Opinion: Mexico’s Día del Niño is also Día del Libro (books!)

Día del Niño — Children’s Day — successful Mexico is upon us.

There’s nary uncertainty that children who observe Día connected some sides of the United States-Mexico borderline anticipation that April 30th brings gifts of candy, toys oregon possibly coveted items similar caller sneakers oregon electronics. But we tin bash much than conscionable fulfill a saccharine bony oregon indulge the newest trend; we tin springiness children the acquisition that lasts a beingness — a sensation for reading.

Children’s Day, which is celebrated each April 30 successful Mexico, is an accidental to promote steadfast habits successful children. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)

Día del Niño y la Niña became literacy-focused successful 1997 erstwhile Pat Mora, writer and writer of much than 40 children’s books, wrote, “We person Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. We request Kids’ Day too, but I privation to link each children with ‘bookjoy,’ oregon the pleasance of reading.”

Mora’s connection is adjacent much important today. Children request to rediscover the magic and adventures that prevarication betwixt the covers of a book, due to the fact that probe has shown america that children who work much go amended readers.

And children connected some sides of the borderline request to beryllium amended readers successful bid to make the captious reasoning and employability skills that their futures demand. In Mexico, 1 successful 3 third-grade students cannot comprehend what they read. In the U.S., a afloat 40% of 4th-grade students neglect to conscionable adjacent basal grade-level speechmaking standards. In speechmaking connected the PISA test, 20% of American 15-year-olds work astatine a 10-year-old’s level.

Although Día del Niño y la Niña is simply a celebration, it’s a bully clip to deliberation astir these sobering statistics.

Today, Día is simply a nationally recognized inaugural that emphasizes the value of literacy for each children from each backgrounds. It is simply a committedness to linking children and their families to divers books, languages and cultures. But successful bid to read, children request books, and books are not easy disposable and accessible to each families.

So, wherefore not see the acquisition of books this Día del Niño for the children successful your life?

Of course, children who did not turn up with a beardown speechmaking civilization astatine location and who person not developed the wont connected their ain whitethorn not privation to work — astatine slightest until they’ve tried it capable to larn the joyousness that speechmaking genuinely is. Again, this is wherever we adults indispensable incentivize them until speechmaking becomes a habit, oregon astatine slightest a regular activity.

This summer, the binational enactment 311Literacy is giving kids entree to implicit 10,000 books.

Kids tin enactment successful The Great Reading Tournament (TGRT), an planetary contention successful English and Spanish that incentivizes speechmaking and rewards readers for the clip they walk speechmaking and comprehending what they person read. For conscionable US $10, kids get summer-long entree to 10,000 books online successful some Spanish and English.

Starting June 15, the tournament’s level volition way the magnitude of clip the kids walk reading, and those who work the astir triumph existent prizes. So far, much than 40,000 kids person participated, collectively speechmaking for much than 4 cardinal minutes.

In the tone of “it takes a village,” and recognizing that nary 1 successful nine benefits erstwhile the younger procreation is little educated than the existent one, TGRT besides invites firm and philanthropic organizations to sponsor underserved students who look challenges successful accessing the program.

We adults person the powerfulness to springiness los niños the acquisition of a lifetime: meaningful literacy.

It’s a acquisition we cannot spend to withhold. On Día del Niño, let’s admit the value of children to society, marque a fuss implicit the kids, and springiness them the champion escapade of all: the quality to observe for themselves the joyousness and powerfulness of reading.