Family Literacy Day

Pain and an infection have kept me from sleeping well for several days, so I am a bit fuzzy and bleary-eyed lately, but I can't blame that for last night's lack of shut eye. No, I have to 'fess up.  It was a book that would not allow me to close my eyes until 2 a.m. 

Fitting then, to learn that today is Family Literacy Day.  According to ABC Life Literacy Canada's website, Family Literacy Day is a national awareness initiative created to raise awareness of the importance of reading and engaging in other literacy-related activities as a family.  To mark the day, we are encouraged to engage in some kind of literacy activity with people we love today, whether that is learning something new together, playing a game, or simply reading time.

Reading our respective books has provided beautiful quiet time together in our home over the years, but reading aloud has been provided some of our best family moments:  tears in my eyes and choking out the words while reading the battle of Molly Weasley and Bellatrix Lestrange; not being able to get through the passage where Beth dies; the look on my son's face when we learned the meaning of Ender's final battle scene; feeling compelled to stop and re-read parts of alarming beauty between Atticus, Scout, and Jem. 

To mark Family Literacy Day, I offer my top 10 list of beautiful books to read out loud:

1. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
2. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
3. Silverwing by Kenneth Oppel
4. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
5. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
6. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
7. The Magic Tree House books by Mary Pope Osbourne
8. Junie B. Jones series by Barbara Park
9. Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
10. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume

This list, of course, could be a lot longer.  What are your favourites?

wishing you a beautiful day of celebrating literacy in your own way,
hk