Free Homework Help Returns, Virtual Tutoring Continues

The school year is in full swing for some families, while others are still waiting to start. Either way, The Seattle Public Library is here to help.

Starting the week of Sept. 12, the Library’s free afterschool tutoring service, Homework Help (spl.org/HomeworkHelp), is returning to the Columbia, Douglass-Truth, High Point, Lake City, NewHolly and Rainier Beach branches.

At Homework Help, trained volunteer tutors help students in kindergarten through grade 12 with their homework and academic coaching. If you don’t have homework, you can read and play learning enrichment games with a tutor. It’s engaging, educational and absolutely free.

Here’s the Homework Help schedule, which is also listed on the Library’s calendar at spl.org/calendar:

• Columbia Branch: Tuesdays, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. 4721 Rainier Ave. S., 206-386-1908
• Douglass-Truth Branch: Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., 2300 E. Yesler Way, 206-684-4704
• High Point Branch: Tuesdays, from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Wednesdays, from 4 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. 3411 S.W. Raymond St., 206-684-7454
• Lake City Branch: Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. 12501 28th Ave. N.E., 206-684-7518.
• NewHolly Branch: Tuesdays, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. 7058 32nd Ave. S., 206-386-1905
• Rainier Beach Branch: Mondays, from 4 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. 9125 Rainier Ave S., 206-386-1906

No reservations are needed although students and volunteers will be limited to a number safe for each space. Just come to the Library during Homework Help hours and bring your homework assignment and textbook. If our volunteers do not know an answer, they will help you find it.

COVID safety protocols: Homework Help volunteers are required to be vaccinated and show proof of vaccination. Masks are encouraged but not required.

Free virtual tutoring

Students can also continue to access free one-on-one virtual tutoring through the Library’s Tutor.com service. Live English and Spanish tutors are available from 2 to 10 p.m. daily. Vietnamese tutors are available from 4 to 7 p.m.

Students in Seattle can sign in to Tutor.com with a Library card or Library Link number and PIN. Find more about the Tutor.com schedule and information at www.spl.org/VirtualTutoring.

If you have questions these resources, just ask! Stop in at your nearest Seattle Public Library branch, or call 206-386-4636. You can also email or chat with a Library staff member at www.spl.org/Ask.

More free learning and entertainment

Also, if you are among those waiting for school to start, don’t forget that you can find all kind of free learning and entertainment through the Library, from reserving museum passes to reading along to virtual kids’ books to learning a new skill.

Our list of “50 Free Things to Do Through the Library” includes links to all these and many more programs and resources.

Elisa M., Communications

Be a Homework Help volunteer at the library!

School may be more than a month away, but we’re recruiting now for volunteers to assist K-12 students with homework assignments and developing literacy and mathematics skills throughout the 2014-2015 school year.

What does it take to be a Homework Helper? Anne Vedella, the Library’s volunteer services coordinator, says successful Homework Helpers are comfortable interacting with students of all ages individually and in small groups. And since Homework Help is a drop-in program for students, volunteers work with different students throughout the year. “Each week, the students and their requests for academic support may be different,” says Vedella. “You don’t need to be a subject expert to participate, although that is helpful, especially in the areas of math, reading, writing and science.”