Could you imagine living in a world where you couldn’t get an education? Many of us enjoy the feel of a book in our hand, the feel of the paper as we turn each page, the words printed jumping out to meet our eyes on cream colored paper, the music in our heads as we read those words in delight, intrigue and entertainment. Now imagine you didn’t have a book to hold. Imagine you were not allowed to read because you were a girl.
Imagine as a parent you didn’t have the joy of reading your child a story and seeing their eyes filled with excitement as you moved through chapters and spent that quality time with that precious gift of yours. I have had the joy of bonding with my own children over a good book, and continue to do so with my grandchildren.
For many children and parents around the world, this ‘imagine’ sequence is reality.
Founded in 2000 on the belief that World Change Starts with Educated Children®, Room to Read’s innovative model focuses on deep, systemic transformation within schools in low-income countries during two time periods which are most critical in a child’s schooling: early primary school for literacy acquisition and secondary school for girls’ education. We work in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments to develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children and ensure girls can complete secondary school with the skills necessary to negotiate key life decisions. Room to Read has benefited 10 million children across 18,000 communities in Asia and Africa and aims to reach 15 million children by 2020. Learn more at www.roomtoread.org.
Room to Read is an organization that is working hard to change that reality. Please watch the videos to learn more about Room To Read’s cause and learn some facts about illiteracy. Remember how lucky we are to have the right to an education.
After reading the you tube comments of the “Do not read this” video, I am going to say if any ignorant comments appear on this post of that nature, they will be deleted. The point of this video is very much the same as my “imagine” sequence above. The message of this video should be a no brainer.
In the age of tech and reading everything from a cell phone or computer, imagine you got an email or text message and didn’t know what the words meant because you couldn’t read them. I do not mean in a foreign language, I mean in your own language…
The comments made me realize how those of us in 1st world countries take simple things like reading for granted.
While I agree we need to cure world hunger, EDUCATION to those who do not have one is a fundamental method of ending poverty and will help stop world hunger. If people can read, they can get better jobs, even create jobs where there are none.
Every child deserves to enjoy the feel of a book in their hand, as they flip each page and the words jump out in beautiful harmony. Every child deserves to be able to attend a class room in a safe environment. Every child deserves the chance to be like most of us, the ability to just read as part of daily life on auto pilot.
For more information and how you can support global education, please visit Room to Read.
NOTE: I am in no way affiliated with Room To Read, nor do they endorse me or my website. I support their organization and am using this post to increase awareness about the 800 million illiterate people around the world in hopes that every child gets the right to have an education, despite their economic status, despite their gender, despite where on our orb they live.
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