Excited for Literacy!

The students look through the book bins to pick out the books they want to borrow for the week. 

Here are some more recent photos from the literacy program I'm heading up in the Rio. We have now been going at it about 6 months! How time does fly! Just today I was out in the Rio with the kids teaching them a lesson about good readers asking questions. We did an activity where we listed all the questions we had about a particular book before we read it, while reading, and then afterward. We checked to see if any of our questions were answered along the way. I was really encouraged to see the kids participating and enjoying the mini lesson. The kids worked in groups of three to do the same activity on their own with another book... it was great! Even the littlest of 4 years was asking great questions. So good to see the kids involved in the books and excited about reading!!!!!

We love to read!!!!

Maru, my mother-in-law and my biggest helper, reads with Monse. 

Daniel and Sara bring the books they have borrowed to exchange them for new books. 

Reading with Yajira during free reading time.

Today a very excited thing happened while I was packing up my things to leave the Rio after our class. I noticed that one of the ladies in the community had stopped the students, on their way back to their houses, to look at their books. It turns out that this lady is the aunt of several of the students and I discovered that after the students leave my class they usually go to their aunt's house and let her borrow some of the books they have borrowed from me. This aunt lives two doors down from the comedor where we hold the literacy program. She has two tiny boys. Open seeing her eagerness to read the books the kids had, I invited her to come to the literacy program herself next week. I said her boys were young, but if she wanted to bring them with her to the class she could. Exposing her sons to literacy at an early age is really just what they need! She was delighted at the thought of being able to check out her own books to read to her kids. She told me that maybe she could learn some things too in order to read better with her boys! I am very excited about this opportunity and pray that she becomes a weekly participant! Praise Jesus for parents who have interest in reading to their children!!! What a great day!