We are now in our third year of reading sessions and it hasn’t been without its challenges. There are many social and domestic issues that especially impact children from lower socio- economic backgrounds.
COVID-19 has added a lot more pressures in these communities as many people lose their jobs and with it the ability to adequately provide for their families.
We Vunilagi have had to adapt our program to follow suit and maintain presence in order to provide safe space where children and books come together and escape the realities for a little while.
Although times are hard, we’re always encouraged by the children and some of the growth we get to witness over time.
For example, at a reading session two weeks ago, we were pleasantly surprised to find one of the young boys step up to the plate and assist our team for two hours.
Ram is 11 years-old and one of our strongest readers. On the morning of that reading session he brought his younger sibling to the Kindy session and seeing as the four children were Indo-Fijian, I asked him to translate.
Ram translated to Hindi for all sessions except his own, he also helped give out fruits, and lined them up for photos.
Ram’s contribution that day was appreciated by our team as we saw that he had observed the work we do and applied himself accordingly.
These little wins keep our little book club going when there are so many challenges surrounding us. It is important to provide platforms and opportunities for children and the youth to excel.
We encourage our young members to know the importance of reading towards not only their education but their everyday life.
Whether a child dreams to be a teacher, farmer, lawyer, or carpenter, reading will be essential to their growth and survival. This week we share some words of wisdom from two Vunilagi Book Club members:
Why reading is important to me Knowing the English language plays a vital role in my schooling because it helps me to understand and relate to issues as well as having the ability to discuss matters.
I think that reading helps a person to become smarter and can improve mental stability. Reading can also reduce stress and enables me to communicate freely to others and help them.”
Shirani (12 years-old) English is the second most important language to my mother tongue of Fijian-Hindi. Reading plays a major role in education. It develops our thoughts and gives us endless knowledge.
Reading makes us skilful in communicating ourselves to others.
As a school student, I feel like one has to know the basic skill of reading in order to understand and learn properly. Rishali (13 years-old) Until next time,
CORRECTION: An article titled Embracing the new normal written by Pearl Maybir that was published on page 3 of the Kaila! on June 17 Issue No.23 referred to Loriza Rafi q as Lorissa Khan. We sincerely regret any inconvenience this may have caused. – Editor
