It was hosted by the Junior League of Stamford-Norwalk (JLSN) and the Stamford Public Education Foundation (SPEF).
Four times each year, SPEF and JLSN bring Literacy Night to low-income kindergarten, first and second grade children and their families in the South End. Each day, these students travel by bus to get to their school in Springdale. Their lives are also complicated because most of their parents speak limited English.
“It is important to us that this program takes place in the comfort of their own community, in their own language, creating a safe space for these families to speak openly about the challenges they are facing,” said Sennéa Raslan, SPEF’s program director.
Children engaged in literacy-based activities, such as reading with volunteers, and parents learned ways to navigate the Stamford Public School system. Specifically at this session, Spanish-speaking teachers from Springdale met with parents to discuss the struggles their children are facing with education, and the importance of completing homework each night to prevent them from falling further behind.
Dinner was enjoyed by all, and at the end of the evening, each child left the Lathon Wilder Community Center with a goodie bag and new age-appropriate books in English and Spanish in order to build a home library.
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