A trivia challenge, a social media contest and an online conversation are some of the ways New Westminster residents can celebrate Literacy Month.
The City of New Westminster will be proclaiming September as Literacy Month.
“It’s is always a great opportunity to engage people in our community and increase awareness about literacy throughout September,” said Maylen Crespo, community lead – manager of community education and development services for Family Services of Greater Vancouver. “This year’s theme is #LiteracyMatters.”
Literacy New Westminster is an action group that’s dedicated to promoting adult, child and family literacy through free and low-cost programs, events and book distribution. Its membership includes representatives from the school district, non-profit organizations, the Ministry of Children and Family Development and the New Westminster Public Library.
Literacy New Westminster has some suggestions on ways community members can celebrate Literacy Month.
*Light up in purple to celebrate International Literacy Day on Sept. 8.
*Join the provincewide Literacy Month social media contest and share photos (including Zoom screenshots work), videos, quotes or stories to show why literacy matters. Participants are encouraged to use the hashtags #literacynewwest #LiteracyMatters and #PutOnYourPurple and tag @decodaliteracy. Prizes will be given out for some of the photos that are selected.
*Participate in the online trivia challenge that Decoda Literacy Solutions is organizing for the Raise a Reader campaign on Tuesday, Sept. 22 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. For details, go to www.decoda.ca.
Decoda Literacy Solutions, a provincewide literacy organization, supports community-based literacy programs and initiatives in over 400 communities across B.C. More information about literacy week, as well as activities like a Literacy Month calendar including daily activities in September, is found at www.decoda.ca.
Crespo, who is New Westminster Literacy’s outreach coordinator, said the group works to identify the learning needs of New West residents and to respond to those needs by working with others to coordinate and support literacy programs and services and to create new initiatives while improving access to learning opportunities in the community.
“I invite community members to participate next month promoting Literacy Month because literacy strongly intersects with issues all New Westminster residents care deeply about such essential skills, health, financial, digital technology, civic engagement and more,” she said. “But also because supporting literacy initiatives these days means giving opportunities to approach new mindsets and support to adapt to new structures as they are evolving.”
Crespo said another way people can participate in Literary Month is by organizing an On the Table event on a topic related to literacy. More information about On the Table, a Vancouver Foundation initiative that provides a platform for people wanting to host meaningful conversations, is available at www.onthetablebc.com.
