Help us rebuild schools in Nepal

Recently, we celebrated the culminating event of our read-aloud teacher training program, a book festival that attracted 230 students, 50 teachers and more than 100 parents from the seven schools participating in the training.

In addition, 25 local political leaders and representatives from 50 neighboring community (or "public") schools attended the festival, held in Shera Bagar of Shivapuri rural municipality in Nuwakot District.

The purpose of the festival is not only to promote reading habits in children but also to give parents and community members an opportunity to visit the schools and learn more about the value of reading aloud with children.

Discovering a new book can be a joy for readers of all ages, especially children. Research shows that classroom read-aloud and independent reading are the most significant predictors of future academic success for children. We want to spread the excitement and positive impact of books and reading to children in rural Nepal, who often do not have access to books.

During the festival, teacher trainers from our partner organization, Kakshyalaya, conducted sessions on book-making and illustration with children. We also conducted a brainstorming session with some students about bees as we plan to make beekeeping a part of the curriculum this year.

The goal of our training program is to encourage teachers to read aloud to their students, improve child literacy and increase awareness of Nepali children’s literature in schools. At the festival, we publicly recognize the teachers who have completed the training.

In Nepal, it’s not a common practice to read aloud to children in class; we encourage teachers to do so (and for parents to try it at home). We also provide books, book racks and low reading tables so that schools can create reading corners for students in first through fifth grades. Teachers tell us that many students spend their spare time with their favorite books in the reading corners. This reinforces the idea that all children enjoy reading; they just need access to books and a place to engage with them.

Thank you for your support in helping us to share the tradition of reading to children.

Together with our local partner in Nepal, Kakshyalaya, we recently concluded the latest round of our read-aloud teacher training programs for 30 teachers in Kavre and Nuwakot districts.

The training was titled Kitab-Kiro, which translates to "Bookworms," and was our attempt to encourage reading habits in children in rural areas, where quality, age-appropriate books can be scarce. We were also trying to change a stereotype about bookworms; generally, a devotion to reading is considered a positive trait, but in Nepal the term has acquired a negative connotation because of the rote memorization required by national examinations.

This was the second year of training for schools in Kavre, so we included elements of social studies as part of literacy instruction. After considering visits to a local pottery as well as a weaving factory, we chose to take the teachers on a group field trip to a saw mill, conveniently located next to the Shanti Niketan School where the training sessions took place.

We also visited a nearby forest, collectively managed for conservation purposes. To get there, our teachers loaded onto the back of a local cargo truck for a bumpy, dusty and unforgettable 40-minute ride. A forestry service employee discussed native plants and animals along the way.

Twelve teachers from five schools participated in the training, centered on the idea that social studies is at the core of every interaction between people and their environment. Teachers used their experience on the field trip to create appropriate social studies-based learning modules for their respective schools. Some classes will visit the saw mill, while one of the schools participating in the training has planned a beekeeping project for its students.

In Nuwakot, we were conducting the training for the first time with 18 participants. We followed a similar curriculum to what we had used in Kavre a year ago, based on Nepali children’s literature. We helped teachers understand research demonstrating the benefits of children’s literature (in the classroom and in the home) for literacy development. We also discussed what makes a good children’s book, the importance of illustrations, how to practice reading, and the importance of a child’s perspective in learning to read.

Because we offer matching funds to teachers who would like to order books from Nepali publishers, we introduced them to several publishing houses, including RBK, Sangrila and Kathalaya, and Kathmandu Publishers.

We brought all of the teachers from both training sites together for a final group session in Pokhara, a top tourist destination, popular as the base for trekkers to explore the Annapurna ranges in the Himalayas. We treated our teachers to a three-day getaway at a lakeside hotel where they practiced reading aloud as well as basic illustration techniques in paper collage and water colors.

We will be following up with our teachers throughout the year, to help them incorporate reading aloud in their classrooms and plan social studies activities with their students.