I will start by stating the obvious: reading and writing should bring joy. This is something that may seem straightforward but is often not the first thing that comes to mind when youth think of these two activities. Especially if the development of literacy skills has been proven a challenge, individuals may consider them miserable at best. When I started reading in elementary school, I felt proud knowing I was ahead of my peers. It was something I was good at because my parents had been reading to me every night, up until the moment I decided I would read to them instead. While my parents may not have enjoyed story-time as much as they said they did, I like to believe that listening to their little girl read her own books was something to look forward to. Over the years I would get excited about book fairs, visit the library weekly to get new books and spend every free moment reading. I would eat, sleep, and breathe books until I started high school. Unfortunately, the required readings for language classes turned my love into hate. Something I had always been so passionate about and the thing I would consider my main - if not only - hobby would turn into the one activity I truly despised. It wasn't until ten years later that I rediscovered my love for reading, thanks to the Goodreads community and so-called Booktubers on YouTube. Everything changes if you give youth the chance to explore and pursue their own interests. It will help them find balance in their personal lives, as well as in their professional lives.
It is important to renew the four dimensions of human nature to live a healthy and happy life. These include the physical, spiritual, mental, and social/emotional aspects that should be balanced for efficacy (Covey, 2020). Physical care directly affects the endurance, flexibility, and strength of both the body and mind. Spiritual care is not merely limited to religion, but also includes immersion in art and nature. Mental care involves continuous education through experiences and activities. Social/emotional care involves communication and creative expression (Covey, 2020). When learners get a chance to sharpen their saw and invest in themselves, it allows them to develop and sustain growth.
Image source: (as cited in Yadav, 2017).
The mental and physical well-being of youth is beneficial to their literacy development. While a balanced individual tends to enjoy reading and writing slightly more than those who are imbalanced, real improvement can be found in their perception of themselves as a reader/writer and their opinion of reading and writing as activities (Clark & Teravainen-Goff, 2018). This shows how the physical, spiritual, mental, and social/emotional health of youth affects literacy and vice versa. Not only does it help individuals discover their inner strengths, but it also encourages them to connect with others through understanding and sharing. "And isn't that what all of this is about? Finding a way at the end of the day, to not feel alone in this world and a way to feel we've changed it before we leave?" (Woodson, 2019).
Video source: (Woodson, 2019).
- February: Black History Month
- March: National Education Association (NEA)'s Read Across America
(celebrated on the 2nd day as well as throughout the rest of the year) - April: National Poetry Month
- May: Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
- June - August: Summer Reading
- August - September: Back to School!
- September: Hispanic Heritage Month
- October: Learning Disabilities and Dyslexia Awareness Month
- November: American Indian, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian Heritage Month
