Story time

The Paper Bag Princess

We had our first Story-time with Oti's kids last month. When we read to the kids, we select books that have a positive message, communicate truth, demonstrate problem solving skills, and make the children think and laugh. So for this Story-time, we read the Paper Bag Princess about a girl who outsmarts a dragon and helps rescue the prince. One message in this story is that it doesn't matter how you dress or if your hair is messy, what matters is who you are on the inside. It also portrays the heroine as brave and smart. Everyone, including Oti, enjoyed the story. 






One of our goals with story time is to help the kids comprehend and think creatively about what they heard. So after Beti finished reading, each child decorated their own paper bag to wear, and then colored pictures of the princess in the story. 

 Second story-time;
Lily and the Purple Plastic Purse

Recently we had our second story-time with Oti when a team was here serving with us. As I was watching Oti's kids and the kids from the team, it occurred to me that, while story-time is nothing new for these kids from the U.S., this was only the second time EVER for Oti's kids to be read aloud to, outside of school. (We assume the teacher reads out loud to the kids in school.) Since Oti is illiterate, she has never read stories to her kids.

 

My hope is that they will learn to love to read! (All of them are just learning.) Along with many Americans, reading and access to books and libraries is something I took for granted in the U.S. But here in Mexico, libraries are very rare and reading isn't encouraged by many parents. For those of us with kids, it's hard to imagine having a 5 year old, let alone 12 year old who has never been read to. So story time for Jeny, Marisol, Paty, Yasmin, Leti, Adela, and Rodrigo is something special. A new form of entertainment, with new and exciting adventures! 

Some of the impact of reading and the Mobile Education Resource Center (MERC) with Oti's kids include:  and increase in their desire to learn and in how they color a picture, improvement in penmanship and fundamentally, learning how to read and how it can be fun. Please continue to pray for them to learn to love reading, and to progress in school.