On January 27, 2014, Family Literacy Day will celebrate 16 years of learning together. The initiative, first celebrated by ABC Life Literacy Canada in 1999, has since been embraced by literacy and learning organizations such as schools and libraries in communities across Canada.
This year, ABC Life Literacy Canada is encouraging families to take 15 minutes a day to learn together.
"Learning opportunities occur at home every day," says Gillian Mason, President of ABC Life Literacy Canada, "The benefits of learning as a family outside the classroom are significant - not only are children exposed to a culture of lifelong learning, but the bond between parent and child can grow with each teachable moment."
Even time spent doing the dishes, eating dinner or having a bath can have a focus on learning in a fun way. It's important to embrace these teachable moments at home every day. Here are some great ways for families to get started:
Write a joke book with your family.
Read a bedtime story to the grown-up putting you to bed.
Make up a new recipe together and post it online.
Tell knock-knock jokes together while doing the dishes.
Organize a book swap at your school.
Make up riddles and tell them to your friends.
Create a family book club.
Build a drum with your family.
Surf the Internet and learn about your favourite animal.
Make up a song about your day to sing to your family at dinnertime.
Write messages to your family on sticky notes and post them around the house.
Create a story about what you'll be doing for Family Literacy Day.
Play a board game together.
Build an acrostic poem using your hero's name.
Make an origami boat and see if it will float.
For more great ways to have 15 Minutes of Fun together, or to find a Family Literacy Day event in your community, visit www.FamilyLiteracyDay.ca
