Become A Tutor

Thank you for expressing interest in being a volunteer tutor. The San Diego Council on Literacy partners with a variety of literacy programs throughout San Diego County. These programs provide one-on-one, small group, computer assisted, and classroom tutoring services for adults, youth, and families. Volunteers do not need to have previous experience to be a tutor. Patience, flexibility, a sense of humor, and a love for reading and helping people are characteristics of a successful tutor. Volunteers must be 18 years of age or older to tutor with most of our literacy programs.

Use our convenient online registration form to register, or you can call the Literacy Referral Line at 888-850-READ (7323) for more information.

Alternatively, please forward your name, address, phone number, and the program you are interested in to Contact@literacysandiego.org.

Your personal information will ONLY be shared with a partner literacy program.

Following are general descriptions of available opportunities:

Adult Literacy – Tutor adults one-on-one.

The time commitment is 2, 1 ½ -hour sessions  per week. Most programs ask volunteers to commit to tutoring for at least 6 months. Tutor training ranges from 12 – 15 hours depending on the program. Hours and locations are flexible throughout the county.

Youth and Children – Tutor children one-on-one. Most opportunities to tutor children require volunteers to be available during the school day. There are a limited number of programs that have tutoring opportunities available during evenings and weekends. The time commitment is one hour a week for a period of 3 – 4 months. Tutor training sessions are usually 3 – 5 hours.

ESL (English as a Second Language) – Tutor adults to improve their mastery of English. The time commitment is one day a week for 2 hours. Locations and times vary throughout the county. Tutor training is approximately 12 hours.

Classroom Instruction – Assist in a GED (General Education Development), ESL, or Adult Basic Education class.

Family Literacy – Work with parents and children ages 0 – 5. Help parents improve their literacy and parenting skills. The training, time commitment and available hours vary depending on the program. 

They are community members just like you. They are professional men and women, college students, homemakers, retired citizens – people who wish to have a positive impact on the community.