This national day celebrates literacy and learning by promoting reading and other literacy-related initiatives as family activities. Sponsored by Honda Canada, the Family Literacy Day project includes a comprehensive, bilingual public awareness campaign comprised of promotional materials, print, broadcast and Web site advertising that has been running in magazines and newspapers, on radio and TV stations, and on Web sites across the country. This national day also includes hundreds of events organized by family literacy providers, schools, libraries and local sponsors in communities across Canada. Celebrity readings, book drives, fundraisers, plays, and contests are just some of the events taking place this year. We are very pleased that Family Literacy Day has been so successful.
Families learning and reading together is important to improving literacy rates.
It can only help to further the continued growth of our country. Early childhood experts, including Dr. Fraser Mustard, agree that good quality early education programs from the very first years of life are vital. In fact, according to a Statistics Canada study, reading to children more than several times a day has a substantial impact on their future academic skills. This year, Family Literacy Day promises to be very successful with numerous grass roots events taking place across Canada on and around January 27. Local dignitaries including Lois Hole, the future Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, will be on hand to distribute book bags to new parents at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton on January 27.