How Reading for Life Works
Community Assessment: Before Child Aid partners with a community, our in-country director interviews local school directors, teachers, librarians, mayors (when necessary) and parents, not only to assess the communities’ needs, but to determine local motivation, commitment and leadership. All of the new communities we work with have shown excellence in these areas.
Library Development: In each participating community, we work closely with the librarian to: (a) remove outdated and useless books; (b) replace those books with quality, age-appropriate story, text and reference books; (c) develop a long-term plan for the library, including ways to generate future funding; (d) catalog the collection; (e) create a book lending program which allows children to bring books into their homes, often for the very first time; and (f) create out-of-school reading programs that engage children during the school break. Depending on the state of the library, we also equip the space with bookshelves, tables and chairs. The goal is to make the library a space in which children can learn and in which the community will take pride.
Linking Libraries to Schools: Child Aid provides each librarian with the materials, curriculum and training needed to establish the library as a reading resource center. We start by offering the librarian the pedagogical tools (activity guides and materials) to conduct in-school reading promotion visits as well as out-of-school literacy programs in the libraries. With guidance from Child Aid’s training staff, the librarian brings daily or weekly reading activities into schools and invites classes to come to the library for reading hours. When the school year is over, the librarian continues to work with children through our daily school-break program, Aventuras de Lectura (Adventures in Reading).
Teacher Training and Classroom Reading: For each community, Child Aid provides a series of teacher training sessions that reach hundreds of teachers and impact thousands of children. Our trainings focus on active reading, comprehension, retention and motivation. Teachers learn and practice a variety of reading activities and teaching methods using Child Aid’s instructional guide Haciendo una Comunidad de Lectores (Creating a Community of Readers). Our program activities provide structure and incentives to get primary school children into the habit of reading. Reading promotion is the heart of our work in schools, where all activities are intended to instill in children a love of books and stories.
Ongoing Support for Teachers and Librarians: When we bring Reading for Life to a community, we make a long-term commitment to ensure the program’s success. Child Aid staff schedule regular one-on-one visits with librarians and teachers during and after the course of training. This follow-up is a critical part of Reading for Life because each community is different, each has its own needs, and each responds to the program in its own way. Our follow-up work in libraries ensures that the facilities are organized, catalogued and functional. We help both teachers and librarians get comfortable with the reading activities they carry out so their students get the greatest possible benefit from the program.
