This week has been proclaimed as Family Literacy Week in Swift Current.

The proclamation came at last week's city council meeting as a way to celebrate Family Literacy Day on Saturday, January 27.

Bula Ghosh is a member of the Southwest Literacy Committee and said that this year the committee chose the theme of the week to be libraries: the path to family literacy.

"The libraries this year went through a lot of struggle because there was the potential of the funding being cut," she said. "So we wanted to highlight the role that libraries play in promoting literacy and continuous learning."

Ghosh adds that this year the committee has organized activities in Swift Current, Maple Creek, and Leader.

"All the events are in partnership with the Chinook School Divison," she said. "Grade 3 students will be coming in at different times, and they will be a book that will be read and will participate in various activities. The events will be taking place at the local libraries. It's open to the public, and we hope members of the public will also join, and that family will bring their children and participate."

Swift Current will be having four reading sessions at 9 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 12:45 p.m., and 2:00 p.m., while Maple Creek and Leader will both have one with Maple Creek's coming at 9:30 a.m., and Leader's after 1:00 p.m.

Ghosh adds that this year they are trying to get families to read with their children at home.

"We hope that the students will take the book home and talk about it with their caregivers, and families, and spread the word and promote reading and learn in different ways."

Ghosh added that they want to encourage families to take more of an interest and be more aware of the role they play to promote development in their child.

"The cognitive development that happens in the child in the very first years from the ages of 1 to 3 often is happening at home. That’s why it’s important that families be more aware of it, and provide a different kind of stimulation to their child so their child can grow and develop to a healthy individual, and also learn to read, write and become literate," she said. "Reading to the child, even if the child is a few months old, reading and getting into the habit of reading and having somebody read or tell stories is very valuable because that creates the interest in the child and we hope they will become avid readers later."

Ghosh adds that they don't want families to force their child to read because they want reading to be a pleasure and not a chore.

"Learning if it happens that way then children will feel more encouraged to be involved in more education-related activities."