Category Archives: Literacy

A Few Words From Vineet Bhatnagar, Founder of Shine Zambia Reading Academy

“Having worked with A to Z Literacy since building our literacy school, Shine Zambia Reading Academy in 2009, I know personally how much their help has contributed to the success of our school.  Not just support through financial sponsorship of teachers’ allowances and pupil lunches, or through books donated and shipped to Zambia to stock our school library, but in the training provided to our teachers.  This training has been given by Mal and various volunteers who have sacrificed their time to work with our teachers for around a week almost every summer for the past 5 years.

I wanted to find out first hand how A to Z and its visits to our school over the years have impacted our teachers, so I asked them.  Upon my request, our teachers had a meeting to discuss it and wrote back to me with feedback.  The teachers unanimously agreed that they had all been greatly impacted by the A to Z training sessions and feel their teaching style has improved.  They specifically mentioned the strategies they were taught for reading with pupils, improving pupil writing skills and conducting group discussions in class.  Here’s a quote from our Head Teacher, David Mulenga, about writing strategies: “We were particularly astounded at how well our own Year 2 pupils were able to write, all by themselves. We learned this particularly from Dave. He would show them a picture card and ask them to say what they can see from it and he wrote those things on the blackboard. He would then ask the pupils to write their own stories about any of those things written on the board. Wow!  It was amazing to see the ideas that came from the children!”

We truly appreciate A to Z Literacy’s guidance over the years in making our literacy program even stronger and we hope to continue working in partnership for many years to come.” – Vineet Bhatnagar

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Without you, we would not be able to meet our goals of promoting literacy to students in Zambia and providing professional development to teachers where the need is substantial. Thank you for understanding the mission of global literacy and the importance of reading.

Yes, I wish to make a special year-end gift to help get books into the hands of children who want read. (click here)

A to Z Literacy Movement, Inc is a non-profit 501c3 organization. Your tax-deductible contribution will help promote literacy and increase the love of reading for children living in poverty-stricken areas.

Little Treasures Between the Pages

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As one of the book gatherers for A to Z Literacy Movement, I see a great number of books come into our hands. Occasionally the books contain secret treasures, flattish objects that someone who once held the book stored away inside.
Typically, they are bookmarks, but we see other items: a book’s receipt or scraps of paper with notes written on them. We picture a student patiently using the E.Z. Reader strip and see that a miniature ten-spot suitably became a bookmark. Even plastic toys wind up in books as the accompanying picture shows.
We are ever appreciative of our book donors, as we couldn’t do our work without them. And we’re reminded of the tale within the book when something slips out from it’s pages.
By Pat Kelly

Teens Making a Difference

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By Mal Keenan

What do you get when you take a group of high school juniors and the desire to do something for others? Treasured gifts…gifts for vulnerable children miles from their Crystal Lake Central English classroom.

Earlier this year, I shared the work of A to Z Literacy Movement with Angela Welder’s junior English class. The students were searching for a service learning project and decided to lend a helping hand to the nonprofit. They took on the challenge to create Book in Bags for Shine Zambia Reading Academy.

The teens gathered children’s books and began practicing their reading fluency, attending to speed and expression. Other Crystal Lake Central teachers like Kylene Gott became involved, coaching them along, until these inspiring juniors were ready to record their voices with library media center director Diana Nelson.

After the story recordings were complete, the students created a page to be paired with the book that included information about them, a picture of the reader, along with a few questions about the story to be considered.

On June 11th, I’ll head back to Zambia with all of the Books in Bags to share with the children at Shine. The students will listen to the stories and hear the kind and compassionate voices of Crystal Lake Central teens who are choosing to make a difference. What amazing gifts of service and literacy.

How would the world change?

By Anastasia Gruper

How the world would change if…

…every child had the opportunity to read stories.
…every child built their imaginations and schema on different encounters with the written word.
…every child had the opportunity share their ideas.
…every child had the opportunity to write their stories.

As Mal and Dave prepare for their trip to Zambia, we remember our mission and our goals: to improve the lives of impoverished children through literacy development.

After listening to Chimamanda Adichie’s Ted Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” it is evident that change is taking place in Nigeria.  Through the use of literacy, people are making a difference. As Chimamanda concludes, she speaks of the “incredible resilience of people who thrive despite the government rather than because of it.” Her volunteer work teaching reading and writing workshops, building libraries, refurbishing libraries, and providing books for state schools who lack resources improves the literacy lives of children.  Her mission is similar to ours: to provide children the opportunity to read, write, and tell many stories that matter.

Safe travels to Mal and Dave, may the work you share improve literacy lives and give children the opportunity to tell their stories.

Woods Creek Cares

By: Julie Carson – Founder of Woods Creek Cares

A to Z Party A to Z Literacy Party 2

We don’t always know the whole story… but we are called to obey and pray.  That is where this story begins… 

On Sunday, May 3rd a group of us from Woods Creek Cares met with Mal & Betty from A to Z Literacy Movement.  A group of 15 total families who decided to sponsor a family and assist a school in Africa came together to share love across the world.  As we watched the videos and ate African inspired snacks, colored bookmarks and picked out books for the Zulu family, an ordinary Sunday afternoon became the beginning of an opportunity to open our eyes to the world and experience God’s transforming love and power.

So here we are— a group of families in the Chicago suburbs ready to share love, excited to see how the connections God brought together will serve Him across the globe.  We are eager to connect with the Zulu family and hear how God is working in their lives, and wondering how this will impact our own children’s hearts as we pray for them and share our lives together.  

An exciting new story, all for God’s Glory!

{Woods Creek Cares is a parent-initiated organization from Woods Creek Elementary in Crystal Lake that serves the community through service projects and lifts up the school, staff and students up in prayer.  To find out more about their events and meetings, e-mail woodscreekcares@gmail.com or find them on Facebook under “Woods Creek Cares”}.  

