Putting children and books on the same page
Working with the ‘missing middle’
Over the last twenty years, South Africa has given serious priority to Early Learning (Ages 4 to 7 years). Starting at the beginning makes excellent educational sense and serious financial and practical attention has been directed at this age group. After that … not so much.
Children arrive in Grade 4 at age 10 having learned the basics of reading in their own language. Suddenly, with very little warning, they are expected to learn some subjects in a language they don’t know – English. The alphabet sounds different. There are seldom enough exciting books to stimulate their interest – and classes are too big for much individual attention. The weaker readers lose interest. The better readers struggle on – but without much enjoyment.
We believe that reading is the key to all education. Not rocket science, but a simple fact that seems to have been overlooked in a system where education about reading has failed measurably, for appalling numbers of our children. Estimates differ slightly, but between 82% and 84% of ten-year-olds cannot read for meaning. That sounds bad enough. Translate it into a number of real, living, breathing (but not reading) children and it is 13 million young people who will NOT have enough potential l to grow and develop into anywhere other than the life they have.
We work with rural children who don’t have much of anything. ‘Under-resourced’ is the current word. ‘Poor’ used to be the simple way to describe their lives, opportunities and possibilities. Reading can change that – and it is not hard to achieve.
Children’s Book Network (CBN) has been working for nearly fourteen years to make reading happen. Working with rural communities in the Western Cape, we have given hundreds of reading workshops in containers in informal settlements, community reading projects, township libraries and now in schools. Thousands of children have passed through our free, themed and, above all, fun reading programmes.
They come as volunteers in their spare time – and our workshops are always over-subscribed. Both boys and girls listen, read, play, participate in themed activities linked to the books on their tables. They take home reading packs and share the stories. They read – and they read with enjoyment.
If this matters – at all, and particularly to YOU – please help us to continue to develop the reading materials and methods that make this process happen.
Read more about our work at: www.childrensbook.co.za
