Tag Archives: reading

According to the National Reading Survey more than half of South African adults still live in households without literature and this is not improving over time. It also reports that some 65% of children turn 10 years old without having a single picture book in their homes. “This is a devastating statistic,” …

In a world where technology is constantly at our fingertips, it can be difficult get kids to do activities don’t involve screens. However, there are plenty of fun and engaging options to encourage a break from technology. Here are some screen free activities for kids to enjoy: Arts and Crafts …

There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that early childhood education provides persistent, life-long benefits to children and that a comprehensive birth to age five programme has lasting effects on IQ as well as academic and economic achievement. This is because the neurological foundation for lifelong learning is developed …

If you want to raise avid readers in your home this post is for you. Plenty of research suggests kids who learn to read books from a young age can enhance their cognitive and verbal abilities. Reading offers an essential relaxing activity for children. It is an excellent way to …

Former secretary general of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, once said that “Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope. It is the road to human progress and the means through which every man, woman and child can realise his or her full potential,’’ yet for millions of South African children, that …

It’s a joyful thing to watch children grow into successful readers of the English Language. The English Language follows many different patterns and has various rules making it difficult for younger students learning to read. One of the best strategies in teaching children reading is the use of word families, …

Experts agree that a culture and love of reading is sparked when children recognise themselves in stories and, even more so, when these are written in their mother tongue.  As only 2% of children’s books published commercially in South Africa are written in local African languages*, the Cadbury In Our …

If you’re keen to put some meaning back into giving gifts this festive season, consider purchasing from the READ Online Shop! The READ Online Shop is an initiative by READ Educational Trust, a South African NGO promoting literacy in schools for over 40 years.  We’re giving you the opportunity to …

The COVID-19 epidemic has influenced education and learning, with the most vulnerable children hardest hit, according to READ Educational Trust. Since the coronavirus pandemic, students have lost critical learning time due to rotational attendance, intermittent school closures, and grade-specific days off. Additional school day losses and unforeseen school closures were largely …

When you think about it, reading is a rather complex task. Children must make sense of letters, sounds, words, sentence types, punctuation, and many other structures. The learning doesn’t stop there though. Reading is not simply reciting words on a page. It is a meaning-making process that children bring their …

A love of reading is sparked when children see themselves in stories and relate it to their lives, even more so when it is shared in their home language. Xolisa Guzula – early literary specialist, author and translator – agrees that when children learn to read in their mother tongues it’s …

As soon as your child opens a book, something magical happens. From wondrous journeys through lands unknown and epic adventures, to lessons on kindness, courage and compassion. Inside every book’s cover is a whole new world just waiting to be discovered! Beyond the tales of bravery, enchantment, hopes and dreams, …

If you’re keen to put some meaning back into giving gifts this festive season, consider purchasing from the READ Online Shop! The READ Online Shop is an initiative by READ Educational Trust, a South African NGO promoting literacy in schools for over 40 years. A literate society will surely change …

For over 50 years, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) has celebrated International Literacy Day, and with good reason. Literacy plays a pivotal role in life. The late Kofi Annan coined it when he said, “Literacy is, finally, the road to human progress and the means through which …

Lawyer turned author Karen Theunissen will grace the screen on Books Beyond Words this weekend reading from her first book, ‘I Have Brown Skin and Curly Hair’. The rhyming picture book is about the identity crises many children face when they look different from their family members. The book takes …

This year has proven stormy on so many levels, and the economic chaos resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic has left non-profit organisations like the Rally to Read, reeling. As a non-profit organisation of 23 years standing, Rally to Read has worked tirelessly to promote literacy at grassroots level, in remote …

It’s been over 100 days since the coronavirus outbreak forced South Africans into a lockdown. A truly global event, it sent a third of the world’s population indoors, many working from home and nowhere to go. It is the arts and the stories that they turned to for comfort, entertainment …

The ancient art of storytelling, muted in the preceding years of the pandemic is seeing a revival in living rooms as families take shelter to escape the scourge of the coronavirus. Notwithstanding the provincial borders which remain sealed to contain the virus, every weekend at 11:00am they are dissolved as …

Empathy is the ability to experience and have an understanding of the feelings of others and responding in useful ways. For some children it is easier to develop empathy more inherently than others, but this is a crucial life skill that needs to be taught to all children. Children with …

National Book Week’s Books Beyond Words online storytelling event brings Khoisan history, heritage and folklore to its Facebook Live event this weekend. A radio show host, Dina Christiaan, will present a  story, in Nama, of which only some 2000 speakers remain in South Africa. Nama is the cultural name for …