now but they stayed with his kindergarten teacher and eventually moved up to help Miss Burton and her team in first grade.  

Student Reads Sight Words to Mrs. Primrose

The Primroses are an excellent example of the way a willing community member can make a difference.  They clearly love what they do with our 1st graders.  They read with struggling 1st graders.  They listen while kids read individually to them.  If you peek into one of our first grade classrooms on Tuesday or Wednesday morning you might see a first grader reading their “decodable” book to Mr. or Mrs. Primrose.  When they have practiced enough so that they can read it fluently then they get to take the book home to read to their parents.  By volunteering, they provide our kids with some much needed one on one attention.  Without their help it wouldn’t be available to these kids as often.

Mrs. Saunders, one of our first grade teachers, reported that it boosts kids' confidence when they read to Mr. and Mrs. Primrose.  It is a real motivator.  "Some of my students stay in during their recess time to read with them," she said.  They love the extra attention and the sense of success they get.

Mrs. Primrose Follows Along, As a Student Reads To Her

What is required to be a helpful volunteer?  The Primroses say that a volunteer needs to be patient and needs to be available.  They need to be willing to do what the teacher needs.  Most importantly, they need to enjoy working with children.  If you don’t then it will be a bad experience for everyone.  Mrs. Primrose reports that she can’t really walk that well but she can be helpful to the teacher anyway.  “I don’t have to [walk].  I can sit in the class and help.”  Kids come to her at the table.

Why would a person want to spend their time volunteering?  “It’s fun,” said John.  He loves to see the progress that individual kids make. The Primroses both said they want to challenge retired people like them to “pass on what you know.”