Driving home from surf class last Tuesday, Maikol climbed into my lap toting El Lorax, and treated me to an unexpected affirmation of why we’re pursuing the Literacy Project in Lobitos. Thinking that I’d entertain him with a few pages during the short ride, I picked up the book and began to read. But when we arrived in Primavera a few moments later, neither Maikol nor the rest of the boys made the move to head home. 30 minutes later, with numb arms and aching legs, I turned the final page of the story. The boys yawned and stretched, saying how they like the rhyming and nonsense words, and that they’d see me in the afternoon for Story Hour. Hence, the unofficial start to the Lobitos Literacy Project.
After months of thought and conversation, the Lobitos Literacy Project has finally come to life in the form of Hora de Cuentos (Story Hour) for children ages 5-10. Two afternoons last week, 20 children gathered in the WAVES office to read and explore El Gato Ensombrerado (The Cat in the Hat) by Dr. Seuss. We have been so pleased with the positive response and enthusiasm from both the participating children and their parents that we hope to continue this project on a weekly basis throughout the year.
As Story Hour is a new concept for the children, one of our principal challenges is to cultivate a peaceful, comfortable environment. We begin by ushering students into the office, reminding them to be tranquilo as they lounge in a circle of pillows (currently on loan from the surf shop). Volunteers and staff station themselves evenly around the circle with copies of the book so students can follow along and see the illustrations. Then, student leaders and I take turns reading aloud to our younger, or more timid companions.
The idea of the Literacy Project is to develop a sense of excitement about reading, to create memories around the stories that will stimulate curiosity and intellectual development. To help facilitate this in our young students, we play games based on the book such as, Pin the Bowtie on the Cat, Cat in the Hat Bingo, and Cat in the Hat British Bulldog. We’ve also done word search races, colored Cat in the Hat coloring books, and challenged the students with a ‘What would you do if The Cat came to your house?’ writing prompt.
So far, the children’s overwhelming enthusiasm for reading has surprised us all, and affirmed the need for the Literacy Project in Lobitos. Some of my brightest moments have included watching Luciana, a 9 year-old second grader with dyslexia, gain confidence reading aloud and begin to recognize sounds she struggles with. We also had the joy of discovering that another second grader, Felix, is a talented writer after reading his wonderfully warm and creative response to the “What would you do if The Cat came to your house?” prompt.
Story Hour has been well received not only by the children, but also by their mothers, fathers and teachers. It has been heartwarming to feel the support as local leaders make a point to send their children and borrow the books to read as a family. To improve literacy in Lobitos it is imperative that books make it into the home, and we’ve seen just that already. We hope that with continued support from volunteers and donors we can continue to develop a reading culture in Lobitos.
Preparing for another round of Cat in the Hat British Bulldog
Based on the initial success of the project and encouragement from the community, we aim to make the Lobitos Literacy Project one of WAVES Community Outreach’s principal projects of 2013-2014. For details on how to support this project, please email me at kate@wavesfordevelopment.org, and find our Book Wish List here.
Photography by Tom Chadwick
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