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We got a lot of support for our second annual Love of Literacy Luncheon on Feb. 8 in Boynton Beach.

Literacy is a word we use often in describing our programs and events.

Take a few moments to understand what it means and how beneficial it is for our children and families.

What is literacy?

The word literacy that seems to have been used since the end of the 19th century, refers to the ability of a person to read a text or produce it on a physical or virtual medium. Literacy is a process that begins when you learn to draw or recognize certain letters on a keyboard, and join those forming sentences and words that we can read and give them a meaning. For those who do not have the possibility to see, literacy is done by the Braille system. As a process is continuous and perfectible, because many can read and write, but do not know the meaning of many words, cannot understand the author’s message, cannot adequately convey what they wanted to express and so on. Those who do not know how to read and write are illiterate and who, despite being able to do so, do so in a rudimentary way, without being able to understand the meaning of the expressions, are called functional illiterates, which is natural in preadolescent children but should be gradually overcome as the skill is advanced.

The literacy rate is very important to determine the degree of development of a country or region. In most countries of the world, the primary education of children is at least mandatory, which is why the number of illiterates tends to decrease. The creation of adult education plans also contributes to eradicating the problem of illiteracy, which still registers very high rates especially in African countries.

Without a doubt, literacy is a very important stage in our lives, since it is in this process that we discover reading and interpreting things.

Professionals in this area, through a well-developed learning process and with adequate goals and objectives, are considered important people in this stage, as it has the responsibility to qualify the students, helping them on a wide range of subjects.

The way to learn or to read and write will depend on the student, since each one has its limitations and aptitudes for the methodologies, so it is up to the teacher to understand the need of each student and work on it.

The role of the teacher in the student literacy process is to work in the best possible way to teach, write and encourage reading, not to mention that he must find ways to make the student interested in learning. Student will know how to relate better to people and build knowledge for themselves.

The understanding of each teacher regarding the construction of knowledge and learning is fundamental for the students, because it is through literacy that he will make discoveries of the most varied subjects.

Reading is an option in building students’ interest in studies, so it is up to the teacher to provide that contact. This importance is due to the awakening of the will to read and learn, we become adults who have reading and learning as a habit, not to mention that we also know many ways to correctly pronounce words and understand texts that sometimes seem impossible to understand.

10 benefits of literacy

Literacy has benefits beyond improving reading and writing skills. There are several additional benefits that are not highlighted immediately.

Literacy is much more than just decoding letters – that is, learning to read and writing – because when you are literate you are open to understanding various social, cultural, and linguistic aspects. See 10 advantages literacy brings to your life:

1. Being literate transforms the individual in various ways, because it will make him understand better about the social and cultural aspect.
2. A literate person guarantees the best exercise of citizenship, since they will understand and know about their rights and duties.
3. With literacy, you will be able to better understand what has been read and know what is the best use of the word and the meaning of it.
4. It is a unique enrichment, not to mention that it is a form of human and social development.
5. You will not only know how to read and write, but understand what was read and know how to make the best use of the word.
6. Good learning is essential if students are to be able to develop their citizenship role in the future.
7. You will feel closer to society, feel part of it as well and relate better to people.
8. Literacy prepares you for life, both personal and professional.
9. It is the basis for a concrete and constructive education.
10. It is a right and a form of enrichment, since literacy is the basic essence of education.

Literacy is a fundamental process to guarantee the right of all people to quality education and lifelong learning. It promotes autonomy, self-esteem, social and gender equity, knowledge, capacity building, human, social, cultural and economic development.

What’s on your mind?

Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group recently hosted two BRIDGES Take Action — Oscar-themed events (one in English and one in Spanish) to inspire our residents to tell us how our programs are received in the community and what our staff can do better to help families thrive in Palm Beach County. The events were also to thank the 118 members/clients who participated in a survey process.

The events came after an evaluation by Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County that found many of the children attending our BRIDGES programs aren’t as proficient in reading and aren’t as ready for kindergarten as children in other parts of Palm Beach County. For example, in Palm Beach County, 90% of kindergarteners were screened as “ready,” whereas 77% of Lake Worth West kindergarteners were ready.

That’s no major surprise, considering our BRIDGES programs exist to raise children’s reading levels and get children prepared for school. As part of BRIDGES, there are monthly educational workshops on topics, such as improving reading and better parenting.

Rhonda Rogers, executive director of Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group, said our staff is making progress in getting children better prepared for school. But, she said, there are barriers — including language challenges, domestic violence incidents, and immigration concerns — that can stand in the way of children succeeding in school.

“Many of our families are going through a lot of things, but we’re working with them and helping their children get better prepared for school,” Rogers said. “These children are resilient and they will accomplish many good things.”

At the BRIDGES Take Action events, residents came to celebrate BRIDGES and have fun, as well as, of course, to offer ideas on making our workshops stronger and improving the community. Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group is now working on an action plan to address those issues.

“We set up the BRIDGES Take Action events to listen, take notes and commit to action – and that’s exactly what we’ll do,” Rogers said.