INNISFAIL – Older adults need to embrace the value of literacy to be a contributing part of today’s computer world while children ought to seize the joy of reading old-fashioned books.
That was just one message for the dozens of Innisfailians who came to the Innisfail Library/Learning Centre on Jan. 27 to celebrate the second annual Family Literacy Festival, an event marked across the province and Canada.
Innisfail’s annual festival was organized and hosted by the local library, the Henday Association for Lifelong Learning and the Envision Children Innisfail Coalition. The Town of Innisfail was well represented with mayor Jim Romane and several councillors meeting and greeting children and parents, and to cook hotdogs.
"Literacy is huge for me and my goal and my pre-school, and to get involved with anything in the community to do with literacy is really important for me, to get the word out to parents about the library and to bring their kids,” said Robin Mower, owner and teacher of Little Scholars Pre-school, who attended the festival.
The public awareness messaging on literacy, especially important in today’s high-tech world, was the main driving force of the day, with many attendees reminded that literacy ought to be important for both the young and old.
"The demographics are changing to some degree but I know my father, who was born around 1910, didn’t learn how to read until he was about 10 or 12 years old,” said Romane. "I am not sure what the percentages are today with adult literacy. It would probably be interesting to see.”
Members of the three organizing groups put together 11 different activity stations, including ones for games, marshmallow building, block play, a sensory area, duct tape art, blackout poetry, string art, and one from Red Deer College that featured robotics and 3D printers.
"Block play creates problem solving skills and those executive functioning skills that help adults solve problems, and helps kids think outside the box so they can solve their own problems and create things from their imagination,” said Reshann Butts, chair of the coalition, adding it was important to be part of the festival as it would show both children and parents literacy skills are lifelong, and can be incorporated into many areas of their lives.
Library manager Sara Kepper said new challenges faced by older adults with constantly evolving computer technology has made the annual event more important then ever. She added there still remains a significant number of older citizens challenged on literacy.
"I think it’s important to move (older adults) along,” said Kepper. "With children, because computers are so prevalent, books are still important.
"We have to bring them up to books and the older generation up to the computer age,” she added.
Sara Kepper, library manager
"I think it's important to move (older adults) along. With children, because computers are so prevalent, books are still important."
