Library hosting International Family Story Time

The Marjorie Mews Library in St. John’s will be one of numerous sites nationwide that will celebrate Family Literacy Day with a special event slated for Friday.

The library will host an International Family Story Time from 10-10:30 a.m. and this event will have a special twist.

The library is borrowing the skills of a number of people who frequent the facility from other nations, and those individuals will read to children (ages 0-5) in their respective languages and then translate those rhymes and songs to English for all participants to understand.

The languages that will be featured include American Sign Language, German, Urdo and Croatian.

The actual date for the ABC Life Literacy Canada (ABC) is Saturday, Jan. 27 and the one in St. John’s will help celebrate the 19th anniversary of Family Literacy Day with other community organizations, schools, libraries, learning centres and families across the country.

Family Literacy Day raises awareness of the importance of reading and engaging in other literacy-related activities as a family.

“Parents are our first and best teachers,” Mack Rogers, ABC Life Literacy Canada’s executive director, stated in a news release Thursday.

“Improving literacy skills and inspiring a love of lifelong learning is what Family Literacy Day is all about. We’re so pleased to see the enthusiasm with which Canada supports Family Literacy Day year after year and from coast to coast to coast.”

Family Literacy Day was launched in 1999 by ABC and takes place on Jan. 27 every year with family-friendly literacy and learning events across the country.