 |
826 Valencia
8/2010 - Located in the Mission District of San Francisco, 826 Valencia is a nonprofit organization devoted to promoting writing skills in school-age children and young adults. Founded in 2002 by author, Dave Eggers and veteran teacher, Ninive Calegari, it was created with the understanding that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.
In March 2010, The Stocker Foundation awarded $10,000 toward 826 Valencia’s After School Tutoring Program. The program is powered by volunteers who help students ages 6-18 with their homework and cultivate in them a love of reading and writing. In addition to their tutoring lab, 826 also features a store-front pirate supply store where San Franciscans and students can meet all their pirate-needs and the proceeds help fund the organization’s programs.
826 Valencia sparks creativity in young writers by giving students a choice about what they write. Selections from the students’ work are published in the 826 Quarterly, a literary magazine sold nationally through Amazon and Look Closer, an after-school tutoring anthology.
826 Valencia is teaching students that reading and writing is more than a chore they have to finish before bedtime; it’s a fun and exciting way to express themselves. Eight-year-old, Fatima Santos wrote a piece entitled, “Family Animal Poem” for the summer 2010 edition of their publication:
My mom is like a cheetah when she cooks so fast, she
wakes us up so we won’t be the last. My dad is like a
dolphin when it comes to jewelry, I wake him up so he
won’t be last. My uncle’s like a lion when it comes to
soccer games because he yells a lot. My sister is like a
bunny when she eats chocolate because she jumps. My
cousin is like a tiger (a smart one) because he’s in the 6th grade.
|