Floating book fair fuels reading push

The National Task Force on Literacy Education is set to boost reading and learning across the island with a generous donation of books from the MV Logos Hope, the world’s largest floating book fair.

The donation, spanning categories from science to children’s stories, will help underserved families and communities foster a love for reading and support literacy development islandwide.

Expressing gratitude, the head of the task force, Dr Sylvia Henry, noted that the contribution, which she shared is worth “hundreds of dollars”, allows for “a significant step in [their] mission to foster and sustain a culture of reading and learning”.

“These books were selected for varying age groups, sexes, and literacy levels and will appeal to those from early childhood to young adults,” she said.

She told Barbados TODAY that the first distribution is set to take place on Wednesday evening at Harrison College’s hall during a parent engagement initiative hosted by the Ministry of Education.

The initiative, according to Henry, will provide parents with resources to support literacy development at home.

“The books will be distributed to families who cannot afford books at our community literacy clinics, which will continue in 2025,” she added.

Noting the interest of parents so far, Henry said: “We have requests from individuals and parents who want to promote home literacy.”

She also shared that a church has requested books to give as gifts during a community walk-through planned for later this month.

According to Henry, the books respond to findings from a recent national literacy survey that highlighted the need for greater access to reading materials.

“These books to be donated to families and community groups will also respond to a call revealed in our recent national literacy survey,” she said.

The literacy clinics, a key initiative of the task force, have been instrumental in bringing educational resources to underserved communities.

Henry shared that it will continue to serve as a distribution point for the donated books, ensuring that families across the island have access to these resources. In addition to distribution, the clinics also provide literacy screenings, storytelling sessions, and activities for parents to help children improve their literacy skills.

The literacy advocate further acknowledged that, in addition to the donation from the MV Logos Hope, the task force has been the beneficiary of ongoing support from the wider community.

“Even as we accept these books with gratitude, the task force thanks all those who’ve made similar donations and encourages organisations and individuals to work with us to help us ensure that everyone has access,” she said.

With plans to continue its outreach into the new year, Henry further made a call for literacy materials to assist the visually challenged community, noting a need for books with large print.