By Pauline Russell
Cariboo Chilcotin Partners for Literacy Society (CCPL) Immigrant Settlement Services branch supports families in providing services to parents and their children. Our biggest commitment to our families is to provide every child with quality child care and encourage every family to work toward their goals of becoming more literate in English. Our bright red book shelf is one of our special features so children have access to books at all times.
In 2016, I had the opportunity to spend some quality time with a little girl who attended our childminding services, while her mom attended classes at CCPL Immigrant Settlement Services.
Read More: Why literacy matters and where you can go for support
At that time she couldn’t speak any English and it was kind of challenging to understand what she was communicating to me most days. She didn’t really speak too much at all and I am sure it was frustrating for her. We made the most of our time together and worked on learning the letters of the alphabet and some words.
She spent a lot of her time just playing by herself and wasn’t really into reading books or doing crafts. After some encouragement she showed more interest in participating. She really enjoys reading and doing crafts now and has even taken books home from our bright red book shelf to share with her family.
I spent some more time with her in November and December of 2018 and I am so thrilled to hear how well she speaks in English now. It sure is amazing how much she has learned!
This child has come a long way since 2016. I am very excited about her progress and happy to see how comfortable she is speaking in English. It sure is nice to be able to communicate with her and understand what she is saying. This little girl has learned so much in the last three years. All I can say is … Wow!! What a big difference!!
Pauline Russell has been working with the CCPL since the fall as a childminder, caring for children while their parents attend classes.
Do you have a comment about this story? email:
editor@wltribune.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.