Volunteer with us!

Volunteers are integral to achieving our mission.

Writing Coaches are local community members who come from all walks of life, education levels, and backgrounds. They do not need to be expert writers in advance of becoming a coach. Coaches are trained in methods developed by literacy and teacher education experts to help communicate with students about how to express their ideas.

Coaches meet individually with public school students in grades 4-12 for 15-30 minute sessions. Coaches come into schools in a group, supervised by a WCM staff member. During a coaching block, coaches will work with 3–5 different students from one class. Coaches have the freedom to sign up for as many or as few coaching blocks as they like: there is no minimum volunteer hour requirement. Coaches also have the freedom to select which grade levels and subjects they choose to coach.

Coaches will be provided assignment details and learning objectives in advance of the coaching session so that they are prepared to help guide students toward achieving the assignment’s goals. However, each student has a unique relationship to the assignment: some may be in the brainstorming stage, others may have a first draft, while others may have a seemingly perfect paper. The coach’s role is to listen to the student’s thought process, be a sounding board for deepening the student’s ability to express their thoughts and allow the student’s vision for the paper to develop based on the conversation between student and coach.

Coaches do not need to be an expert in the assignment subject area; in fact, sometimes bringing a layman’s perspective into the classroom allows students to clarify their writing for a more generalized audience. Coaches are supporters, not editors; we never write on students’ work or tell students what to think. If you have the motivation to support students across Montana, sign up to be a coach today!

Training

New Coach Training includes a 45-minute video for coaches to watch on their own time followed by a 2-hour interactive working in-person with Writing Coaches of Montana staff, in which volunteers practice mock coaching sessions. All new volunteers must also complete a background check before working with students.