This past weekend my sorority put on a philanthropy at the Boys and Girls club in Lansing, called Reading is Key. For the event we set up different stations that incorporated some type of literacy activity, as well as some miscellaneous "fun" games. Some of the stations were reading stories, making bookmarks and playing word bingo. It was so fantastic to see all of these children so excited to be surrounded by literacy. This really showed me that if you (the teacher) are excited about a subject or activity it is very likely that the students will become excited as well.
Another part of the philanthropy was donating hundreds of books to the center. It felt so rewarding to see all of the books filling up the tables at the back of the room. Each child got to pick three to take home and the rest stay at the center. These students were sooooo excited to look through all of the books and decide which they were interested in the most. This was another time that I realized how important it is to present children with many different reading material. I remember a professor once explained to our class that as long as you can get children reading the content does not matter (in the sense of reading for pleasure).
I thought this philanthropy was so much fun and so rewarding as a future teacher. I hope to be able to come back to the Boys and Girls club to do more events! :)
That is so amazing that you guys went out to the boys and girls club to promote literacy as you did! I have always wanted to volunteer there and make a difference. I think literacy is the foundation for all other subjects. So many students are left behind because they are not exposed to enough literacy. It is so important to ingrain the importance of literacy and show students your own excitement about the subject. As you guys did and they children really seemed to respond to that enthusiasm; which is great! I commend you on giving back to the community in such a fantastic way!
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