Support literacy and learning for 1,900 Maya youth

At Limitless Horizons Ixil, one of the ways we ensure that the Saber Sin Límites Community Library meets the needs of the community of Chajul is by regularly soliciting feedback from those who matter most – our library users themselves. As important partners in the library’s success, we are excited to share with you the results of this year’s Library Satisfaction Survey so you can see how your partnership is paying off in Chajul!

We are thrilled to report that 100% of these young people shared that they believe reading is important and education provides opportunities – especially significant considering they very likely had never held a book before joining the library! When asked why they felt this way, respondents were eager to share. One noted, “Stories motivate you – they bring you knowledge, improve your vocabulary, and help you to express yourself better.” Another told us, “Books tell important life stories. They give us positive examples to follow and negative examples to learn from.” This feedback supports our strong belief that in addition to providing crucial educational support, the library is nurturing children’s natural inclination to explore, learn, and grown.

Of our services, we weren’t surprised to learn that our younger users join us most often for story hours, while older users come for study support. In fact, these older youth (middle school and high school students) reported that they were most satisfied with the homework and research support they get from librarians and the tutoring sessions. One participant commented that she thought the tutors explained concepts better than her teachers at school, and she liked that she could ask questions to learn more. Another said that she loves that the library gives her education support that she doesn’t get at home, since she is already in a higher grade at school than her parents ever reached. Feedback for story hour was also overwhelmingly positive; one user immediately exclaimed, “I love it and always go!” while others told us how much they enjoyed learning about the history of Chajul through stories.

These results certainly reflect how your support is creating a critical public asset to the community of Chajul. Together, through the Saber Sin Límites Community Library, we are interacting with children’s natural curiosity and motivation to learn and explore, while fostering a long-term love for reading and learning – and providing the resources to do so. Thanks to you, literacy and education are being supported in ways that would not otherwise be possible. We are sincerely grateful for your partnership with Limitless Horizons Ixil—together we are creating change in Chajul that will have a positive impact for generations to come!

Photo Credit: Anna Watts

Did you know that every single one of the 30 Mayan languages still spoken today is endangered? Ixil, the primary language spoken in Chajul, is one of these. While the community has a rich oral storytelling tradition, Ixil literature has been nearly non-existent until now. The language didn’t even have a written alphabet until the 1980s, and many adults are illiterate due to lack of educational opportunity during the 36-year Guatemalan Civil War.

To work against this trend, Limitless Horizons Ixil is publishing one of the first-ever bilingual Ixil-Spanish books! We are partnering with a Chajulense archeologist and linguist to create this book with 15 traditional Ixil stories, collected through interviews with community elders. And we are very proud to announce that our scholars will be the book’s illustrators! This first-of-its-kind collection will soon be available in our Saber Sin Límites (Limitless Knowledge) Community Library, and we can’t wait to share it with our young readers at our weekly story hours!

In addition to creating Ixil literature, our community library and literacy activities open the world of reading to youth in the community for the first time. We offer access to nearly 9,000 books, weekly story hours, tutoring, book clubs, and science and art activities.

Thanks to your support, Chajul is seeing its first generation of educated young leaders with a love for reading. Community elders are grateful that youth today have opportunities for education that weren't available when they were young. Don't just take it from us! Check out our new video to hear what community members think of the library. Thank you for making literacy in Chajul possible!