The 'Fight Illiteracy' write-off
Aug 27 '07 (Updated Oct 02 '07)
The Bottom Line All children love books. In order to get children interested in books, they have to own books. Please give a child a book and help fight illiteracy.
Do you remember that one special book which made you fall in love with reading? I remember the first book I ever read which so captured my imagination that I couldn’t pay attention to anything outside those pages. It was The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. By the end of the first chapter I was in a daze and I couldn’t think of anything except Lucy and her siblings. I was in 3rd grade, and my teacher asked me repeatedly to put away my library book, but I ignored her. Actually, I didn’t even notice that she was speaking to me. This newfound love earned me a trip to the principal’s office. He was quite firm. He would, he said, have to punish me for being disobedient in class. My punishment was to stay in his office for the rest of the day and read my book. To this day I still adore that man who really understood the magical spell that only a wonderful book can weave.
After I had children I wanted them to have that same experience of falling in love with a good book. I made sure to read to them, we went to the library at least once a week even when they were very small, and I bought a lot of books for them. There’s nothing unusual about any of those things. Most parents I know are like that, too. We all want to help our children to become life-long learners. I was able to get an education and get out of the small town where I grew up because I learned to love reading at an early age, and I wanted my children to have the same advantages I did.
Unfortunately, not all children are so lucky. There are too many children in the U.S. whose parents can’t read at all. Their homes aren’t filled with books. They don’t have people who read to them and they don’t learn the value of reading at home. These children won't ever have that moment of falling in love with a good book, because their parents never did, either. These aren’t bad parents, they are illiterate parents – people who cannot read basic things such as job applications and medicine bottles, and who certainly can’t read a story to a child. Parents who can’t read can’t pass on hopes and dreams to their children. They don’t have good jobs and so their families live in poverty with very little hope of escaping.
I am saddened and shocked by the statistics on adult illiteracy in the U.S. A country as wealthy as ours should fully fund literacy programs and the number of illiterate adults should be falling. Not only is this a moral issue, it is an economic one as well – a country whose citizens are literate will be much more successful in the global economy. As technology advances, we need a more educated labour force. Allowing illiteracy to continue hurts us all. And, lest you think this is a rant against the current administration, no previous government has really put adult literacy at the top of a list of problems which need urgent attention. It’s appalling, and I am ashamed of our track record. Because of my strong feelings about ensuring that children learn to read and learn to value books, I’ve decided that I cannot in good conscience wait for somebody else to solve the problem. While I know I can’t fix the entire system, I do intend to try to help in one small way. I am inviting all of you to join me. But more on that shortly – first, I'd like to share some facts with you.
Mississippi is the state with the lowest adult literacy rate – 60% of adults are considered literate according to the most recent statistics I could find. That means that an astounding 40% of adults in Mississippi cannot read well enough to read a newspaper. Not coincidentally, Mississippi has the highest number of people living below the poverty level in the U.S. In 2002, Mississippi had 18.5% of its residents living under the federal poverty level. In comparison, Minnesota had 11.3% for the same year. Unfortunately, the low tax base in Mississippi means that the state which most needs to fund many literacy intervention programs is the least able to do so.
As I mentioned previously, I have been trying to come up with an idea to benefit a literacy program. Last spring I decided that I wanted to hold a write-off in conjunction with National Literacy Month, which is September. I’d like to invite all of you to join me in helping to fight illiteracy. My plan is fairly simple:
1. I am going to buy a few new children's books.
2. I am going to review those books here on Epinions.
3. After I review them, I will donate these new books to a literacy program in Mississippi.
You can read about the program, sponsored by the Mississippi Humanities Council, by going here:
http://www.mshumanities.org/pages/family.asp
Last week I spoke with Mr. David Morgan, director of the literacy program. After our conversation I felt like I really could make a difference. Their program is family-centered. An adult in the family must attend the weekly program with the child. That means that the child’s reading ability will improve and so will the adult’s. Most important, the child will learn that reading really does matter. Mr. Morgan explained that during the program’s weekly sessions, they try to increase attendance by offering door prizes. Their preferred prizes are books, but they can't always afford them. They also hold a graduation ceremony honouring the children and parents who complete the course, and their goal is to give each child a hardback book – again, something they are not always able to do. The people at the Humanities Council were really pleased to hear from me, and excited but surprised that we would all care enough to want to help them.
Those of us who write here on Epinions are readers. We’re also good writers. We are that way because at some point in our lives, someone was able to make sure we got an education and learned to love books, and reading. We can now pass that on to others, and I am delighted to have that chance to help. I hope you all will share in my delight and in my dream to help by participating in this write-off. dramastef and I are co-hosting this write-off. She has kindly and generously volunteered to collect all of the books we review and ship them down to Mississippi, where they will be given to a child who really needs them.
I know how much new books cost. I am a single mom to four boys whose main pastimes include eating me out of house and home and growing out of their shoes. Although I can’t spare a lot of money, I feel like it will be a good investment to buy some books in order to help someone else’s child.
If you feel the same as I do about adult and child illiteracy, then please join our write-off. Buy a new children's book or two (or three…), write a review including a link in your review to Stef's and my profile pages referencing this write-off. Then email the link to your review to both Stef (srparis22@gmail.com) and me (hadassahchana@yahoo.com). We will post the links, and Stef will send you her address so the books get to the Mississippi Humanities Council.
Starting September 1, I'm really looking forward to reading all of your reviews. At the risk of sounding hopelessly corny and trite, by doing this, you really will make a difference to a child.
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
hadassahchana
|
 in Books |
|
Member: Cindy
Location: "...The True North, Strong And Free..."
Reviews written: 68
Trusted by: 327 members
About Me:
Question about my rating? My email address is on my profile page.
|
|
|
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.