Story
I must say that working for DL was truly a joy, so much life and hope in all those young people. It was also very humbling to be allowed inside the homes and lives of all the families that we visited. It was a rare glimpse, in an intimate way of the people who will become the Britain of the future. Soraya, volunteer for 1.5 yrs. Jan 2017.
We have been reading with Leyla since she moved to England from Somalia 7 months ago. We have read with her cousins for many years, and when Leyla arrived her grandmother would bring her over to their house every week to read with us. When she first started reading to us she was very quiet and spoke very little English, but was always very willing and keen to learn. Now when we arrive she answers the door with her books ready to swap, ready for her next stories. I have seen a huge improvement in her reading and also her confidence in the few months since she arrived. Whereas before she would find it hard to answer questions and talk to us, now she can tell us about the books she has been reading, what she likes and dislikes, and chat about her day confidently. She's delighted when we tell her how well she's doing, as I think she still finds reading much harder than speaking, mainly because the alphabet and pronunciation are so different to her mother tongue. When I spoke to her grandmother last week, and told her how impressed I was with Leyla's reading, she said to me that she thought the Doorstep Library had played a big part in that, and thanked us for coming every week.
Rachel, Volunteer, May 2016
I'm amazed he came out to read with you. It took me ten minutes earlier to persuade him to read his school book for only 5 minutes; he really didn't want to do it. You come along and hes there straight away. I don't know what your'e doing, but it works!
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