Today, September 8, is International Literacy Day. It was created by UNESCO to “remind the international community of the importance of literacy for individuals, communities and societies, and the need for intensified efforts towards more literate societies.”

Literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning. It generates possibilities and opportunities. It allows individuals access to information and participation in society. It empowers individuals, families and communities.  
I believe a more literate world is a better world. 
However, millions of people around the globe still don’t have access to schools, books or technology, which perpetuates the cycle of illiteracy, poverty and inequality. 
I've been thinking about how lucky we are and how we can contribute in small or big ways. So here are some ideas:

Supporting Literacy at Home

• Read together regularly, in all your languages
• Give books as gifts
• Ask for books as gifts
• Organize a book swap party with friends
• Visit the library regularly
• Use your child’s interests to engage in reading and writing. Dinosaurs? Lego? Football? Tik Tok? 
• Play games that involve reading and writing
• Have reading and writing materials easily available 
• Find purposeful ways to engage your children in writing (messages to friends and family, lists, journals, birthday cards, etc)
• Talk about the importance of learning to read and write in your languages

Supporting Literacy in your Community

• Volunteer as a tutor in low-income schools, refugee centers, prisons, shelters, etc
• Volunteer to read aloud at your local library, school or daycare center
• Organize a book donation for low-income schools, daycare centers, etc 
• Organize a contest (short story, poetry, essay, etc)
• Organize a book club 
• Organize an information session for parents on the importance of reading with their children 

Supporting Literacy Globally

• Donate time, expertise or money to organizations, such as:

           Books for Africa
           Book Aid International
           World Literacy Foundation
           LitWorld
           Pencils of Promise 
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We can all play a part in creating a more literate and fair world. 

What do you think?

I've been journaling my busy mind away since I was thirteen years old. The quiet moment between me, the beautiful red notebook I had, and my thoughts - the act of writing them down, putting them into words, organizing them and finding sense in everything (well, not always) has helped me calm my mind and gain perspective in many situations. 

This was also how my passion for the written word started - I realized how well I could express myself and how I enjoyed crafting with words. Since then I went on to write many short stories (in Portuguese, published in a collection), blog posts, a novella and a book. 

That was journaling in the most popular sense of the word. 

Now throughout my teaching practice I've discovered that children can journal too - in many different ways! And what they have to gain from it is just as rich:

• They can learn to sit with their emotions, think about and express them.
• They can follow an interest, have a hobby and enjoy recording it.
• They can become more fluent, confident writers. 
• They can become better communicators. 
• They can learn that writing doesn’t have to be a chore, that it can be cozy and creative. 
• And they can see how powerful a tool the written word can be. 

In a multilingual home, journaling can be a compelling and effective way to make writing a habit and to support literacy in your family languages. Good reading and writing skills are a sum of consistent, small, daily efforts. So if literacy in the minority language is one of your goals, you will need to be persistent, patient and have a variety of activities under your sleeve.

If you'd like to DIY, here are some prompts you can translate to your language(s) and adapt to your family. You can write them on strips of paper and put them in a jar, box or tin; you can print them and glue them on popsicle sticks; you can make a little booklet and gift it this holiday season! 

52 Journal Prompts for Kids to Record Their Lives and Thoughts
300 Creative Writing Prompts for Kids 
(If you search for 'Journal Prompts for Kids' in your language you will find lots of great ideas!)

I have also researched and selected a few journals for your inspiration. Some are available in different languages, others aren't. I would love to know if you have a recommendation of a journal in your language! 

A Pandemic Journal: Free Printable in Multiple Languages
The Happy Self Journal (English, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Dutch, German, French, Italian)
Big Life Journals 
I Love the Earth: A Journal for Celebrating and Protecting our Planet
I Love Science: A Journal for Self-Discovery and Big Ideas
Journals by Wee Society 
Me and My Big Move
Over Ons, Van Ons (Dutch)

Journaling is one of the tips for Writing Motivation you can find in The Toolbox for Multilingual Families. Add this book to your multilingual parenting arsenal!

Happy Writing! :)

I've been a language teacher and enthusiast for half of my life. I've learned about foreign language learning and experienced it myself. 

For a couple of years now I've been immersed in everything multilingual children and how they acquire different languages at the same time. 

I've dreamed of the day my own children would be growing up multilingual. I would love to see them speaking to my family in Brazil, reading and writing in Portuguese. 

But then I had a baby… 

The most common advice out there is that you should talk to your baby even before they're born. I honestly found myself feeling quite awkward talking to my bump. I tried reading aloud, but I didn't have much material in Portuguese at the time. So yeah, during pregnancy my partner and I read a little bit and awkwardly talked to the bump a little bit.
 
When she was born I thought "No time to waste! She's here, she sees me, she hears me, she's watching and learning all the time! Let's dooooo this!" 

But then… postpartum exhaustion! And you know what newborns actually do most of the time? Eat, sleep, pee and poop. How am I supposed to talk to her? To give her that precious language input?
 
When I started feeling a bit more like myself and when she started staying more alert, I naturally incorporated "conversations" during: diaper changes, feeding and tummy time. I say good morning, ask how she slept, if she had good dreams, I describe what we're doing, talk about the day ahead, about the weather, etc. I do baby talk, which is slower, emphasizes vowel sounds and helps babies distinguish the sounds and words of a particular language. She started cooing and making cute sounds, so I reply - and so she learns how conversations work! 

We also add to the experience by singing and reading a lot to her - pretty much any time she's awake! I honestly like that better than talking, I feel like there’s a purpose and an end to it. 
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As with any advice, we see what works for us. How do/did you talk to your babies?

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