Welcome to our blog series, Plot Twist! Here, we'll be sharing the stories of people in the Words Alive community — stories of change, growth, and maybe a few surprising twists! We hope that through these stories, you'll get to know our community a little better and see the power of literacy come to life.
Meet Teoman Yazar: a multi-talented volunteer who, at 11 years old, is one of the youngest Page Turners in the Words Alive community! His myriad of talents and hobbies include playing four different instruments (and playing for rock bands!), rock climbing, snowboarding, and wakeboarding. When he grows up he is considering a career in the biomedical field or becoming a wildlife photographer.
During COVID, Teoman and his dad were looking for community service opportunities when they stumbled upon Words Alive. As an avid reader and someone that values helping others, he figured being a Page Turner would be just the thing for him. He has already read and reviewed 6 books for inclusion in the Words Alive curriculum!
Watch Teoman receive his award at 11:12!
Besides the rewarding feeling that comes with doing something meaningful for others, Teoman received the Bronze President's Service Award this year in recognition of his work. "I was really excited," he recalls, all smiles, "I did not expect that to happen."
When asked about why people should volunteer, he replied simply: "Well, it's just helping other people." He added, “If you grow up helping other people then when you grow up you’ll want to just help other people. And not necessarily by volunteering, but just in general.”
What's also fantastic about Teoman is that he really engages with the Page Turner process of reading and reviewing books. It can be challenging, he admits. “Having to explain the whole book in a couple sentences — that's usually pretty hard.”
“I learned to understand the book better.”
But as he reads and writes about more and more books, he's growing in his reviewing abilities. “I learned to understand the book better,” he says, “like what the more important parts of the book are rather than what the details are.”
He has this advice to share with his fellow reviewers: "Before you write the review, make sure to skim through the book a little bit… to refresh your memory on what the book is about." He also says that reading other reviews to ensure that you understood the book correctly may also be helpful.
About the importance of reading books, he notes, “Reading really helps – at least my – attention span because you have to sit down and read something for a long time.” He feels books can show readers a variety of experiences and perspectives different from their own. "It teaches you what other people have to go through sometimes,” he says.
The Whispers by Greg Howard.
The First Rule of Punk by Cecilia C. Perez.
Some of his top picks from the Words Alive list are The Whispers by Greg Howard and The First Rule of Punk by Cecilia C. Perez.
Unsurprisingly for a committed Words Alive volunteer, he's truly enthusiastic about reading, even outside of Page Turners.
Teoman shows off one of his favorite books.
When we asked about his personal favorite book, he eagerly held up several volumes to the camera and said, “I have four of my favorite books right here, just in case you asked this question!” His current top choice is One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus.
Teoman wants other people to enjoy their experiences with books, too. He appreciates that through Page Turners, he is able to help others avoid diving headfirst into a book without knowing what it's about.
“Sometimes I read a book and it’s totally not what I expect and I don’t want to read the book anymore, so I don’t want that to happen to other people.”
He hopes one day he can be a Book Hunter for Words Alive and find new books for other Page Turners to review. “I want to do that because I know a couple books that I would definitely recommend.”
Judging by his attitude towards helping others and his work as a Page Turner, service is evidently an ingrained part of Teoman's life. We're thrilled to see this young student already taking initiative to change his community. Keep up the amazing work, Teoman! You are already making a difference now; we are positive you will accomplish great things when you grow up, too.
This post was written by Idie Park, a Words Alive volunteer! Do you love writing and have an interest in helping Words Alive create this type of content? We'd love to have you on the team! Email to learn more.