International Literacy Day is celebrated each year on September 8th and aims to focus attention on the need to promote worldwide literacy.

Why is literacy important?

According to UNESCO, literacy is a human right, a tool of personal empowerment and a means for social and human development. Literacy is extremely important to the success of individuals in their educational and career goals, the aspirations of their family, and their quality of life. Strong literacy skills are related to having a good job, decent income, and access to advancement opportunities. Individuals with weak literacy skills are more likely to be unemployed or, if employed, to be in jobs that pay little or that offer poor hours or working conditions. Literacy skills open doors and allow people to have the opportunity to succeed in school, work and life.

Celebrating International Literacy Day through Reading and Writing!

At the Library:

Visit your local San Mateo County Library branch, pick up a free International Literacy Day bookmark, and attend a Haiku Writing Workshop. The Haiku workshop will be hands on and interactive, providing a basic introduction to "haiku," an ancient poetic form originating in Japan and now practice all over the world. Participants will be introduced to many different examples, discuss the basic characteristics of the form, learn to write their own and come away with references for their future pursuits. No previous experience with "haiku" or poetry is required to enjoy this session.

• Wednesday, September 8 @ 6:00PM – East Palo Alto Library
• Wednesday, September 15 @ 3:00PM – Millbrae Library
• Thursday, September 23 @ 4:00PM – San Carlos Library
• Wednesday, September 29 @ 4:00PM – Foster City Library

In the Schools:

During the month of September, San Mateo County Library’s Children’s Librarians will visit local elementary schools for an International Literacy Day Postcard Exchange. Students will fill out a postcard with their name, age and favorite book. The collected postcards will then be exchanged with the postcards gathered from another elementary school in a different community, so children all over the county can connect with other kids their age and see what they are reading!

Do you want to continue the celebration?

If you would like to share the gift of reading and writing and change a life, volunteer to tutor adults.

If you know someone who could benefit from free one-on-one tutoring to adults who want to improve their basic reading and writing skills in English, click here.

San Mateo County Library READS helps adults and their families improve their reading and writing skills so they are able to achieve their educational, career, and personal life goals.