Learning the basics

Last year when we moved to the Halifax area, I started volunteering with a literacy program for new immigrants to Canada. I had taught my own kids for 10 years and so even though I was nevous about working with adults who could barely speak English, I was excited and thought I would enjoy the experience.

It turns out, I do love it. And I've learned so much and it's fun to see the skills build each week. It's also very inspiring. These men and women come to Canada with skill sets that have served them well their entire lives and now they are completely useless. When was the last time you used scissors? We don't even think about it but most of these adult learners have never cut anything with scissors.

And when was the last time you wrote your child's name? Most of the new comers to Canada in this program don't have literacy in their first language and so don't have the basic skills to transfer over and learn English. I've been working one on one with a lady this fall and last week she was so proud of herself because she can now spell all of her children's names. When I look ahead and see how far she has to go to have a working literacy, it's dauanting. But if I just look at each week, I can see huge improvement and I see her determination and it's truly exciting.