6 Boxes of Books made it to the Dominican Republic

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Sometimes, when you ask, you receive.  Cristy learned that when she contacted us a few months ago:

Hi, my name is Cristy Kinahan, Sandy Kinahan’s daughter.  My mom told me about your organization recently and that you might be able to send books to the school I am currently teaching at in the Dominican Republic.  Of course I would need to talk with our school directors but please let me know if there is anything I need to or can do in order to make this a possibility.  I teach at Saint David School in the city of Santiago.  It is a bilingual school for students from three years old through high school.  I teach American curriculum to first and second graders.  This year has definitely been a blast and an amazing experience.  Though I have learned so much, it also has made me grateful for the ample amount of resources that were available to me growing up in District 47.  Because the school has split curriculum between Dominican and American, our English resources are limited.  Any donation would be helpful, these students are energetic to learn the language and better their lives.  I have seen your organizations website and love the incredible things you are doing in Zambia to help those students in need.  I hope that extending your good wills to the Dominican Republic is a possibility as well.

After a few weeks of back and forth, the A to Z team decided to send a shipment of books.  Here’s the response:

Mal,

The books arrived yesterday!!!! We are so excited! It was also my director’s birthday and “Dia del Libro” so it was perfect!  Wow, we cannot thank you enough, these books are amazing and I cannot believe how many there are and in such great condition!  My director and I presented the books to the school today and they are on display in our tiny library.  Though they cannot be checked out until all are stamped and registered, classes are invited to visit and see all of your amazing donations.  I took my first graders today and they had a blast!  We let them explore different picture books and then did a couple read alouds, they were amazed and so excited!  I also had a few sixth graders take a peek and they found some interesting texts as well.  Our school is so incredibly grateful for your efforts and generosity, we cannot express it enough.  I have attached a few pictures I took today of my students.  We will update you further on our excitement and joy but I just wanted to send you a quick message to let you know that we received the six packages!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Cristy

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My Librarian is a Camel

By Betty Trummel

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Recently I shared excerpts from “My Librarian is a Camel” with my class as part of our literacy instruction at Husmann Elementary School. What a wonderful reminder of how people around the world, especially in small corners and remote places, value books and reading. It certainly makes me reflect on the mission of A to Z Literacy Movement…to get books into the hands of impoverished children. Whether it’s by boat, camel, donkey cart, or elephant, the fact that people are creative in how books are brought to children puts a smile on many faces world-wide.

The author of the book, Margriet Ruurs, stated: “From Azerbaijan to Zimbabwe, I discovered people who are passionate about books and who understand the importance of libraries in our lives.”

So true, Margriet, and right now I’m thinking of the library we helped create at Shine Zambia Reading Academy located in the compounds just outside of Lusaka, Zambia.  I can just imagine the students there enjoying the books we’ve shipped to them and the games we’ve brought to the school while on our teaching trips.

Smiles, lots of happy children, learning every day. Happy to be a part of this wonderful organization…A to Z Literacy.

Dreaming of a Library: Just Imagine

By Anastasia Gruper

Recently a teacher sent me this link: http://harpercollinschildrens.tumblr.com/post/91477159938/17-creative-childrens-libraries

Imagine the excitement and joy a child would have if the space they were able to read, write and tell stories in took them to another place and time. Imagine the stories people could create surrounded by such creativity.  Imagine the desire people would have to visit the land of books.  It’s time for a road trip.

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Making Connections: English Language Arts Units of Study and A to Z Literacy Movement

The following post was originally published on Betty Trummel’s classroom blog, which you can find at http://home.d47.org/hus/eatrummel/.

In keeping with our current theme in the Unit of Study and our story entitled “My Librarian is a Camel” we are learning more about how children around the world get books.  Today I spoke with the entire fourth grade about a local non-profit organization called A to Z Literacy Movement.  I have been involved with A to Z for about 5 years now, and our key mission is getting books into the hands of impoverished children in Zambia, Africa. (as well as other places and also here locally)  

Check out:  www.atozliteracy.org  for photos, video clips, and more information.  The students all wanted to DO something after hearing about children in Zambia and the work of A to Z Literacy Movement.  

We have decided to do several things:  

1) We’d like to collect gently used books to send to the students at two schools (lower level books, no “western” world themes, yes to nonfiction and picture books, and also to easy fiction).  

2) We’d like to collect change…all of the coins we can (or any money donation), to use toward shipping the books to Zambia and/or school supplies for the students.  

3)  Some children expressed an interest in collecting/donating school supplies, since children in some areas in Zambia rarely even have a pencil of their own.  Supplies most needed are pencils, larger erasers or pencil-top erasers, hand-held pencil sharpeners, and boxes of 12 colored pencils.  I will gather these items in my classroom, and they will be taken to Zambia in June.  

4)  Many students expressed an interest in creating their own books to share with students in Zambia.  I had shown the group several examples of books I self-published on Apple/Mac that I either wrote with the children I taught in Zambia or wrote with students in my class here at Husmann.  Go for it!  It would be fun to have more books written by our Husmann students!  

Here are a couple of the books I’ve done…

Zambia, Zambia What Do You See ABC's of Husmann

Here are a few photos that depict what it’s like in the areas where A to Z Literacy has worked in Zambia.

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And the Answer Is…Trivia Night!

Cabin Fever is settling in. It’s February and we all need a night out with friends.
Sure, we love our Midwestern winters, but we also recognize that shut-in feeling of not having seen many folks due to the colder temps.
It’s time to do something. Something fun.
It’s time to laugh, gather together, and support a fantastic non-profit.
It’s time for A to Z Trivia Night.
Head to the website for tickets – www.atozliteracy.org

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