In the run up to International Literacy Day on the 8th of September, a new campaign is aiming to make Scotland the world’s greatest nation of storytellers.
The Every Day’s a Story Day scheme is urging parents and staff in nurseries, schools and colleges to place a renewed emphasis on storytelling.
Organisers Early Years Scotland (EYS) believe children should hear stories every day because it helps them have an equal and excellent start in life and build strong and supportive relationships.
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They say it also helps foster a love of books and allows youngsters to explore new worlds and other cultures.
Some well-known figures are helping to champion the initiative, including Sanjeev Kohli of Still Game and comedians Des Clarke and Fred MacAulay.
The drive to enrich and enhance language and literacy is also at the heart of International Literacy Day, which was launched by UNESCO, the United Nations education agency, more than fifty years ago.
Nearly 800 million people around the world – two thirds of them female – are illiterate in their own languages. And UNESCO recently warned that promises made by world leaders to raise global education standards by 2030 are unlikely to be kept. It says on current trends 30% of adults and 20% of young people will still be illiterate in poor countries and adds the numbers missing out on education are unlikely to fall much in the next decade.
There are 262 million young people without access to school, with the worst problems in sub-Saharan Africa.
It’s hoped that celebrating literacy on September 8th will inspire more to study reading and writing and help create more education opportunities.
As well as inviting donations from adults to the International Literacy Association, school children are being asked to let a teacher know they’re appreciated by offering a small gift, sending them a card or simply saying thank you.
Teachers, of course, are incredibly important in, not only sharing the basics of reading and writing, but also, helping schoolchildren nurture a lifelong love of literature…and even develop a professional writing style of their own.
The best teachers of the English language need to have a deep understanding of their subject; where gaps appear, learning falters. And this means the best teachers are constantly reading, growing their knowledge and passing fresh perspectives direct to their class.
On top of this, they get to know pupils’ personalities and personal interests – with this insight, they can fine tune reading and writing lessons not only to help understanding but also inspire youngsters to seek out books for themselves and try their hand at creative writing.
Of course, a positive experience of reading and writing at home is also necessary to ensure learning continues. If the home environment is not the best it can be, this is where support workers specialising in childcare and education may come in.
Not only can they give practical and professional help to kids going through tough times but also facilitate learning opportunities.
And it’s not only skills for youngsters: clients can include adults with learning difficulties or disabilities, young offenders or recovering addicts.
A family support worker works closely with families in their own homes to assess their needs before suggesting a care and education plan. This could involve organising extra coaching in reading and writing.
A residential support worker, meanwhile, is there to assist vulnerable residents of care homes, hostels, children’s homes and youth centres – many of whom might find themselves struggling with literacy.
It takes good listening skills, compassion and understanding to be a support worker. You’ll also need to be flexible when it comes to hours as working evenings, weekends, overnight or being on-call can all be part of the job.
In return comes the immense satisfaction of witnessing achievements every day and the knowledge you’re having a positive impact on lives for the long term.
Once a curiosity in books has been inspired, where better to nurture a love of literature than a library? Although many of Scotland’s libraries have sadly disappeared in recent years there are still treasure troves where it’s the job of the library assistant to help keep the shelves stocked and organised, guide lenders through the different genres and authors and even host reading days where they or local writers can share their favourite books.
Whether it’s a Harry Potter novel from JK Rowling or Revolting Rhymes poetry by Roald Dahl, getting kids interested in books can also be helped by the work f PR and marketing pros.
From creating advertising campaigns to organising launch events and serialising books in newspapers to promoting them on social media, it’s the marketing executive’s mission to make sure their author is well known and well read.
If you’d like to open a new chapter in your own career, explore the opportunities a job in literacy can offer by reading the latest vacancies on s1jobs.