Reading for pleasure is pretty much taken for granted in the UK, but in Uganda most people only ready for necessary information (text books, reports, the Bible, etc). But we believe that reading stories is essential for a child’s growth – not only does it improve their reading ability and vocabulary, but also their creative thinking, which leads to creative problem-solving.
When we read, we are forced to imagine… creating pictures in our minds. And between readings, if it’s a good book, the anticipation makes us imagine what will happen next. Of course, if it’s a really good book, we sit up with it all night until it’s finished!!
So we have a rare thing in Uganda… an ever-expanding children’s library! Huge thanks go to schools who have donated books, and to Pat and her team at Friends of Teso who organised the container which brought the latest batch of books over to us.
Enough… I’ve got to get back to my book!
• Picture by Alexander Rhind
