Our learning support and mentoring programs in 90 Australian communities directly help children in need achieve their goals through education.
View all programs How Zac’s love of lizards became a love for learning
28 April 2023
Like many children his age, literacy learning is a big part of Zac’s education. Zac found reading difficult and this affected how he felt about school. So when Zac joined the student2student program and started to enjoy reading, it changed so much more than being able to read words on a page.
Zac's interest and confidence with reading took off.
"He's just a different kid,” says his mum Dagmara. "He used to not like school. Now he loves school. It's a really big positive change for our family and for our child."
Zac's interest and confidence with reading took off.
"He's just a different kid,” says his mum Dagmara. "He used to not like school. Now he loves school. It's a really big positive change for our family and for our child."
On Zac’s 8th birthday, his mum made him jump with joy when she gave him a book about lizards. For any young reptile fan, it’s a pretty exciting present. But it was extra special for Zac, now that he can read all the lizardy facts.
Dagmara bursts with pride when she sees Zac shine when reading.
"Zac went from reading at a level 7 to level 21 in a very short space of time. And absolutely loved it,” she says.
“He went from being uninterested and struggling with reading to being super interested. It was the best thing we ever did."
Your donations continue to make programs like student2student possible for 159,753 children across Australia. When a child joins student2student, they’re matched with a buddy who supports them to improve their reading skills. The program helps to give children living in disadvantage the same opportunity as their peers in literacy education. As a result, children like Zac can grow their reading skills and have more opportunities at school and beyond.
Zac hit it off straight away with his buddy, which helped him to enjoy the program so much he asked his mum if he could do it more often. Already having things in common, like a love of football and both living on farms, they built a solid relationship through reading.
"He wanted to do it three times a week,” reflects Dagmara. “They couldn't have matched the two of them up any better."
Through the program, Zac not only improved his reading, he made a new friend. He became more confident and started to enjoy school.
Dagmara sums up the way she feels about the support and all it provided, saying, "Thank you so much. You have made a huge difference and we are super grateful."
Dagmara bursts with pride when she sees Zac shine when reading.
"Zac went from reading at a level 7 to level 21 in a very short space of time. And absolutely loved it,” she says.
“He went from being uninterested and struggling with reading to being super interested. It was the best thing we ever did."
Your donations continue to make programs like student2student possible for 159,753 children across Australia. When a child joins student2student, they’re matched with a buddy who supports them to improve their reading skills. The program helps to give children living in disadvantage the same opportunity as their peers in literacy education. As a result, children like Zac can grow their reading skills and have more opportunities at school and beyond.
Zac hit it off straight away with his buddy, which helped him to enjoy the program so much he asked his mum if he could do it more often. Already having things in common, like a love of football and both living on farms, they built a solid relationship through reading.
"He wanted to do it three times a week,” reflects Dagmara. “They couldn't have matched the two of them up any better."
Through the program, Zac not only improved his reading, he made a new friend. He became more confident and started to enjoy school.
Dagmara sums up the way she feels about the support and all it provided, saying, "Thank you so much. You have made a huge difference and we are super grateful."
