For 25 years now, Family Literacy Day has taken place every January 27th to raise awareness about the importance of reading and engaging in other literacy-related activities as a family.
Since 1999, thousands of schools, libraries, literacy organizations and other community groups have taken part in the initiative. Why? The power of a family supporting good reading habits is profound. According to a National Institute of Health report from 2010, A mother’s reading skill is the greatest factor to affect her children’s future academic success, outweighing other factors, like neighborhood and family income and children whose parents read with their kids score on average 10 points higher on standardized reading tests.
Port Hope Library’s Programming & Community Engagement Coordinator Lisa O’Leary told us they’re planning a party this year!
The party at the Canton Hub Branch will run from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and will feature games, music and fun ways to help promote literacy.
Children spend five times as much time outside the classroom as they do in school, so parents and caregivers need the tools to support their learning and help make reading fun.
O’Leary told us they’ve something special planned to celebrate the 25th anniversary.
According to O’Leary, they’ll have everything you need for a fun experience.
Mark Jan. 27th on your calendar and get ready for some family fun and consider taking time every day to read or do a learning activity with children. Reading is crucial to a child’s development, improving a child’s literacy skills dramatically, and can help a parent improve their skills as well.
Written by Joseph Goden
