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Helping Kids Read

A volunteer tutor changed Rolando Escandon’s life. Today he’s doing the same for other kids like him.

April 2024
Ellen Song

Rolando goofs around with an enthusiastic young reader. 

Although Rolando Escandon, 17, was born in Florida, he didn’t grow up hearing English spoken regularly at home. That’s because Rolando’s parents and grandparents are immigrants from Mexico, and they speak Spanish. In addition, Rolando’s mom is deaf, so she mostly communicates through sign language. 

As a result, Rolando grew up having to learn Spanish, English, and American Sign Language (ASL) all at once. It wasn’t easy for him. “I think having to learn all three languages at the same time kind of confused me,” he says. 

When Rolando went to school, he struggled with reading and speaking English. To improve his skills, he began going to a local organization that provides free tutoring. 

Soon he was reading and speaking English with ease. He began dreaming about going to college. He also wanted to be able to help other kids like him who didn’t grow up speaking English fluently.  

Rolando didn’t want to wait until he was an adult to make that dream come true. So he became a tutor at the same organization where he had gotten reading lessons. 

Today he spends up to four afternoons a week helping kids master the language that once gave him trouble. Read on to learn more about this trilingual teen’s journey.

Rolando and his mom speak sign language. 

The Family Translator

Rolando is the oldest child in his family. Growing up, he often had to help his parents and grandparents communicate in English. 

“I would be next to my grandma when we had to call the doctor,” he recalls. “I would ask my grandma in Spanish to pick the date of the appointment. She would tell me, and then I would translate that information into English on the phone with the medical office. It made me nervous because I didn’t want to mess anything up.” 

Rolando is not alone in having to act as translator for his family. According to the U.S. Census, about 21 percent of school-age children speak a language other than English at home. Some of these children may struggle with reading and speaking English because they aren’t used to hearing it all the time. They also might not have anyone at home who can help them with homework and words they don’t understand. Like Rolando, they might be nervous about their English skills, especially in high-pressure situations where they’re having to go back and forth between two or more languages.

A Helping Hand

When he was in second grade, Rolando started attending an after-school and summer program at New Horizons. That’s a nonprofit organization in his community that provides free tutoring and mentoring for children. The tutors helped Rolando with his homework and his reading. They gave him books and encouraged him to practice reading out loud.

“At first, I didn’t know most of the words in the books,” Rolando says. “I was discouraged. But the volunteers were really patient. They helped me sound out the words and pronounce them correctly. They’d also use the unfamiliar words in conversation so I could understand what they meant.”

Rolando noticed his reading and speaking skills improving. He felt more confident about his ability to communicate. And he also discovered that he loved books.

21% of school-age children speak a language other than English at home.

Source: US Census Bureau

The Joy of Teaching 

Rolando was grateful for the people who were helping him. He decided to become a volunteer at New Horizons himself. 

“I wanted to help other kids going through the same thing I was going through,” he says. “Kids who probably grew up with parents who didn’t speak English and who had to help with important stuff, like understanding bills.” 

Since eighth grade, Rolando has been tutoring elementary school students in reading twice a week during the school year. In the summer, he tutors four days a week. “I sit with them and help them sound out the words,” he says. “I’ll help older kids find main ideas when they read paragraphs, and for younger kids, we’ll focus on spelling and vocabulary words. I try to be as patient as possible, since my tutors were so patient with me.”

Rolando loves watching his students improve. He has a close relationship with one boy he’s been tutoring for two years. “At first, he didn’t know most of the words in the books we read,” Rolando says. “I helped him sound out the letters. Now he knows a majority of the words. He’s improved a lot from when I first met him. It makes me happy, because I know that he’s basically a younger version of me.” 

Continuing the Work

Rolando will graduate from high school this spring. Thanks to a scholarship he applied for with the help of New Horizons, he’ll attend a four-year public university in Florida. After college, he plans to combine his two passions: working with young kids and giving back. He hopes to become a pediatric nurse. 

Rolando urges teens to look for opportunities to help their neighbors. “Most of the time, you don’t know when people are struggling in your community and need your help. So why not just go out and help whenever you can?” 

How to Be a Tutor Like Rolando

Want to help kids read? Ask about opportunities at your school or library. Or try these sites for teens: kidsthatdogood.com, volunteermatch.org, and teenlife.com. When you are working with a younger student, keep these tips in mind:

Be Patient: Skills that seem easy for you can feel challenging to someone else.

Be Flexible: If reading a whole book out loud feels overwhelming to the kid you’re helping, try reading one page yourself, then have your student read a page.

Be Real: If your student feels discouraged, share a time you struggled to learn something. Making a personal connection can help them trust you and motivate them to try hard.

Social-Emotional Learning
Relationships, Empathy

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