Almost Made Me Cry

I went in to tutor at Community United today only to find that Dontae didn't show. Dontae is the kid I've been tutoring since last year. The first year his reading progressed an entire grade level which is pretty good it, means he went from a first grade reading level to the second. Since he wasn't there today the director and I had a chance to sit and talk for a bit. She told me that as school was nearing the end they had the kids take exams to see how far they've progressed and apparently Dontae was reading at 4th grade level. Do you know what that means? Dontae is a 3rd grader, so he's reading a grade level above - crazy! I almost cried I was so proud. Way to go Dontae!

Dontae Dickson

This is Dontae Dickson, the kid I worked with last year. I love this guy. I requested to work with him again this year. Third grade, eight years old. Has a pit named Cocoa Butter Puff, no lie. And he loves seafood.

Community United Elementary School (CUES), forme

rly known as Lockwood Elementary was one of lowest scoring schools around. It still serves one of Oakland's poorest and most crime-ridden neighborhoods, with nearly all of its students coming from families whose earnings fall below the federal poverty level. We go in each Friday and tutor the kids in literacy. You should come too.

By-the-way, Dontae got through all 3 sets of his sight words today. Sight words are common words that we have memorized so that as we read they are immediately recognized. This is the score card where you get a sticker for every 10 words, notice how the entire section is filled, if you run your hand over it you'd feel the texture from all the stickers. That's the tactile sense of accomplishment.

He's the man.

Speaking of CUES, Oakland has some of the craziest names for its schools, these are all OUSD:

Alliance Academy

Ascend Elementary

Community Day High School

Community United Elementary School

East Oakland Pride High School

Excel High School

Explore College Preparatory Middle School

Far West

Futures Elementary School

Global Family School

International Community Elementary School

Leadership Preparatory High School

Learning Without Limits

Life Academy

Reach Academy

Rise Community School

Think College Now Elementary School

United for Success

Urban Promise Academy

Youth Empowerment School

The message is pretty clear. It makes sense when you remember that Oakland consistently ranks among the top 5 most violent cities in the U.S.