“Knowledge comes closer to children”: ChildFund promotes access to books, literacy and life skills

Worldwide, it’s estimated that more than 750 million adults still can’t read or write. If that number seems high to you, there’s a one-word explanation: poverty.
Children growing up in low-income communities face all kinds of barriers to the quality education they need to reach their potential, from under-resourced schools to social or financial pressures that compel them to drop out early. Depending on where they live, children might lack access to free public school, even books in their own language.
In remote parts of East Sumba, Indonesia, where literacy rates are low, the issue is primarily one of geography. Savannas, mountains and rivers separate individual villages and homes, isolating families from formal education and creating a logistical nightmare for book distribution. “About half of my community can’t read or write,” says Dedy Kote, head of Wanga village in East Sumba. “Parents don’t teach their children at home because they themselves can’t read or write. So I can see our children’s excitement whenever the Reading Cart arrives to our village.”

It’s a modest invention — just a green wooden box on a pair of wheels. But to the children in Kote’s community, ChildFund’s Reading Cart is a door to other worlds. Hand-pulled largely by volunteers, the colorful mobile library travels from village to village each week, giving children in hard-to-reach areas — and their families — access to a variety of books they wouldn’t otherwise have, especially ones that reflect their own cultures and experiences. “Not only children, but also adults flock to the cart whenever it comes here,” says Kote.
Established in 2012, the program has grown to include five different carts that have reached more than 1,000 children in remote villages across East Sumba. Just like an ordinary library, kids can check out books, then return them the following week. The carts help get children and their parents excited about reading, which motivates them to read more often. The result? Improved academic performance — and higher literacy rates.
Of course, according to Andreas Umbu Moto, a program officer for ChildFund’s local partner organization in East Sumba that implements the program, it’s not all just about academics. The cart also helps children develop self-confidence, promotes community engagement and gives the children much-needed leisure time away from the stresses of daily life.
“The Reading Cart not only provides access to books that will increase children’s knowledge, but it also provides a medium for children to play in a more enjoyable way while directly getting the benefits of reading,” he explains.

More than 5,000 miles from East Sumba, in the bustling heart of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, other children are benefiting from access to books. In 2008, ChildFund built a public library — the first of its kind — in Mercato, Africa’s largest open market. The library supplies Mercato’s children with all kinds of books and other reading materials, not to mention a safe, quiet place to study.
Rebka, 13, says she studies for about two hours a day after school, usually in the library. “I used to study at home and occasionally at school, but these days I usually come here for studying,” she says. “I love it here because all my friends are here. … If I am not interested in studying or reading, just watching my friends being busy either studying or doing their homework helps me get my studying mood back.”
Rebka also enjoys the variety of the reading materials. “If I get bored with educational books, I go for the fables.”

That kind of pleasure reading is an important part of literacy. Studies show that reading for pleasure is a better indicator of future success than even socioeconomic status. It can also have a positive impact on children’s health. When children — especially those who face challenging circumstances, like poverty or violence — read stories about characters they relate to, they imagine new possibilities for themselves and feel less alone, which can help them find relief from stress and anxiety.
A pilot ChildFund program in Texas actually uses books and storytelling as tools to help build children’s resilience to traumatic experiences. Based in elementary schools in the Rio Grande Valley, where 68 percent of children live in high-poverty neighborhoods, the program connects at-risk students to culturally relevant books that promote positive socioemotional concepts: self-confidence, stress management, conflict resolution.
Then, “based on the books, we develop activities that promote socioemotional learning in students,” says Santiago Baldazo, with ChildFund Texas. In addition to participating in schoolwide activities themed after the book, students also discuss the stories in small-group “talking circles,” where they engage in games, role play, song and dance that help them internalize the books’ messages. “Students are given the tools to be able to respond to worries. It’s a safe environment that we’re creating, so the children get to listen to each other and support each other in respectful ways,” says Baldazo.

So far, the pilot has been successful with students, teachers and families. ChildFund is excited about the potential to scale up the program and connect children to the power of reading in other innovative ways. Whether in an American school, an Ethiopian market or a remote Indonesian village, we know that promoting literacy is about more than just helping children achieve academically. It’s about reaching them where they are with the skills they need to thrive in the classroom and out.
“We aim to help children improve their cognitive skills, but also their confidence, cultural awareness and moral values,” says Moto, in Indonesia. “With these programs, knowledge comes closer to children.”

