In Canada Family Literacy Day takes place every 27th January to raise awareness about the importance of reading and engaging in other literacy-related activities as a family. What is good about this, is that it acknowledges the fact that parents are a child's first educators. It also acknowledges, as I said in my blog about the Year of Reading in the UK, that the more enabling adults are involved in a child's choice to read for pleasure the better.
Since 1999, schools, libraries, literacy organisations and other community groups across the country have taken part in the initiative. ABC creates free learning and promotional resources for anyone that wants to get involved.
Taking time every day to read or do a learning activity with children is crucial to a child’s development, improving a child’s literacy skills dramatically, and can help a parent improve their skills as well.
The 2026 Theme: Make mealtime family learning time. Each year there is a 'tip sheet' to provide ideas. This year author/illustrator Barbara Reid who is the honorary chair has done the tip sheet. 2025 's tip sheet also has ideas which could be used as part of a homework contract or a reading contract.
Many parents who come to the library complain to me about their child's narrow eating palate and ask for picture books that might help. They also complain about time to read to their children. This plan has ideas to address both. I taught a family of three boys whose father was a good library borrower. He read to his children while they ate dinner. He shared serials, books they wouldn't choose to read by themselves, biographies and other narrative nonfiction. He would tell me what worked, what didn't, how much something was loved ... and these three boys went on to be avid readers, students who read for pleasure and who did well at school. Mealtimes were not rushed, the boys weren't looking to rush off to spend time on a screen and there was plenty of book talk.
There is a large number of food-specific words that children may not learn without discussion at dinner and a variety of meals. Many students I have taken to camp will say, 'I don't eat that' and when you ask what it is they do not know so it is more likely that they have never tried it.
Maybe a week of looking at other families eating would help widen their vocabulary and knowledge. Try some of these:
• Let's Eat! Mealtime Around the World by Lynne Marie and Parwinder Singh
• Pasta Pasta Lotsa Pasta by Aimee Lucido and Mavisu Demirag
• Welcome to Our Table by Laura Mucha, Ed Smith and Harriet Lynas
For more ideas see Pinterest Eating and Mealtimes
No comments:
Post a Comment