Family Literacy Day, held annually on January 27, raises awareness of the importance of reading and engaging in learning activities as a family.

Many schools in the division mark Family Literacy Day (next Tuesday) with fun activities for students. 

At Elmer Elson Elementary in Mayerthorpe, students are encouraged to read books that have either been written or illustrated by Canadians. 

All applicable books in the library are marked with a Canadian flag from picture books to fiction and junior fiction and so on. Students are able to enter their name in a draw each time they read a book that is written or illustrated by a Canadian author or illustrator. 

At the end of the month names are drawn from each classroom and those students get to pick a book to keep from their Librarian, Mrs. LeClercq’s prize collection.

“The students learn about new authors that they may not have discovered otherwise,” commented LeClercq. “There are more and more Canadian authors now so there is an excellent selection of books to choose from and with the help of our book jobber, a person who sends books to us to preview for the library, we have really boosted our collection." 

Playing board games and card games, enjoying a book together, singing, writing a letter to a relative or friend and sharing in day-to-day tasks such as making a shopping list, using a recipe and surfing the internet for fun and interesting sites are all examples of how families can build literacy and numeracy skills.

Taking time every day to read or do a learning activity with children is crucial to a child’s development. Even just 15 minutes a day can improve a child’s confidence and literacy skills dramatically!

Looking to boost your own collection?
http://www.bookcentre.ca/links
http://www.canlitforkids.com/