Nationale Voorleesdagen (National Reading Days)

Couple weeks ago, I received an email from Runa’s school. The title of the email is Informatie ouders Nationale Voorleesdagen SKSG Vuurtoren. The email of course in Dutch, heu. What was the email about?

Turned out that the school informed the parents about the National Reading Days (27 January – 6 February). They also told us the prentenboek van het jaar 2016 was: We Hebben we een Geitje bij!

Prentenboek (google translate: picture book) is a children book where text and illustrations complement each other and together tell a story. Usually the story is not too long, it has few text, also interesting pictures! This educational book intended to educate children. So, children can learn to read themselves or parents can read along with their children. The story in it has a positive purpose, bring satisfaction to the reader, or in short, a happy ending story.

Actually, not only the school that promote about the Nationale Voorleesdagen, but also kinder en jeugd centrum (posyandu), Het Dok (semacam kantor kecamatan), library, also book store, etc.  I also saw the commercial about the reading days and the prentenboek there. 

I was very impressed that government really care about children interest in reading. They made that ‘reading is essential’, they foster reading habit in children. So, every year they create an event for reading days, in school, in library, in book store, in winkelcentrum. Also they publish the boek van het jaar (the book of the year).

At first, I just did not realize what the event for Nationale Voorleesdagen in Runa’s school. Then, one day, when I picked up Runa from school, she told me a new story that I haven’t heard yet. I asked who read you that story? She said: juf (teacher). She even told me the story in Dutch. I only heard a bit “geitje bij…” from her. Ahh I knew! The teacher must be read the story about We Hebben we een Geitje bij.

After that day, Runa and I visited library near our neighborhood. I just curious on the story. Yes, the famous book was displayed there. Unfortunatelly we can’t borrow it, it still belong to the library book exhibition. But we can read it there. The story is just so simple.. especially for children, no wonder they can follow the story line and fascinated about it.

Samenvatting: Op de kinderboerderij is een nieuwe bewoner geboren. Vσσr Mik het babygeitje heeft gevonden moet hij langs alle andere kinderboerderijdieren, die elk op hun eigen manier uiting geven aan hun blijdschap over de geboorte van het nieuwe geitje.

Resume: A new inhabitant was born in the farm, the baby goat (geitje). Mik (the boy) found that all the animals in the farm were happy and expressed their own joy to welcome the baby goat birth.

As simple as that.

In Runa’s school, the program of Nationale Voorleesdagen actually is not only about reading the story, but also really celebrating the reading days and the theme. First, couple days before they read the story, they just went to the kinder boerderij (a small farm for children. They can see goat, cow, horse, pig, chicken, etc..) near the neighborhood. They paint the windowpane of the school with little goat and letters ‘We Hebben we een Geitje bij. Aand.. Last Friday, Runa showed me that they decorated fur for the little goat at the wall (the picture is below). Each goat has name who decorated it. Runa goat is at the corner, near the sun.

What a really lovely event. I hope we can raise our children with enjoyable reading habits