Trinity Lutheran hosts weekly tutoring sessions for students

Published 1:30 am Saturday, January 14, 2017

LYNNWOOD — Abby felt like she was trailing behind her classmates.

She moved to Washington from Uganda and was still learning English. It was hard to keep up in school.

“There’s frustration there,” said Marilyn Hall, lead volunteer with the Neighborhood Youth Alliance. “It’s a big barrier.”

The Neighborhood Youth Alliance offers weekly academic-support sessions at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lynnwood.

Volunteers spend two hours every Saturday tutoring students ages 3 through 18. Many of the volunteers are engineers, nurses and teachers. Some are people from the community who simply want to give children the resources they need to do well in school.

“It’s a safe place to not know the answer,” Hall said.

About 15 children and teens start their weekend at the church. Most of them speak Spanish as a first language. One speaks Swahili, another Arabic.

Volunteers provide extra one-on-one support.

Hall coordinates the study sessions. She worked as an elementary school teacher for 25 years before she retired in 2015. She previously taught fourth-graders in the gifted program at Terrace Park School in Mountlake Terrace.

Hall donated her classroom supplies to Trinity Lutheran Church.

“We scrounge,” Hall said.

In addition to reading and math worksheets, kids can now play with building blocks and games.

Hall also recognized language is not the only challenge that can impact a child’s academic success.

A second-grade boy named Ted struggled to sit still during class. He had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

“He was ricocheting around like a ping-pong ball,” Hall said.

She walked Ted’s parents through the process of testing for ADHD. A doctor ultimately prescribed Ted medication to help him focus in school.

He has since caught up to a second-grade reading and math level.

The Neighborhood Youth Alliance also stocks a prize bin to motivate the kids.

Students earn points by completing worksheets and reading at home. Once enough points are accumulated, they can pick a prize out of the bin.

Hall makes sure there are always Hot Wheels cars in the bin for Ted. They’re his favorite.

The goal is to encourage students to stay in school. Hall has met kids who become embarrassed when they struggle through sentences while reading in front of the class.

Some stop going to school because of it.

When the Neighborhood Youth Alliance began in 2007, about one-third of the kids were enrolled in school, Hall said. That number has since gone up.

“There’s a lot of service that can be made from listening,” Hall said. “It’s a misunderstood gift you can give someone.”

Caitlin Tompkins: 425-339-3192; ctompkins@heraldnet.com.