Today is Family Literacy Day and what a fantastic reminder for us all on just how important reading and literacy is for our families!
National Family Literacy Day was created by ABC Canada and Honda Canada in 1999 to encourage all Canadians to make literacy a priority.
“Family Literacy Day, now in its 12th year, continues to be an important initiative because low literacy is a daily challenge for four out of 10 adult Canadians aged 16-65,” said ABC Canada president Margaret Eaton.
This day is meant to encourage families to read and learn together. As a Mom I know that reading is a staple in our nightly bedtime routine. My kids race to their rooms to see who gets to choose their favorite stories first. They have several stories that are their absolute favorites and we can read them daily! With my daughter in Grade 1 and learning to read not only in English but now in French I have realized just how important it is to make sure that both my kids enjoy and love reading!
There are so many extra ciricular activities that keep our kids busy after school and on weekends but one of my children’s favorite activity is to head to our local library. They walk through the stacks of kids books chosing one by one which book they want us to read to them. They love that they can borrow books and return them for new ones. I highly reccomend spending a couple of hours at your local library and just have fun reading with your children.
Here are some ways you can spend Family Literacy Day with your family!
1) Simply enjoy a quiet night at home reading new and old books to your children, once the kids head to bed enjoy a quiet night of reading your favorite book!
2) Head to your local library (several of them are holding events for the month of January in honour of Family Literacy Day. If you are in the GTA check out the TPL Family Day Celebrations web page for more events.
3) Check out Free-Ebooks it is a great site that you can download free books.
4) If you are looking to read some amazing books check out some of our recent Parent Tested Parent Approved Winners.
For more information please visit ABC CANADA.
Most imortantly have fun and enjoy some great books with your family today!
Kathryn
