National Family Literacy Day, November 1st

November 1st – National Family Literacy Day & November – National Family Literacy Month

The 103^rd Congress passed a Joint Resolution 413 in 1994 designating November 1^st as National Family Literacy Day.

This day is set aside to focus on special activities and events that showcase the importance of family literacy programs.

However, don’t just celebrate on this one day. The entire month of November is recognized as National Family Literacy Month so take advantage of literacy programs all month.

Families play an important role in the education of their children. Plan activities and events that focus on your family learning together by participating in National Family Literacy Month.

1. Set aside a little time for reading every day, even if it’s only for 15 or so minutes.
2. Go through both old and new books and set some of your favorites around the house. They make cute decorations, and maybe one of the kids will pick one up and start reading!
3. Take a few trips to the library.
4. Read your child the book version of their favorite movie. If they can read on their own, encourage them to read it!
5. Start a book club with friends and family.
6. Participate in a book drive and donate old or used books you no longer need. This will help families in need read to their kids.

Reading together encourages family bonding and spurs collaborative learning activities.

• When children are young and parents read to them, it piques their interest in reading. It is also fun to have the children make up stories regarding pictures in children’s books. As children get older, reading aloud to family members helps them to become stronger readers.
• Families who participate in family reading time have stronger bonds than those that don’t.
• Children who read during family reading time are proven to have higher grades in school. They also exhibit higher self-confidence than children who don’t have quality family time together.
• It is one more way to pursue and build relationships with your children as they become young adults.

Illiteracy carries a big price tag.

From the National Institute for Literacy, “Adult illiteracy carries an estimated price tag of $225 billion annually as a result of loss of income and tax revenue, unemployment or under employment, incarceration, and supplemental training for entry-level jobs.“

1. Crime rates: 60% of U.S. inmates cannot read or write a letter. 75% of state prison inmates did not complete high school.

2. Unemployment: Job searching and the ability to maintain a job demands literacy skills along with an increase in specialized vocabulary skills.

3. Health Care: The inability to read medical documentation adds over $230 billion to the country’s annual health costs.

#FamilyLiteracyDay #NationalFamilyLiteracyMonth

Oliver Law Firm supports literacy programs and is proud to have a reading program with an office library full of great books. The mission of our reading program is to create personal growth, inspiration and training for our team and to continuously improve our client services.

Learn more about the Oliver Law Firm reading program in our blog

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